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Harrison Johnson

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Honoring History’s Heroes

Eleven-year-old Harrison Johnson has raised more than $100,000 for a World War II memorial in Hawaii.

January 6, 2025
By Talia Cowen

As You Read, Think About: Why is it important to learn about what happened at Pearl Harbor?

December 7, 1941, started out like any other day in Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. But around 8 a.m., a swarm of Japanese aircraft appeared over the U.S. military base. Suddenly, the planes dropped bombs and torpedoes on the unsuspecting sailors below. 

The base was thrown into chaos. As sailors tried to scramble to safety, their battleships went up in flames. More than 2,400 Americans were killed in the surprise attack. The next day, the U.S. declared war on Japan and entered World War II (1939-1945). 

Today more than a million people visit the Pearl Harbor National Memorial every year. They honor those who died and learn how the attack changed the course of history. 

Harrison Johnson from North Raleigh, North Carolina, made the trip in April 2022. It inspired him to raise money to help tell the stories of the heroes of Pearl Harbor.

Stepping Into the Past

Jim McMahon/Mapman®

Earlier that year, Harrison’s third-grade teacher had assigned a research project about U.S. landmarks. Harrison chose the Pearl Harbor National Memorial. At the time, he didn’t know much about it. But as he read books and articles and watched movies about the attack, his interest grew. 

Harrison convinced his parents to take him to Hawaii so he could see the memorial in person.

“Everything I had read, researched, and watched was right there in front of me,” Harrison, now 11, recalls. “I could imagine it all happening around me.”

He spoke with park rangers and used virtual reality (VR) to explore one of the destroyed ships. Wearing a special headset, he got to see what happened on the USS Arizona battleship on the morning of the attack.

Harrison returned home and handed in his project. But he couldn’t stop talking about what he had learned. He realized that even though most people know Pearl Harbor was attacked, many don’t know a lot of the details of what happened that day. 

That encouraged him to start a fundraiser called “Harrison’s Heroes.” He wanted to collect money to create new educational materials for the memorial. One of Harrison’s dream projects was a new VR experience that would introduce kids to heroes they might not learn about in school (see “Courage Under Fire”). Harrison set an ambitious goal: to raise $100,000.

Jayme Pastoric/U.S. Navy

The USS Arizona Memorial stands directly above the sunken battleship in Pearl Harbor.

Harrison’s Mission

Courtesy of Johnson family

Harrison Johnson

Harrison reached out to Pacific Historic Parks, the organization that creates educational programs for the memorial. The group agreed to set up a web page to help him reach his fundraising goal. 

Then Harrison got to work. After school and on weekends, he went door-to-door, asking people to give money to his cause. He gave speeches at events in his community and convinced businesses in the area to donate. 

Harrison’s hard work paid off when he passed his goal last May. He had collected more than $105,000!

“It was a two-year journey, but I have to say I enjoyed every second of it,” he recalls. 

Harrison is now working with a team at Pacific Historic Parks to design the new VR experience.

“To get every story I wanted into the virtual reality experience takes a lot of time and work, but I am up to the challenge,” he says.

For Harrison, this project is about giving thanks to the men and women who lost their lives on December 7, 1941. 

“There were 2,403 men and women who died on that historic day,” he says. “We should always remember those who sacrificed.” 

Courage Under Fire

Bettmann Archive/Getty Images

One of Harrison’s heroes of Pearl Harbor was Doris Miller, who joined the U.S. Navy in 1939, when he was 19 years old. Miller (right) served food and cleaned tables on the USS West Virginia. 

On December 7, 1941, Miller was below deck when the ship was rocked by an explosion. He raced to the main deck and helped carry the ship’s injured captain to safety. Though Miller hadn’t been trained to use the ship’s heavy machine guns, he took control of one and began firing at Japanese planes. He later helped other sailors escape the sinking ship. 

A few months after the attack, Miller was awarded the Navy Cross, one of the U.S. Navy’s highest honors. He was the first Black sailor to receive the medal. Sadly, he died in November 1943, when his ship was sunk during a battle in the Pacific Ocean.

Bettmann Archive/Getty Images

The USS Arizona begins to sink on December 7, 1941. 

1. What is a landmark? Why do you think the Pearl Harbor National Memorial is considered a U.S. landmark?

2. What was the goal of the “Harrison’s Heroes” fundraiser?

3. What does the author mean when she writes that Harrison’s hard work “paid off”?

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