Even though it’s been 63 years, former U.S. Marine Corps Pfc. Billy Joe Fox can still remember using empty K-ration packages as a shield against Iwo Jima’s volcanic heat during World War II.

“The volcanic ground of Iwo Jima was so hot that we had to empty our K-rations out of their packages and use the packages to line the bottom of our foxholes just to keep the inside of the hole from getting too hot for us,” the Texarkana, Texas, resident, who was stationed with the U.S. 5th Marine Division on that island for more than 36 days, said. “That island of eight square miles of ash, b...