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USS Indianapolis survivor Harold Bray gets ultimate gift – Times Herald Online.Harold Bray turns 99 years old on Monday, so naturally, the Benicia community showered him with gifts on Saturday morning.Speeches full of praise, a cake full of frosting, and five new plaques full of bronze and honor awaited the last USS Indianapolis survivor.At Saturday’s dedication ceremony at Benicia’s Eunice Jensen Park, new plaques with a photo and information on Bray were unveiled near the statue of a young Bray.After the tarp came off the plaques, Bray saw them for the first time, with help from his wife Stephanie, and sister-in-law Debbie, along with author, filmmaker, and designated Bray historian Sara Vladic, the official storyteller and honorary survivor of the USS Indianapolis.“I like the big picture of me there,” Harold said, pointing to the picture of himself from 81 years ago with a chuckle.“This takes me back a long way.I love how everyone got all this together.I must be the oldest guy in Benicia.But not everyone did something like this, so it’s something I’ll never forget.” Harold was happy to have so many family members on hand for the event.“They all live here.I don’t let them get too far away,” Harold said, still laughing.“I need them for protection.” While serving in World War II, Bray was the very definition of resilience and bravery.After starting in Mare Island, the USS Indianapolis eventually delivered an atomic bomb on Hiroshima in July 1945.On July 30 of that year, Japanese submarine I-58, captained by Commander Mochitsura Hashimoto, fired two torpedoes that struck the Indianapolis on its starboard side — one in the bow and one amidship, killing approximately 300 of the 1,195 sailors.The rest jumped ship, only to land in the Philippine Sea — full of not just salt water, but massive amounts of oil and sharks.Only 316 sailors — one of them an 18-year-old Bray — would survive three and a half days at sea.“At first I couldn’t believe it was going down — how could something so beautiful sink?” Bray said in 2014.“I got to the fantail, and I saw three guys leaning up against the bulkhead.I started thinking, ‘I better get off this thing.’ I grabbed the lifeline and ran down the side of the ship to get away from the screws.That’s when I jumped a good 40 feet.I hit the water and a lot of oil right away.It was so thick, there was no getting around it.” In just 12 minutes, the Indianapolis had sunk.It would not be found for another 72 years.“With the moon being really bright that night, you could still see people jumping off the ship,” Bray told the Times-Herald in 2014.“It was like ants coming off a stick.” After the war, Bray received an honorable discharge from the Navy in Illinois.From there, he soon moved to Benicia, where he has lived ever since.Bray would eventually join the Benicia Police Department, where he worked in patrol and narcotics until 1983, when he retired.In September of 2022, following the death of his shipmate, Cleatus Lebow, at the age of 98 in Amarillo, Bray became the last living survivor.However, as Vladic said in her speech, “Harold does not stand alone.” “For years, Harold would joke that he was going to be the last survivor,” Vladic said.“At the time, it sounded like one of those trademark one-liner quips that he would give us.But now that the day has actually come, he has admitted something more honest — it’s lonely.There is no one left who remembers Indianapolis exactly how he does.There is nobody who has shared the same moments or carried the same moments in quite the same way.Reality comes with both honor and weight.“But I don’t believe Harold stands alone,” Vladic continued.“Because while he may be the last crewman of the USS Indianapolis, he is no longer the only keeper of the story.That’s why this monument matters.This monument is not just bronze and stone.It’s a promise.A promise that the names engraved here will continue to be spoken.A promise that future generations will learn what happened, why it mattered, and who these men were.A promise that the responsibility of remembrance belongs not just to Harold but all of us.” Benicia Mayor Steve Young thanked the many who made the statue and plaques at the site possible.“This will be a monument that will last a very long time,” Benicia Mayor Steve Young said.“I want to thank Mr.Bray for his service both to his nation and to his city … Thank you to all that came and to those that made this possible.” Debbie Bray also thanked the community for coming together for Harold.“I couldn’t be prouder of Benicia,” Debbie said.“They bought bricks.They supported this and donated their time.This legacy will honor all veterans and will make sure all kids will learn about those who paid the price.” Debbie thanked David Batchelor, Co-Founder and Chair of the Benicia Community Foundation, Inc.& Managing Partner, one of the main people responsible for getting the statue and plaques to the site.“This is important,” Batchelor said.“This reminds future generations that freedom does not come for free.It’s earned and protected by ordinary men and women who answered the call to serve something greater than themselves.People of Benicia came together to preserve history and honor service and create a place where future generations can learn, reflect, and remember why we have our way of life.”