Are/were you ever living on Saipan? Do you recognize the two statues from these 1944 photos? Where are they now?
The Story: Eighty years ago, Manny Rosa–a member of the Construction Battalion (Seabees) who were stationed here after the Battle of Saipan–contributed his artistic and carpentry talents to restoring and repairing some of the religious statues here on island. Eighty years later, his grandson Jordan Rosa is making a pilgrimage and wishes to find these two statues his grandfather worked on. Are they in a family collection, buried/decomissioned by the church, off island in the mainland or other Pacific island, or are they in storage somewhere? If you have information on what happened to or the present location of either of these statues, please contact walt@discoversaipan.com text (670) 484-2801 as soon as possible!
The artist
Manuel Francis Rosa. Often called ‘Manny’ or ‘Pete’. Chief Petty Officer 137th Battalion, 595th CBMU
small statue:
The man on the left is Herb, who helped Manny restore this statue. Manny Rosa, on the right received national press for restoring religious statues while on Saipan during his spare time. This is the last statue prior to being restored.
large statue:
CPO Rosa (left) and Herb restoring one of the statues.
Manuel Francis Rosa. Often called ‘Manny’ or ‘Pete’. Chief Petty Officer 137th Battalion, 595th CBMU
small statue:The man on the left is Herb, who helped Manny restore this statue. Manny Rosa, on the right received national press for restoring religious statues while on Saipan during his spare time. This is the last statue prior to being restored.
large statue:CPO Rosa (left) and Herb restoring one of the statues.
A few bonus photos:
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