Rondo Sharfe Falsified His Age at 16 to Serve His Country During WWII

February 9, 2020

Ronald "Rondo" Gilbert Scharfe, snagged some blank baptismal certificates from the Church where his sister was being married so that he could convince the U.S. Navy that he was seventeen.

Ronald “Rondo” Gilbert Scharfe, snagged some blank baptismal certificates from the Church where his sister was being married so that he could convince the U.S. Navy that he was seventeen. Then Rondo convinced his parents to agree to give their permission for him to join up, assuring them that he would not see combat for a while. Three months later 16 year-old Navy coxswain, Rondo Scharfe, was landing 36 Marines on the shores of Iwo Jima in the first wave of the important month-long WWII battle.