A humble veteran of Iwo Jima
ROBERT LEE MELL III July 13, 1924 - May 7, 2018
Robert Lee Mell III could recall exactly where he was and what was happening on the day Marines raised the U.S. flag on Mount Suribachi during the Battle of Iwo Jima in World War II.
A sergeant in the Marines, Mr. Mell recounted the uncomfortable and unnerving experience of navigating Iwo Jima’s Pacific beaches in an excerpt he wrote as part of the Veterans History Project of the Library of Congress:
The sand was deep black in color and very hot. You wrapped into a pancho at night and become soaking wet. You could bury a can of water in the sand it came out very hot.
On February 23rd the flag was raised on Mt. Suribachi. Ships in the harbor blew horns and whistles and all the men cheered. It was quite the occasion.
While everyone who knew Mr. Mell considered him a hero for his service, his daughter, Theresa Mell Erickson, said he lived his life with the utmost humility.
“He was a very humble man,” said Ms. Mell Erickson, 60, of Ohio. “He was my hero, and I always looked up to him.”
Mr. Mell, of Ross, died of natural causes May 7 at UPMC Family Hospice in Downtown. He was 93.
Born on July 13, 1924, in McConnelsville, Ohio, Mr. Mell enlisted in the Marines at age 16 with his mother’s permission. He served in the Marine Corps and Marine Corps Reserves for 31 years, fought in the Korean War, and served in the Navy and Naval Reserves for six years.
Ms. Mell Erickson recalled a story of her father’s reaction when he visited Washington, D.C., with fellow Marine veterans who took him to see the Iwo Jima statue at the United States Marine Corps War Memorial and people started asking for his autograph.
“’Why did they do that? I’m nothing special,’” Ms. Mell Erickson recalled her father saying. “I told him, ‘People can’t thank your generation enough … for all the liberties and freedoms we have because of men like you.’”
Mr. Mell received lifetime memberships to numerous organizations due to his service, including the Three Rivers Leathernecks Detachment 310 of the Marine Corps League, the Iwo Jima Survivors Organization and the Glenfield Valley Veterans.
He also served two terms as commandant of the Three Rivers Marine Corps League from 1979-80 and 1983-84 and was honored as Marine of the Year.
Upon returning from the Korean War, Mr. Mell settled in Pittsburgh, met his future wife, Patricia Mary Bertram, and married her on Oct. 10, 1953.
In civilian life, he worked for U.S. Steel’s wheel and axle division in McKees Rocks for 35 years until his retirement. He also owned and operated a bar and restaurant, the Jackman Inn in Avalon, with his wife and brother-in-law for 18 years.
“He was an individual that was really adored by his family,” said Greger Erickson, his son-in-law.
Mr. Mell’s wife died in 2009 at age 79.
In addition to his daughter, he is survived by several nieces and nephews.
The funeral will be held at 11 a.m. Tuesday at Lawrence T. Miller Funeral Home Inc., 460 Lincoln Ave., Bellevue, and will proceed to a military service at 1:30 p.m. at the National Cemetery of Alleghenies on Morgan Road in Bridgeville.
Memorial contributions may be made in the name of Robert. L. Mell III to The Wounded Warrior Project.