Never Touching One Again
Doss’ hatred of weapons also began at a young age, and this continued well into adulthood, even during his time on the battlefield. This strong dislike of guns and violence stemmed from his religious upbringing, but it was also fueled by a violent incident in his childhood. His father, William, was so drunk one night that he pulled out a gun on Doss’s uncle.
Source: Courtesy of the Desmond Doss Council
Bertha managed to wrangle the 0.45 caliber revolver out of her husband’s hands and told Doss to run and hide it. William had an anger problem and Bertha feared that he might actually kill Doss’ uncle one day. The future soldier was so shaken up by this incident that he vowed never to touch a gun again in his life.