St. Augustine’s Ed Trester commemorates D-Day as a U.S. Merchant Marine

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St. Augustine’s Ed Trester commemorates D-Day as a U.S. Merchant Marine who served during World War II, including the Normandy Invasion.

One June 6, 2024, we commemorate the 80th anniversary of the invasion of Normandy, known as D-Day. Dubbed by historians as the beginning of the end of World War II, Allied Forces from the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom invaded the beaches of Normandy, France, which was then occupied by German forces.

The ground, airborne and amphibious assault, described as the largest naval, air and ground operation in history, landed approximately 156,000 Allied troops on beaches codenamed Gold, Juno and Sword, with Americans landing on Utah Beach.

U.S. forces faced heavy resistance on Omaha Beach which resulted in over 2,000 American casualties. History estimates the loss of 4,000 Allied lives with thousands more wounded or missing. By June 11, the beaches were completely secured with 326,000 troops, 50,000 vehicles and over 100,000 tons of equipment. The Normandy Invasion spearheaded the liberation of France and West Europe and the victory of Allied Forces on the Western Front.

During World War II (WW II), the U.S. Merchant Marine sailed on cargo vessels transporting food; aircraft; gas; oil; guns; howitzer shells; artillery; jeeps; trucks; tanks; bombs; shells; medicine; medical supplies; field equipment, and general supplies to the Allied Forces fighting on foreign battlefields.

The U.S. Maritime Service, described as desperate for mariners at the onset of World War II, accepted anyone who could ship out immediately, including16-year-olds; those who were physically impaired or unfit to serve in other military branches; and retired seaman. These brave souls battled the perils of thousands and thousands of miles of open seas under horrific weather conditions and foreign military attacks.

According to the War Shipping Administration, the U.S. Merchant Marine suffered the highest casualty rate of any military service during World War II. Statistics indicate that 1,554 ships sunk. Hundreds were damaged by torpedoes, shelling, bombs, kamikazes, mines, etc. This list includes foreign flag ships transporting Naval Armed Guards and ships belonging to U.S. territories such as the Philippines.

Despite these grave losses, Merchant Marines were not considered military servicemen and were not entitled to the GI Bill, home loans, medical or any government benefits designated to every other military branch. It would take years for history to dub the mariners as World War II’s unsung heroes.

In 2020, Congress passed the Merchant Mariners of World War II Congressional Gold Medal Act which was signed into law by then President Donald J. Trump to recognize the Merchant Marines of World War II. The Congressional Gold Medal 2020 was distributed to these mariners.

Ed Trester, a longtime St. Augustine resident, is among those men who received the prestigious, and well-deserved, Congressional Gold Medal.

Now 97, Trester began his career as a Merchant Marine in the spring of 1944 at the age of 17. With World War II “raging all around us,” the “brash” Brooklyn teenager quit high school to follow his older brother into the U.S. Navy, but was rejected for being too young.

“So, I walked to the Merchant Marine office and signed up, not realizing how fast things were going to move for little Eddie,” he said. “My father, a police officer, wasn’t too happy about me quitting school, but both parents eventually agreed to sign the necessary documents and gave me their blessing.”

Trester passed the physical and within two weeks was enroute with “a bunch of other fellas,” to train at Sheepshead Bay in Brooklyn, New York. Two weeks later, he boarded his first cargo Liberty Ship out of Philadelphia and travelled to Nova Scotia to join a convoy of 80 ships filled with supplies.

“We were floating warehouses of cargo,” he said. “Stuff was everywhere, in the hall, in the holes of the ship and on deck we had everything imaginable, trucks, jeeps, even airplanes.”

Trester said that the mariners didn’t know where they were going, they simply knew they were crossing the Atlantic Ocean to deliver supplies to the Allied Forces.

“We knew that Germany had invaded Italy, France and Eastern Europe,” he continued. “But at sea that’s all we knew. There was one trip when I looked up at saw the Rock of Gibralter right in front me.”

The news about D-Day reached the ships at sea via radio during Trester’s first voyage.

“We knew there had been a tremendous invasion,” he said. “We would later learn that it was the largest military operation that was ever staged. D-Day was really the turning point of the war. It was the first step of liberation for Europe. But quite a few guys died on the beachhead in Normandy.”

Life at sea for was dangerous as the convoy travelled to North Africa and Marseille France.

“Two ships behind us were torpedoed by a German U-boat submarine,” said Trester. “One, a tanker, just exploded. Men were jumping unto the water because the entire ship was on fire.”

When safely back in New York, with an understanding of the horrors Adolph Hitler imparted on the Jewish people and a “patriotism” stemming from Japan’s attack on Pearl Harbor, Trester returned to sea within two weeks.  

“We were halfway across the Atlantic when we heard about VE-Day,” he said. “We were still fighting Japan, so we made a U-turn into the Panama Canal to deliver supplies to our soldiers in Manila. We were still in port when the atom bombs were dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. The war was over before we set back to New York.”

Four months later, Trester found himself on Omaha Beach unloading supplies.

“Bodies were still strewn all over the beaches,” he said. “It was a mess.”

 Trester’s career spanned seven years with some “interesting” voyages.

“We took German prisoners back to New York,” he said. “That was quite a trip.”

Other trips included returning with equipment that had been scattered all over the world along with American troops, war brides and their babies, and even mothers-in-law from Great Britain.

At the onset of falling in love, Trester resigned as a Merchant Marine.

“The years I spent as a Merchant Marine made me a better man,” he said. “We wouldn’t have won World War II without the Merchant Marines supplying troops all over the world. One in 26 Merchant Marines went down with their ships. That’s the highest casualty rate of any other service.

“I’m proud of my service, but we were the forgotten service,” he continued. “It would take years to recognize us as military men. I’m grateful for keeping our work alive, Lucia. Thank you.”

Trester’s service as a merchant marine earned him Atlantic, Mediterranean and Pacific War Zone medals.

To this day, the talented drummer and co-founder of the St. Augustine Jazz Society performs at local venues and the Royal St. Augustine Golf Clubhouse on the last Sunday of every month.