PHILADELPHIA, June 22, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- U-Haul® was
born as World War II was coming to a close, with its first one-way
trailers made available to the moving public on or about
July 4, 1945.
Just as U-Haul is celebrating 75 years of service this year,
America will soon celebrate the 75th anniversary of V-J Day. This
signifies Victory over Japan and
is observed Sept. 2 when the signing
of surrender occurred, effectively ending WWII.
Veterans such as Philadelphia native Nelson M. Miller Jr. returned home to start a
new life after the war, and in doing so planted the seeds of
prosperity for U-Haul, a product of the peace for which they
fought.
WWII-era Navy veteran L.S. "Sam" Shoen and his wife,
Anna Mary Carty Shoen, conceived
U-Haul in June 1945 when they
recognized a basic need while moving up the West Coast, having left
behind most of their belongings since one-way trailer rentals did
not yet exist. From that idea, an industry was created and a new
level of mobility became attainable for every American family.
New Display at Pearl
Harbor
Today, U-Haul is committed to honoring
veterans and supporting veteran causes. This is accomplished
through recruiting veterans and giving them hiring preference;
direct assistance to veteran groups; participation and sponsorship
of Memorial Day and Veterans Day parades; and supporting
Pearl Harbor tributes.
The Company's 75th anniversary tributes will peak triumphantly
with the Pearl Harbor Aviation Museum's dedication of the renovated
Ford Island Control Tower on Aug. 29.
U-Haul Pacific Theater veterans' bios and photos will be displayed
in the tower lobby. Miller will be among those memorialized on the
lobby wall.
The tower will showcase a new elevator, gifted by U-Haul CEO
Joe Shoen, providing public access
to the observation deck where America's lone WWII aviation
battlefield can be revered and our heroes remembered.
Military Service
Miller was born in July 1926 to Nelson and
Henrietta Miller. He attended Northeast High School in
Philadelphia, graduating in 1944.
Miller enlisted in the Navy that July.
Serving as a boatswain's mate on a Landing Craft Support, Miller
and his crewmates aboard the USS LCS(L)(3)-43 were an advance unit
in the consolidation and capture of Southern Philippines. They were also in the
Borneo Campaigns in 1945, knocking out enemy gun emplacements,
minesweeping and underwater demolition.
Miller was honorably discharged in July
1946. He later volunteered to serve in Korea, onboard the
USS Boxer (CV-21).
Miller was awarded the Philippine Presidential Unit Citation;
the Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal with four Battle Stars; the
Philippine Liberation Medal with one Battle Star; the American
Campaign Medal; the China Service Medal; the National Defense
Service Medal; the Republic of Korea Presidential Unit Citation;
the Korean Service Medal with one Silver Battle Star; and the Navy
Occupation Service Medal.
Engineer Extraordinaire
After the Korean War, Miller
was trained by his father as a draftsman and tool designer, and
worked for his stepbrother William
Jewel in that occupation.
In 1960, Miller joined U-Haul. He served for more than 28 years
as an industrial engineer and production-process engineer at U-Haul
manufacturing plants in Pennsylvania, where he designed U-Haul
equipment and parts.
Miller, who will celebrate his 94th birthday next month, has
three children: Andrew (Sandy),
Edward (Jessica) and Kimberly (Greg). He has seven grandchildren and
two great-grandchildren. His late wife was Elinor Miller.
Veteran Ties and Appreciation
The Shoens started
U-Haul upon Sam's discharge with $4,000 of accumulated Navy pay
and the courage formed by the cauldron of WWII. With the
help of other veterans, the young couple forged their new
enterprise from the freedom that victory produced.
Today, U-Haul serves all 50 states and 10 Canadian
provinces, helping millions of families move every
year. Miller is one of the many veterans who laid the
foundation for the present prosperity U-Haul enjoys.
U-Haul is one of a myriad of companies built by these incredible
veterans, who are to be saluted and remembered during this 75th
anniversary celebration. Thank you, Nelson.
Find more veteran tributes in the History and Culture
section of myuhaulstory.com.
About U-Haul
Since 1945, U-Haul has been the No. 1
choice of do-it-yourself movers, with a network of 22,000 locations
across all 50 states and 10 Canadian provinces. U-Haul Truck Share
24/7 offers secure access to U-Haul trucks every hour of every day
through the customer dispatch option on their smartphones and our
proprietary Live Verify technology. Our customers' patronage has
enabled the U-Haul fleet to grow to approximately 167,000 trucks,
120,000 trailers and 43,000 towing devices. U-Haul offers nearly
697,000 rooms and 60.7 million square feet of self-storage space at
owned and managed facilities throughout North America. U-Haul is the largest installer
of permanent trailer hitches in the automotive aftermarket
industry, and is the largest retailer of propane in the U.S. For
information on moving safely and smartly with U-Haul during the
COVID-19 pandemic, please reference
https://www.multivu.com/players/English/8601451-u-haul-moving-season-covid-19-safety/.
Contact:
Jeff Lockridge
Sebastien Reyes
E-mail: publicrelations@uhaul.com
Phone: 602-760-4941
Website: uhaul.com
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SOURCE U-Haul