[indecipherable] Oakes [indecipherable]
HM 707 Reg. [indecipherable] Div
APO 558 c/o POSTMASTER
New York N.Y.
January 26, 1944

BRYANT SERVICE CLUB
BRYANT COLLEGE
1 YOUNG ORCHARD AVE.
PROVIDENCE, RHODE ISLAND
U.S.A.

Somewhere in England

Bryant Service Club

Thank you very much for the Christmas letter from Bryant. It came today and I certainly enjoyed reading it. I have not as yet received the package yet, but know it’s on the way, since many other packages are chasing me also.

It’s nice to hear about the old gang and what they’re doing. In my branch of the service I don’t get an opportunity to meet many who would have gone to Bryant and the word from the states is always a good word. Hope we can all spend next Christmas at home in the states. Thanks for the letter.

Sincerely
Gardner Oakes [Transcription ends]

Placement Director
Bryant College
Providence, R. I.

Dear Mr. Ripley,

I have been in the Army now for a few days short of four months, and as is typical of soldiers have been pretty busy.

I have been wondering if the Bryant Placement Bureau acts for soldiers & men in the Armed Forces as it did for the same men in civilian life. You see I have the desire not to let my accounting training acquired at Bryant slip away if I can help it. I have been trying to find a place where I could use it in the Army but have heard of no such place until just recently, when I found out that the Finance Dept. of the Army has a Purchase Division that is at present handling auditing of war contract termination. Since I am through with Basic Training I feel I could fit into the Purchases Division training at Duke U. in regard to Contract Termination.

Could you assist me in any way to get information or a transfer to this school at Duke for training an auditor for the Army[?] Needless to say I would certainly enjoy the opportunity to make Bryant proud of its graduates, altho I don’t see how they could not be—it has a wonderful record to date I hear.

Yours Truly
Pvt. Gardner Oakes
Class ’41 A+F. Div.
[Transcription ends]