On August 30, 1945, former prisoner of war Alfred Sorenson of the U.S. Army sat down to a full meal aboard the hospital ship USS Benevolence (AH-13) in Tokyo Bay. Sorenson had been captured during the fall of Corregidor on May 6, 1942, and had spent more than three years in Japanese captivity before his liberation.
The scene came during the first days of the Allied occupation of Japan. USS Benevolence entered Tokyo Bay on August 29, alongside the hospital ships USS Rescue and USS Tranquility, to assist in receiving and caring for liberated Allied prisoners of war. The ship began processing survivors who had endured severe deprivation in camps across Japan.
The official Navy photograph shows Sorenson in one of the ship’s wards, contemplating a meal as Navy nurse Lt. (j.g.) Asplan assists him. Its power lies in its simplicity: after years of captivity, hunger, and uncertainty, a warm meal represented safety, medical care, and the beginning of return.
Image: Released POW Alfred Sorenson, U.S. Army, contemplates a full meal aboard USS Benevolence on August 30, 1945. Captured at Corregidor in May 1942, he had been rescued from a POW camp in the Tokyo area. U.S. Navy photograph, National Archives photo 80-G-490452; public domain.
