USS Sederstrom ( DE - 31 ) USS " Sederstrom " ( DE - 31 ) was a of the United States Navy during World War II . She was promptly sent to the Pacific Ocean to escort convoys and to protect other ships from Japanese planes and submarines . Her assignments took her from one battle area to another , but she was fortunate in remaining almost unscathed by the end of the war . For her efforts in battle areas , she was awarded five battle star s by war ' s end . Originally designated for transfer to the United Kingdom , " Sederstrom " was laid down as BDE - 31 on 24 December 1942 at the Mare Island Navy Yard , Vallejo , California ; redesignated for use by the United States Navy on 4 June 1943 ; launched as " Gillette " ( DE - 31 ) on 15 June 1943 ; sponsored by Mrs . Thomas D . O ' Dea ; renamed " Sederstrom " on 30 July 1943 ; and commissioned on 11 September 1943 , Lt . Comdr . Lyman M . King , Jr . , USNR , in command . World War II Pacific Theatre operations . Following shakedown out of San Diego , California , " Sederstrom " , a unit of Escort Division ( CortDiv ) 31 , commenced her escort career with a convoy run to Pearl Harbor . Arriving on 1 December , she participated in further training exercises and conducted inter - island escort runs for most of the month ; then , on the 24th , the new destroyer escort got underway for the Gilberts as a unit of TU 16 . 25 . 9 . Three days later , she was diverted to Funafuti , whence she escorted an AK ( Navy cargo ship ) and an LCT ( Landing craft tank ) as they delivered cargo to various islands in the Ellice Islands group . In mid - January 1944 , she proceeded to Samoa for a run to the Wallis Islands after which she escorted merchant ships into the Gilberts . On 4 February , she delivered her charges to Makin ; and , on the 5th , she departed for the Marshalls . From the 7th to the 25th , she patrolled the approaches to Kwajalein lagoon ; then screened the transport , , back to the Gilberts and Hawaii . Arriving at Pearl Harbor on 10 March , " Sederstrom " was underway again on the 25th with a convoy bound for Majuro . During April , she provided escort services in the Marshalls ; and , in May , she returned to Pearl Harbor . On the 29th , she departed again to escort reserves of the Saipan invasion force into the Marianas . The force , Reserve Group 2 , arrived off Saipan on 16 June , the day after the invasion , and cruised to the east of the island until after the battle of the Philippine Sea . On the 20th , the Army troops were landed south of Charan Kanoa ; and , on the 22nd , " Sederstrom " got underway to escort LST ' s and LCI ' s back to Eniwetok . On 16 July , the escort arrived back off Saipan . Screening and patrol duties occupied the next week ; then , on the 24th , she shifted to Tinian to cover the initial landings and subsequent offloading there . On the 29th , she returned to Saipan ; thence continued on to Eniwetok , providing plane guard services for . On 10 August , she returned to the Marianas for brief duty in the Guam Patrol and Escort Group , serving as flagship of the group when ComCortDiv 31 , embarked in " Sederstrom " , assumed command of the group . On the 22nd , however , she departed the Marianas again and returned to Pearl Harbor for navy yard repairs . On 8 October , " Sederstrom " resumed her escort mission . Initially screening a Pearl Harbor - Ulithi convoy , she spent the period November 1944 to mid - February 1945 screening naval auxiliaries , escort carriers , and merchant ships between Eniwetok and Ulithi . In late February , she made a run into the Marianas ; and , in March , she escorted reinforcements and supplies to Iwo Jima . From the 5th to the 11th , she patrolled off that island ; and , on the 12th , she joined TU 51 . 29 . 19 and returned to Ulithi to stage for the Okinawa campaign . Under attack by Japanese kamikaze planes . On 21 March , " Sederstrom " departed the Western Carolines for the Ryūkyūs in the screen of the escort carriers of Support Carrier Unit 1 and arrived off the southern tip of Okinawa early on the afternoon of the 24th . For the next three weeks , she screened and provided plane guard services for the CVE ' s ( escort carriers ) as they supported the landings on Kerama Retto and on Okinawa . By mid - April , however , Japanese aerial resistance , particularly the kamikaze s , had taken enough of a toll among the destroyer types providing anti - submarine and anti - aircraft screens for the beachhead area to necessitate replacements , and " Sederstrom " was reassigned to this duty . On the 22nd , she was targeted by a kamikaze , but her anti - aircraft guns damaged the plane sufficiently to cause it to crash into the water about 10 feet off the starboard bow . Gasoline and pieces of metal showered the bridge and forecastle , but major damage was avoided . One man , forced overboard during the action , was quickly recovered . In early May , the destroyer escort escorted out of the combat area ; and , on the 18th , " Sederstrom " herself left the Ryūkyūs area . Escorting , she arrived at Guam on the 22d . From the Marianas , she returned to the Western Carolines , whence she escorted convoy UOK - 27 to Okinawa . From 24 June to 4 July , she patrolled off the Hagushi anchorage . End - of - War deactivation . On the 5th , she got underway to return to the United States for overhaul . She arrived in Puget Sound on the 26th ; offloaded ammunition ; and entered the Todd Shipyard at Seattle , Washington . The war ended prior to the completion of her yard period , and she was ordered to prepare for inactivation . Decommissioned on 15 November 1945 , her name was struck from the Navy List on the 28th ; and , two years later , on 24 November 1947 , her hulk was sold for scrapping to A . G . Schoonmaker Co . , Inc . , New York .