12/06/2024
Pooli the cat poses for the camera on her 15th birthday in 1959. Pooli was born at Pearl Harbor in 1944, and she was adopted by James Lynch, a Sailor serving aboard the attack transport USS Fremont (APA 44). Pooli (short for Princess Papule) served aboard Fremont as the ship’s mascot and was part of major campaigns in the Pacific, including the capture of Saipan, Palau Islands, the landings at Leyte and Luzon, and the invasion of Iwo Jima. During General Quarters, Pooli would go to her battle station in the mailroom, and she would curl up in a mail sack. Pooli returned home safely to the United States in 1945 with the rest of the crew, and she earned three service ribbons, four battle stars, and an honorable Shellback certificate.