If old soldiers never die, William Earl Alley is one more living proof of it. “Earl,” as his family and friends call him, has tales to tell that would fill a volume of World War II chronicles. Indeed, he has started to write a book of his memoirs for the sake of his two girls, seven grandchildren, and twenty-five great-grandchildren. Woman pilots, victory gardens, K-rations, and spam; politics, prison reform, computers, and genealogy: there isn’t a topic that escapes his interest or that doesn’t elicit a stream of enthusiastic conversation.
One of “The Greatest Generation,” Earl joined the Marine Corps sixty-seven years ago in 1942. Nineteen-year-old Earl married Jewell, his wife, when he was fresh out of boot camp and set to deploy to the Marshall Islands. Theirs, however, was no ordinary courtship. Determined to win “the girl of his dreams,” he applied for a leave which was subsequently denied because his Company was about to ship out. Earl, however, was single-minded in his desire to marry. He went AWOL, returned to Pulaski County and proposed to his sixteen-year-old sweetheart. The two eloped to Abington, Virginia, and despite the fact that they had to “cross their fingers” when asked about age, (you had to be 21 to get a marriage license), they tied the knot. This happy occasion, however, did not come without a price. Once Earl returned to camp, he was severely disciplined, sentenced to thirty days in solitary confinement, limited to rations of bread and water, and fined $150.00. It was at this point that he learned painfully that “If you can’t do the time, then don’t commit the crime.”
Today he looks back on an otherwise noteworthy military career. Private 1st Class Alley was awarded the Bronze Star for his heroic efforts against Japanese forces in Saipan. As leader of a Mortar Squad in Company E, Second Battalion, Twenty-fifth Marines, Fourth Marine Division, he was instrumental in “annihilating a majority of the enemy” by laying down a heavy mortar barrage on advancing forces during an intense enemy counter attack. Today, when he speaks of this prestigious honor, Earl is quick to tell you that the “award belongs to God who saw me through the fighting. But,” he adds with a twinkle, “God doesn’t accept medals, so the Marine Corps gave the medal to me.” He was present at the first flag raising on Iwo Jima in 1945, an historic event that still fills him with nostalgia and pride.
After his honorable discharge, Earl was hired by his brother-in-law and began a thirty-four year career in newspaper printing. He had always been a latent “Mr. Fix-it,” and after retirement he found odd jobs remodeling homes and doing carpentry work. But above all else, he loved his time in College Park where he worked as a maintenance man for the University of Maryland.
Earl feels the experiences and discipline gained in World War II and Perris Island have made him the caring man he is today. Certainly, they have helped make him a civic-minded member of Beacon Woods; one who currently serves as Vice-President of the Eagleswood Condominiums, figures prominently in our Memorial Day celebrations, and is a friendly, caring member of the community. We salute him and the other military men who have served us so well!
Special Reports 
