Vet day insert 2015

The Spirit of ‘45

by Billie Franklin

On February 10, 2015, I met Warren C. Hegg, National Supervisor for “Keep the Spirit of ‘45 Alive” and Auston O”Neill, a National Bugler and veteran of the Battle of Cameroon and his wife. They were accompanied by long time friend Mary Virginia Pittman Waller of San Antonio and Utopia. They were on their way to perform “Taps” over the grave of Dr. Pittman at the Jones Cemetery that day, which I covered for the paper. From that meeting, I was asked to write a story about a World War II veteran each week for the paper. Thus began the “Spirit of ‘45” series. I have met some of the finest Americans that our country has through this series and it has been a joy to write about each and every one. The series officially ended on August 9, which Congress set aside as a day of recognition and remembrance of the contributions of the veterans of “The Greatest Generation”. I have been privileged to write some exceptional stories and meet really fine people. I have also been blessed by recalling that my parents met in the service during World War II. They are now passed away but this series has brought back many good memories.

Mary Virginia’s father was in the Battle of the Bulge and so was this week’s hero, Pablo B. Gonzales. Thus it is a fitting ending for my series. Thank you to all the readers and for all the support you have given me as I pledged to “Keep the Spirit of ‘45 Alive”.

Jack Ramsey was born in Fort Worth in 1924 to Frances and Dr. J. C. Wilson. He attended schools in both Stephenville and North Dallas.

As a sophomore in high school, he fell in love with acting, loved the theatre. Early on, he knew that he wanted someday to become an actor. He attended Tarleton College and then enlisted in the Army Reserve Corp. After his second year was completed, he was called to active duty. At Camp Walters in Mineral Wells, he was subjected to a battery of tests. This was the Army Specialized Training Program which utilized college students and was in operation from 1942 to 1944 and was disbanded due to the anticipation of the invasion of Normandy, France. In 1942, Jack was sent to East Texas State Teachers College, now A & M, for engineering school which was saturated with heavy book learning. He then went to Dallas and was appointed to Sheppard Field. Then in 1944, all was cancelled and like the other boys in the program, he was sent to Europe. He was attached

to the 99th Infantry Division. In the Battle of the Bulge, he was wounded and sent to a hospital in the United Kingdom. After healing, he was given the option to drive truck or rejoin his old outfit. He chose his old outfit. He was assigned to Patton’s Third Army and on the way to Berlin, he was wounded again in the Ruhr Pocket. The Air Force C 47’s were used to bring gas to the Army and take back the wounded across the channel. When the war was over, he served in the occupation for three months before coming home in 1945. He had earned 3 battle stars, the Battle of the Bulge, Central Europe, and Rhineland.

He came home to Dallas, age 21. He worked in the VA office for a while. Using the GI Bill, he went to New York City to study acting and had two years of study with the Neighborhood Playhouse Theatre, 1949 -1950. Since there was already an actor named Jack Wilson, he had to legally change his last name in order to fulfill his dream of becoming an actor. He selected the

last name of Ramsey from G. H. Ramsey, his maternal grandfather. Jack was on the Broadway stage, summer stock, ads, and television. While there, he met and married Swedish born artist Daga Bennett in 1951. She wanted him to study painting. He studied at the National Academy of Design and the Art Student’s League in New York City. He received his B.F.A. and M.F.A. in painting from Cranbrook Academy of Art in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan. He found that he loved painting; forgot the stage. He was head of the painting department at Atlanta College of Art and taught at his own Ramsey Workshop of Art. Eventually he moved back to New York City and taught painting and drawing at the

Guild Hall Museum in East Hampton, New York and the Parrish Art Museum in South Hampton, NY. He also was an instructor of painting and drawing at the Museum of Modern Art in New York City.

In 1995, he moved back to Texas, settling in Kerrville. He was a member of the Kerrville Art Club. He has his works in the permanent collections of the Pensacola Museum of Art in Florida, the William A Farnsworth Art Museum in Rockland Maryland and the Parrish Museum of Art in East Hampton, New York. Other pieces of his art are in the collections of John Steinbeck, Mr and Mrs. Oscar Kolin of New York City, and the Hearst Corporation.

Edith Atwell Smith was born in Brooklyn, New York, but at the age of 5, her family moved to Maine, which she considers her home state. She went to Maine Central Institute in Pittsfield and pursued a career as a nurse. She went to various nursing schools and finally at age 21 she graduated from Central Maine General Hospital. In June 1945, she joined the Army Nurse Corp and her point of embarkation was New Orleans. On the ship Republic, they started their journey to the Panama Canal. They then boarded the Hospital Ship Thistle (Munargo). They stayed a short time in Hawaii at Schofield Barracks and in late August went on to Manila. They were sent to

Leyte to close out a field hospital and were there from September through November. It was there that they cared for the patients until they were able to be sent home.

She got an infection while in the field hospital and was sent to Fort William McKinley. When she was discharged from the hospital, she was placed in the operating room of the 126th. A nursing friend of hers introduced her to Captain William S. Smith, originally from San Antonio, who was in the Air Force. He was a graduate of Thomas Jefferson High

School, had worked in the oil fields and helped build Corpus Christi Naval AFB prior to joining the service. After a number of dates, they were married in September, 1946. She was discharged, but remained in the Philippines and they were moved to Clark Field. They left the Philippines in 1948. Her husband had leave coming, so they went to visit both sides of their families. He was then stationed at Lackland AFB for 4 years and became regular Air Force as a major, in Victoria for 1 1/2 years, then when he was sent to Hokaido, Japan, he decided instead to volunteer to go to Korea for one year. Edie stayed with her family in Maine, 1954-1955. While in Korea, he flew President Sigmund Rhee and his wife to their summer home. Following Korea, he was placed in the Strategic Air Command and flew B 47’s. They spent 5 years in Homestead, Florida, and he flew missions to North Africa

during the Cold War, three weeks gone, then back home. He was on alert the entire time.

During the Cuban Crisis, they were attached to Loring AFB in Maine. When the Smiths retired in October,1963, they then moved to Corpus Christi, and her mother moved with them. Then at age 41, Edith and William had another baby.

He stayed retired one year, and then went to work at Corpus Christi Naval Air Station, where he worked as a civil servant and was supervisor of water, sewage and later the chemical plants.

He worked another 13 years and then retired.

After a visit to Utopia, Edie fell in love with the Hill Country and they finally settled near Leakey in 1977. She lost her husband in 1982, but her daughter is in touch with her several times a day and her son, a commercial truck driver, also stays in close contact. Go by for a visit and more than likely, she will share a cup of tea with you.

Charles L. Suehs was born in 1918, to Charles W. and Alice Naegelin Suehs in Castroville.

He graduated from Castroville High School and played on their basketball team. He was introduced to Virginia “Mutzie” Schwegmann of San Antonio by a friend, Erna Wurzbach, of Rio Medina. Both loved to dance and often went to the movies or parties after she got through with her evening classes while in nurses training. He worked in his dad’s service station, and most of his schooling was from the “school of hard knocks”.

He entered the Army in September 1941, prior to the attack on Pearl Harbor. He was made a drill instructor at March Field, Riverside, California.

He came to San Antonio to marry “Mutzie” in April 1943. She had completed her RN training prior to the wedding. For a honeymoon, the couple were placed at Sequim, Washington,

on Puget Sound. There the Signal Corps Radar unit was learning how to use radar, the cutting edge of technology at that time. They were there about 4 months and when he was to go overseas, she went home to San Antonio. Charles went to North Africa, Sicily, Italy, and then the border of Spain following up the D-Day invasion of Normandy. Next his unit moved to France. It was near Nancy, France, where Charles and his unit saw the needs of an orphanage and with the help of family back home, provided much needed items for the children there. Also one morning a German pilot landed his plane, addressed Charles, who spoke the Alsatian dialect of German, and surrendered to him. This was that unit’s first prisoner. Next up was the job of supply sergeant and quartermaster for Charles. It was in this capacity that he noticed the advantage of the use of propane tanks, heaters, and as a cooking

fuel source. Next up was Germany and his unit supported the final assault against Hitler’s army.

Because of Charles’s German background, he was kept in Germany an extra 5 months to assist in language barrier problems. He also got to be a part of the liberation celebration in Paris.

October 1945 he was released and came home to his wife and baby.

Moving back to Castroville, he again joined his family, working at his dad’s Mobile station.

But he recalled the importance, and portability of “butane” or “propane”. He became known as “Butane Charley” as he opened his own business in Castroville. He attended a number of classes in San Antonio to finely craft his art with the appliances and irrigation pumps on farms.

Because of the new idea of gas, it started slowly, but grew. He also hired veterans for a few days, months, and even years, in support of service

men.

In the late 1960’s, he was elected Mayor of Castroville and again recognized a need. Thanks to him, a much needed sewer system is now in place. Then, in 1985, his wife was elected Mayor and he supported her wholeheartedly. As a team, they were both involved in church, the Chamber of Commerce, American Legion, Veterans of Foreign Wars, and on the Medina County Historical Commission helped publish Volume 1 of the history of the county.

Ignacio Gamboa, Jr. was born in Dilley to Ignacio and Ruberta Gamboa, Sr. in 1921. Because he was a small child during the Great Depression, making ends meet was tough in those years. He was able to go to school and completed the 6th grade even though his parents moved around a lot working the fields. Finally they landed a job on a dairy, and things began to improve.

He served his country in the U S Army from January, 1942 to December, 1945 and received his honorable discharge at Fort Sam Houston. His rank was Private 1st class. He was in Australia and New Guinea, but did not speak about the war, nor his role in it, to the family.

He then met the love of his life, Alicia Costilla of Devine, through a

family member. They were married on July 28, 1947, in Pearsall at the Frio County Courthouse. He had joined the Army Reserves when he got out of the service, his unit became active, and he got called back during the Korean War. He also went to school on the G I Bill, receiving training in Hondo in auto mechanics and small engine repair. He then got a job at Kelly Air Force Base and worked there for 35 years. He worked in reclamation and later retired as a supervisor in reclamation. Still wanting to keep busy, he then opened a small engine repair shop at home. He also drove the school bus for Devine ISD, as well as transferred cars for Brown Chevrolet in Devine. He retired from his many varied occupations at the age of 82.

Julian Flores Lopez of Uvalde was born in Cline in 1925, son of Julian H. and Anita Flores Lopez. His father worked in the mines at Blewett at first, then worked for the railroad for 41 years. His mother, a seamstress, made wedding dresses and if a pattern was not available, no problem. She made them too. He had three sisters, no brother.

At first, young Julian went to parochial school in Uvalde. The nuns taught him in Spanish and he realized the value of speaking English. After some time, he finally got to go to public school, to West Garden and finally to West Main, which at that time was the high school.

He never got to participate in sports, he had to work to help support the family.

At age 18, he was drafted into the Army and was inducted at Fort Sam Houston.

He went to Camp Fannin, near Tyler, Texas, for basic training. Half way through his training, he had to take emergency leave to attend a funeral back home. He was offered a 10 day leave in which upon return, he would have to start all over again. Or, he could take one week and then return to finish with his group. He decided to take the one week. He was ready to get out of basic training and he finished with the group he started with. Up next was an

opportunity for 21 days off with a three day pass, 24 days in all.

Then he was to report to Fort Ord, California, on to Camp Stoneman, near Pittsburg, California. He was taken to the fort, recalls walking through the town to a ferry. Then they were taken to San Francisco on a transport. Twenty one days later, he was at New Caledonia, near Australia, where he went on orders to the replacement depot. There he was assigned to the 81st Amphibious Wild Cat Division, C Company, 322 Infantry Regiment. Other places he served were New Guinea, Amedee, Western Caroline, and numerous other islands, ending in the Philippines.

When the atomic bomb was dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, he went to Japan and helped with the deactivation and occupation. He was a part of the military police at Okkido, Japan. At the close of the war, he reported to Fort Lewis in Washington. He got out of the service on February 14, 1946, at 4:30 pm, receiving his discharge from Fort Bliss.

When he got out, he married and as a result, had two boys, Julian T. Lopez and Oscar T. Lopez. He now has 3 grandsons and one granddaughter. In order to support his family, he held jobs in construction, running a jack hammer, laid telephone cables, drove a truck, did farm labor; worked for Uvalde Wool

and Mohair, hauling it to Houston. He was blessed in that he never was ill, was not on any medications, and enjoyed good health. At age 65, he was able to retire. He spends his time now helping others.

THE SPIRIT OF ‘45 Harry W. Tyler was born at Long Island, New York, in 1901, went to grade school and then graduated from high school there.

In 1917, following the infamous Zimmerman Telegram, sent on April 6, 1917, the United States joined in World War I, which had been raging since the sinking of the Lusitania in 1915. Harry joined the Army, but only with his parents permission.

Basic training was at Plattsburg Barracks, New York. He was attached to the First Infantry and was sent to France as a demolition man. When World War I ended in 1919, he got a job in retail, selling clothing. That he did not care for and decided to rejoin the Army. He was attached to the First Infantry again. He then was attached to the Provost Marshall in Panama for two years.

In 1924, he met Isabel Lucia of Plattsburg and after a time of courtship, they were married in 1927. She was a

housewife, following him when she could.

As a result of that union, their only child is William “Bill” Tyler of San Antonio. On December 7, 1941, Japan attacked Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, crippling the U S Navy fleet, and war broke out once more for America. Harry was back ready for fighting with the 1st Infantry, only this time in Gainsville, Florida, he hurt his legs climbing on a ship. In spite of the accident, he made Master Sergeant and went to Brooklyn to work with the Adjutant General at the Port of Embarkation at New York. He was then sent to Guam for 2 1/2 years as Adjutant General and made Lieutenant Colonel. He was then shipped to Fort Sam Houston and from there after almost 35 years in the military, he retired from the service in 1952. The work he did then was to tend to his roses in his yard in San Antonio.

Bill lost his Dad in 1988.

The year was 1921, the Gunther Hotel in San Antonio got two foot of water in the hotel in the lower level, the watermarks are still standing today. And in Martindale, George Hardy Crook was born to Hardy and Lizzie Crook. He grew up in Martindale and graduated from high school there. He attended South West Texas State Teachers College. George joined the Marine Corp, was an expert with the rifle, and was a part of Air Casualty Squadron IV. He served in China and the Philippines as a Tech Sergeant with the 755 Airborne from 1945 to 1946. In San Diego, California, in February 1946, he received his honorable discharge, a good conduct medal, and unit commendation. In 1948, he married Helen Louise Buchanan of Bryan and they have been together 66 years. The result of that union is two children of whom they are very proud, and two grandchildren. He next attended Baylor and got his Masters in Chemistry in one year. He got his PHD from Texas A and M in Chemistry and Oceanography, at the time, a new course offering. George worked for Dow Chemical for over 25 years. Places they have lived over the years include Bryan, Lake Jackson, San Antonio, and finally in Leakey. While in Lake Jackson he was in the Sheriff Reserve Marine Division.

Later he joined the National Guard, but was discharged due to a his receiving a commission with the 75 Manuever Area Command in Houston. In Army War College, he ranked third in his class. When he retired from the service, he held the rank of full Colonel.

Jiggs Lieman was born in 1916 in Staffordsvillle, Virginia, daughter of Allen and Druciella “Druci” English Eaton. She graduated from Harrisburg High School; attended Emory N. Henry Junior College (now Emory N. Henry College); and graduated in 1941 from the University of Virginia with a BS as a registered nurse. She worked at Baltimore, for six months, went back to Staffordsville and did private duty there and in Lebanon, Pennsylvania, for several years. Pearl Harbor caught her attention and she decided to go into the Army in 1945; had been wanting to for some time.

Basic was at Camp Lee, Virginia. She was then assigned to the blind ward at Valley Forge General Hospital in Phoenixville, Pennsylvania.

Valley Forge General Hospital

was built between June 1942 and February 1943, to treat our wounded soldiers and prisoners of war from both Italy and Germany, second only to Walter Reed General Hospital in Washington, DC. Valley Forge closed its doors in 1974, the only military hospital not to be named for a person. A historical marker was placed on the grounds on October 21, 2012, commemorating its rich history.

It is now the site of Valley Forge Christian College.

She met and married her husband, Tech Sergeant Charles Lieman, who was also in the Army, a Texan from Beaumont. Back then, when soldiers married, the lady was automatically out of the military. So, she then became a housewife and

Albert Herdina, an immigrant to America from Austria, met American born future wife, Anna Miesler, through a mutual friend. He did not hesitate to remind their children, what America meant to him. One of three children, Helen was born in 1923 and went to school in St. Paul, Minnesota. When she graduated high school, she went to work at the phone company as an operator. She earned $14 dollars a week and paid her parents room and board, a common practice during the depression years. At age 19, she became a supervisor.

Helen’s brother had heart problems and could not serve in the military.

However in 1943, she and her sister, Mary, volunteered to serve since he could not. Mary went in as an officer; Helen was enlisted. Helen began at Fort Des Moines, Iowa, and went on to Fort Riley, Kansas, as a telephone operator. In 1944, Helen volunteered for overseas duty. She was sent to New York State for training. With the Army, she moved to Hampton Roads, Virginia. By May, 1945, she found herself aboard ship, a two weeks crossing. They were headed for Africa. A fond story that she recalls was that the ladies were issued only 2 helmets of water per day for personal use, washing clothing, and bathing. Just about anything that stuck out or up, had someone’s personal item hanging out to dry. Full of stories, she also recalled playing poker with the paratroopers, not for money, for cigarettes! She didn’t even smoke!

On D-day, still in her memory, were the starving Italian children of Naples who were looking for food in garbage

Richard Lehman was born to Raymond and Ruth Schaefer Lehman in Berks County, Pennsylvania, in 1927. His dad worked in the knitting mill in Laureldale. Richard was the middle child of six, with an older brother, two older sisters and two younger brothers, one of whom died as a child. He grew up in a poor family, learned many lessons in thrift from his father, recalls saving aluminum foil and making a whole nickel for his efforts. He also recalled that he always walked to school, regardless of weather or where they lived. He played the bass horn for a short time, worked in a grocery store, helped on the Dunn family farm, and for a coal company while growing up. Money earned went to pay for flying lessons, learning to fly a Taylorcraft. He went from boy scouts to the Civil Air Patrol, and played on the first Wyomissing H.S. football team.

When Richard was a junior in high school, brother Ray, invited him to Sioux City Army Air Base where Ray was stationed. While there, he was provided flight gear and found himself in the air for a six hour mission, with about fifteen minutes in the co-pilot seat of a B-17. This gave Richard a taste for the military and he enlisted in the Army Air Forces shortly thereafter. He went on active duty in the Army Air Forces in 1945, one day before high school graduation in June, but Germany had surrendered on May 7. He was sent back to school to give his speech as president of his class and had to speak while in his uniform. By 1946, he

completed his basic and mechanical training at Keesler Field, went on from there to Clark Field in the Philippines as a B-29 mechanic. On September 18, 19,an officer welcomed his crew to the United States Air Force. Later, as a B-17 Crew Chief he spent time in Guam, Japan, Okinawa, Taiwan, New Guinea, and Borneo.

After returning to the States in 1948, Richard applied for, and was accepted to the Army Air Forces cadet program at Randolph Air Force Base, where he met Pat Graves on a blind date. Next up was Reece AFB for advanced training where he graduated as a 2nd Lieutenant in the morning and was married to Pat in the base chapel on the same day. That union led to four children. He was a T-6 and B-25 instructor with his first assignment at Randolph AFB. From various air bases around the country, Richard piloted B-47s and B-52s with the Strategic Air Command during the cold war. His missions took him to North Africa, England, Germany and Portugal. With a crew of six, they flew many 24 hour missions before and during the Cuban Missile crisis.

I finally asked if there was anywhere he had never been and his answer was “Russia.” He had a total of 5000 hours of military pilot hours upon retirement and was a Command Pilot, all without college credits, an amazing feat. He retired from the service in March 1967.

Richard went to work for Mooney Aircraft in Kerrville and was there for 4 years. Pat had her own business, “Mode ‘O Day”,

Roland Boedeker was born in Milam County to Amel Henry and Louise Hosch Boedeker. He graduated from Yoe High School in Cameron. A product of the depression years, he then went to technical school through the National Youth Administration at Ranger, learning the sheet metal trade. He was drafted into the Army at Ft. Bliss, El Paso and received his basic training in artillery at Camp Roberts, near Monterey, California, in October 1941. When Pearl Harbor was attacked December 7, 1941, there were rumors of the Japanese invading the U. S through Mexico and on December the 11th Cavalry at Camp Seeley was sent to the El Centro, California/Calexico, Mexico border armed and on horseback, in order to protect the border. The only thing that needed protecting was a cute Mexican girl that he spotted across the river. He was caught winking at her and was instructed to behave himself. This was the last horse drawn field artillery unit used by the Army. The rumors proved to be false and soon he

was on a ship headed for the Aleutian Islands.

He spent 2 years there. Following that, he was sent to school troop works as a mechanic for two months at Camp Blanding, near Starke, Florida.

He became a driver of Prime Movers, or big equipment, which moved big guns. He was soon on a ship, headed for Italy to finish the serious combat in the Po Valley Campaign. There his duty was to guard a storehouse of goods placed there by the German Army. On May 8, 1945, the war was over in Europe. In July, he was on a ship to join the 442 division, but this turned out to be unnecessary. He received his discharge at Ft. Bliss; he received the American Theater, Asiatic Pacific Theater, and European African Middle Eastern medals for his contribution.

Back in Cameron, he worked on rail road bridges at first, just manual labor. He got a job in a sheet metal shop in Cameron.

Then he got on in Hearne at Zeig Sheet Metal and became shop foreman, holding that position for 30 years. It was there that they did custom work with fabrication of heavy metal. Some of the varied items they designed or made were coolers, equipment

raised their four children. She also worked at Lutheran General Hospital in San Antonio while her husband was stationed there. He remained in the service for 21 years. She lost him in 1984.

cans. The ladies gave them candy. The German army had stripped everything from the University, faucets, everything. Helen’s group was only there for a short while. Soon, they were taken to a relay station on the Libyan Desert. She recalles the marked differece in temperature and how cold it would be at night. She remained a telephone operator until they moved on to base headquarters. She then became an office clerk. She came back by ship to the east coast. She joined the Air Force reserves. Her sister became her immediate superior. Then she recruited for the Air Force for 19 months and loved it. One month she took off and hitchhiked in Germany, France, Scotland, and England. She has also been to the Holy Land and Egypt. Loved travelling.

After Korea, she was stationed at Carswell AFB at Fort Worth. She got married and her husband was transferred to California. Once married, she was out of the service, however, she could move to be with him. And move she did, to Germany, Hawaii, all over California, and finally retired in San Antonio. Together they had 6 children. She lost her husband in 1982. She keeps up with the grandchildren by attending school events.

When I asked her how she felt about serving her country, her roots revealed her true spirit. “What about what America did for me!” she exclaimed. She is deeply aware how lucky she is to be an American; her dad taught her well.

in downtown Kerrville, and sold it in 1974. Real estate became his next venture and received his broker license before retiring a second time.

In 1985, they moved to Lake LBJ for five years then moved back to Kerrville. Stained glass became his hobby, going to school to learn how with his daughter. Currently he collects insulators and restores old tools. Whatever venture he undertakes you can be assured it will be interesting, and he will do it well. for a California pellet mill; many of the needs of Texas A & M, a duct collector in Kosse, Texas which was designed to collect sand for glass making. In Arkansas, there was a need for a venting system, to keep air clean and safe when workers were working with bauxite which is an aluminum ore. Bauxite is used in making spark plugs for automobiles and for making aluminum. He worked with Aluminum Company of America at Rockdale and Point Comfort to find a safe way to clean the bauxite. He worked with equipment for cotton gins, designed a sucker which scooped all of the cotton from the wagons. Roland retired in 1990 and has lived in Concan 23 years. He wasn’t quite finished. He has kept busy building homes, repairing homes all around the canyon. He made the plans and built St. Raymond Catholic Church, was on the building committee of the Leakey Public Library, and made the round reception desk there. He spends time in both Leakey and Concan. He is a member of American Legion Post 489, the Leakey Lions Club, the Leakey Library, and attends St. Raymond Catholic Church. He enjoys his 7 children: David, Mary, Tom, Vivian, Nancy, Alan, and Leah; as well as his 7 grandchildren and their children. At age 94, he feels he has had a very good life and is content to live adjacent to his daughter Mary.

In 1918, Christopher Victor Coppinger, better known as “Vic”, was born at home to Emma and Victor Valentine “Pop” Coppinger. When he graduated from high school and got two years of college, his next venture was with the Air Force.

He made 2nd Lieutenant, then 1st Lieutenant and received his commission in Boca Raton, Florida. He was a radar man for B-29’s.

While all that was going on, Barbara Bohren of Elk Hart, Indiana, came to Florida to live with her dad. The two met by accident and when he was scheduled to go overseas, they decided to get married. Honeywell had some new thermostat equipment and training was needed for it, so instead of going overseas, he and two other radar men were sent to Minneapolis, Minnesota.

While he was in radar school, his old plane was shot down. Going to that school saved his life.

By the time he made 1st Lieutenant, they had a baby. The atomic bomb was dropped on Hiroshima on August 6, 1945. Soon after, Vic was shipped out from Kansas City, Kansas, and ended up on an island in the Pacific. Barbara remembers well about being left with an infant to tend to. The unit he was with flew many flights from Tinnin Island over Japan in the space of one year. Once, a typhoon hit which was so severe, it

blew their clothes off their bodies.

At the end of the war, he received his discharge in Miami, Florida.

He then had a sign shop, first neon business signs, later metal signs. At one time, his shop was the largest of its kind in the United States.

Many of the signs for “the Strip” in Las Vegas, Nevada, were made by his company. Always an entrepreneur, he also went into banking, and then became the Mayor of Pearland, Texas. He served two terms as Mayor and died in office. Because of his amassed wealth, people would seek him out when a need arose. The City of Pearland has many reminders of his generosity. The Adult Reading Room, the library, the Historical Society, Pearland Methodist Church, and YMCA are where they are today because of his efforts.

Ralph Ramsey was born in 1923 in Wheeler, Texas, to Robert and Bernice Ramsey, who were cotton farmers. He had a brother and sister who are now deceased. He went to the Briscoe community school and graduated in 1940. He went into the Army Air Corp, got his basic in the cavalry, rode horses and mules at Fort Bliss, El Paso. From there, he switched to air plane mechanic and went to Sheppard Air Force Base in Wichita Falls. For a short time, he was sent to Greenville Air Force Base then on to Kearns Utah AFB where he was processed to go overseas and went to Oahu, Hawaii. His permanent duty station was there, but he was on a combat mapping squadron, mapping fortifications of the Japanese. He was with the 86th Combat Mapping Squadron, which was out of the 43rd, and was there from November 1943 to June 1945, working on B 24’s. At the end of the war, he got his discharge in San Antonio and went back to Wheeler, had a good time for a while, then got his job back with his company, but in Borger, not in Wheeler. He was with Southwest Public Service for 8 months, got married, but was dissatisfied with his job. He went to work at Phillips Petroleum working as an electrician in a synthetic rubber plant, was there 4 months.

He decided to reenlist and was made a staff sergeant. He went to Enid, Oklahoma, working on B25’s at the pilot training school for Chinese cadets. Most of them, he recalls, went back to China to enlist in the Communist Army. When Enid was closed, he went to Barksdale Field Shreveport, near Bossier City Louisiana. He

was then line chief of B 25’s. Next up was Chanute, Illinois, where there was a mobile training field near Rantoul.

There they built mobile training units to be used on other bases. Then he went to Bergstrom Air Force Base at Austin, Texas, where he was on a training unit for C 54’s. When Goodfellow Air Force Base was reopened in San Angelo, he was moved there and was on the flight line for 9 years, working on planes for basic pilot training, leaving there as a Master Sergeant. Next up was Elmendorf Air Force Base at Anchorage, Alaska.

By summer 1958, Congress opened up two new classifications, Senior Master Sergeant and Chief Master Sergeant. He made Senior Master Sergeant by September 1, then by December 1,1958, he was Chief Master Sergeant, the first to make that rank. He went back to Kelly Air Force Base in 1960, and retired from there in 1964.

He moved to Fayetteville, Arkansas, bought a farm, and had it 15 years, had 150 head of cattle.

He then went back to Wheeler for 4 years, then moved to Rough Canyon on Lake Amistad, Del Rio. From 1987 to 2001, he travelled in a 5th wheel, then moved to Fort Clark.

Art Baker was born in 1923, in Anson, Texas, to Bill and Mary Hicks Baker. He was raised at Spur, Texas, but graduated at Anson. He first worked for the Federal Aviation Administration at Fort Worth. Then, he went to work for the Seattle Tacoma Ship Building Corporation.

When it sold to Todd Pacific Shipyards, Inc., he went back to Anson, then joined the Army Aviation Air Corp as a pilot trainee.

He was sent to MaxwellGunter Air Force Base in Montgomery, Alabama, spent 9 weeks there.

Next up was Decateur, Alabama, for primary flying; then on to Greenwood, Mississippi, for basic flying; followed by Columbus, Mississippi, for advanced flying. It was there he made pilot, and because he made the highest score of anyone, he got a check ride to Major. Next was Florence, South Carolina, for 6 months, learning to fly twin engine A 20’s and B 25 attack bombers. He was sent to the South Pacific in March, 1944, as a co-pilot on a B 25. He was stationed at Nadzab,

Papua, New Guinea, and while General Jerald V. Crabb, flew 30 missions in 20 days. A new squadron was formed, of which he was a part, and next up was Owi Island, in Dutch New Guinea; followed by Angor Island in the Palau group of islands in the Philippines.

With headquarters in Leyte, Philippines, he flew weather missions. In all, he flew 67 missions over the South Pacific. This was very critical, since so many lives had been lost due to weather conditions. In March 1945, he came home.

His next assignment was with ferry command, based at Memphis, Tennessee, flying planes wherever they were needed by the Air Force. He flew A 26’s from Tulsa to California. He went to Greenwood, Mississippi, for instructor instrument school when the war was over. Next up, he got a job with the Texas Highway Department, was there 3 months. He went to school at Texas A & M and got a B S in Agriculture. He taught school for a year, did not like it much. So, he got a job managing a Registered Angus herd and held that job for 3 years. He went into farm and ranch management in Maypearl, Texas. In 1965, he bought 1/2 interest in a cattle feed lot in Hereford, Texas, and was there 12 years.

On the side, he bought and sold cattle. He next had a feed lot in Muleshoe, Texas. In 1973, there was a price freeze on cattle, and he went broke. In 1976, he moved to Yuma, Colorado, and managed a feed lot there. He bought and ran a feed lot in Akron, Colorado, from which he retired in 1992.

In 1994, he and his wife moved to Fort Clark Springs, Brackettville. There he began another chapter in his career, buying and renting moblie homes on Fort Clark Springs.

He was married twice, the first resulting in divorce after 30 years. He married again and lost his wife 10 years ago. He has a daughter, an adopted son, and 5 grandchildren

A. G. Hood was born in Weslaco in 1927. His family soon moved to Mission. His first job was at the age of 7. He shined shoes, sold newspapers and greeting cards. When he was 13, his dad went blind. Next, he became a soda jerk at Mission Drug Store, working from 4 to 10 pm, after school. He was a student at Mission High School and as a sophomore at age 17, with written permission from his Dad, joined the Navy. He received his basic training at San Diego. When aboard ship, the men were separated according to education. Those without a high school diploma, himself included, were assigned to deck force maintenance, and those with high school or more education were given less demanding jobs. At that point, he realized that having an education was what he wanted more than anything. He then went on to be a part in the invasion of Japan. He recalls that on August 6, 1945, he and the other men on deck were told to wear their safety glasses. All the men saw was a flash, not realizing that the first atomic had been dropped. Shortly after the surrender, his ship went into Tokyo Bay and spent two months there. During the day, they would go ashore. but at night because of the danger, they would come back aboard.

He remembered how the Japanese would bow reverently to the sailors in their summer whites. To the Japanese, he

later learned, the color white was a symbol of the gods. They next went to Korea, then in a short while, they headed to China. The men were issued a 72 hour pass and were told they could choose to see the Great Wall of China or go to the girls.

Only one of three, he chose to visit the Great Wall. It was an awesome experience, one he will never forget. Next they went home via Philadelphia and he received his discharge from Camp Wallace. Back home, he went to the principal and the superintendent, explaining that he wanted to get a high school diploma. They suggested that he get his GED, but he wanted to graduate with a class, walk across the stage and get a diploma. So, he tested out and was placed as a senior and joined the class of 1947 from which he graduated. While a senior, he directed several plays. Parttime, he worked for the Valley Monitor newspaper. He went to the junior college at Edinburg and was in the naval reserves.

This was interrupted by a 6 month stint in the reserves,

teaching new recruits to handle a destroyer stationed in New Orleans. During that time, he got a chance to see several ports, ending at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. After that, he returned to the Valley Monitor and met Rita Williams in 1949 who was from the Sharyland Community. They were married in 1952 and still are together.

The result of that union was 3 sons, 7 grand children, and 6 great-grandchildren, who live all over the U. S. Two years later, he went for an interview and landed a job with Colgate Palmolive as a sales representative serving all over south Texas. He worked there for 36 years and was honored in the company’s Hall of Fame in New York City. He retired in 1989. He is a lifetime member of the McAllen Lions Club, worked with the Lions Club Boy Scouts Troop 13 for 10 years, and coached Little League.

They moved to Leakey in 2000 and immediately became a part of the Leakey Lions Club. He is past president of the Frio Canyon Park Association, is involved in the Big Springs Youth Auxiliary for Children, works at the Thrift Store to support the Big Springs Ranch Youth, is a member of the Frio Canyon Players who put on a melodrama every Labor Day weekend, belongs to the Leakey Methodist Church and has received various awards including a 50 year pin from the Leakey Lions Club.

Ross Smith was born in 1929 in Lebanon, Indiana, to Marie and Oral Smith. He had 4 sisters and 1 brother. One sister died as an infant, his parents divorced and one brother and sister were adopted out. His mother, his remaining sister and he, moved in with his grandparents, Samuel and Ida Wilkins. His mother never remarried. At the age of 17, before completing high school, his mother signed permission, and he joined the United States Marine Corp on May 4. 1946. For basic training, he was sent to Parris Island, near Beaufort, South Carolina. He then was sent to Cherry Point, near Havelock, North Carolina. More training was given to him at Jacksonville, Florida, and at the Naval Air Technical Training Center, near Millington, Tennessee. He was transferred to El Toro California Marine Corp Air Station near Irvine, California. Next up was Guam, where he spent 2 years as a mechanic. He also got his GED while on Guam, fulfilling a promise to his mother. He was then transferred back to Cherry Point and spent 2 years there.

Then it was back to the Naval Air Technical Training Center in Tennessee as an instructor for plane mechanics. He was there 3 years. Korea came along and he went there as an aircraft mechanic. He was then transferred to Akron, Ohio, where he was in the same hanger as the Goodyear blimp. When the Marine Corp closed that operation down, he went back to Tustin, California, to the Marine Corp Air Station there. It was while there that he made the switch to helicopter mechanic. In the 1960’s, he was transferred to Japan, close to Tokyo, to a helicopter station. He was sent to Laos, which was having a problem, working with one of two squadrons of helicopters on an aircraft carrier. They appeared off the coast of Vietnam and were ready to deploy, but with their presence, the problem in Laos was resolved. He got liberty in Hong Kong, then went back to Japan. Next up was the new Marine Corp Station at Okinawa, followed by a trip to the Philippines, then back to Tustin, California.

In 1963, he was put on recruitment duty in New Orleans, Louisiana, which he loved. He retired from the service in 1966. He landed a job as an aircraft mechanic at Lakefront Airport in the Big Easy, held it until 1970. It was there that he met his future wife, Geraldine Allain. They were married July 5, 1971. He got a job with the railroad in Atlanta, Georgia, for a year, then came back to Lakefront.

In 1974, they headed to New Mexico, but turned back, and moved instead to San Angelo. At first, he worked for Mitsubishi Aircraft, as an inspector, until the business sold. He got a job as a stocker for Bealls Department Store in San Angelo, and in 1985, went to work for the San Angelo Standard Times. He was involved with computer networking and was an assistant to another retired Air Force person. In 1994, he retired at the age of 65, and he and his wife moved to Fort Clark Springs, having had a membership for some time. He has two children, a boy and a girl by a previous marriage, and his wife has two boys, the closest one living in San Antonio.

Pedro “Pete” Leos, Sr. was born in 1925 in D’Hanis to Juan and Ascencion Amaya Leos.

He went to school at the Trio School through the third grade. He then went to work with his father, Juan Leos, as a ranch hand and worked along side his father as a contractor, hiring migrant workers to go up north and work in the fields. He got his notice and went into the Army at age 18.

He reported to San Antonio and got his basic at Camp Shelby in Mississippi. He also got infantry training there. He was sent to Germany and held the rank of private throughout the war. He was in an Army tank which hit a land mine. Twenty two men were killed in the blast and Pete was thrown out, landing on another mine. Fortunately it did not go off. He was eligible and received a Purple Heart for that action. In 1945, he returned back to New York City, rode the train to Uvalde, got out at the depot, and walked into a bar for a beer while in uniform. The owner refused to serve him, and he never forgot the incident. Pete went to flight school on the GI Bill, a student at Southwest Texas Junior College. He really wanted to learn how to fly, but after wrecking a plane flying over a baseball game in Batesville, he tried to land the plane in a field of corn, wrecked the plane, and

was thrown out of the school. At the age of 24, he married Maria Porter Rodriguez. The result of that union is four children, 9 grandchildren, and 11 great-grandchildren. Pete went to work as a bull dozer operator and held that job for 35 years. When he lost his hearing, he went back to work as a ranch hand. When he hired on at Freer, Texas, he was the manager. He retired in 1999, because of Altzheimer’s. At the last, he had to go into a nursing facility and he died in 2008. In this picture, his widow is holding his picture of when he was at the flight school.

In 1923 in Sapulpa, Oklahoma, Kenneth G. Kellar was born to Percival and Bonnie Jones Kellar.

When the Kellars divorced, Bonnie, Kenneth who was 10, and his sister Betty who was 9, moved to Denver, Colorado, where Kenneth’s grandparents, G. W. and Minnie McGuire lived. The McGuires ran a boardinghouse style café and the children often helped on weekends and even during the week, washing dishes, cleaning tables, and cleaning up in general.

The family followed the oil boom to Kilgore, Texas, still running a boardinghouse style café, with the children still helping out. It was the depression and people had to follow wherever they could go to make a living. At age 15, Kenneth got a job and learned the art of plastering. He worked on homes and businesses in Texas, and then in Colorado.

Kenneth went to Wichita, Kansas, to visit his dad and while there, he met Doraline Nelson, who lived with her dad. After four months courtship, they married in Kansas. In May of 1943, they moved to Fort Worth, Texas. He was drafted into the Army, went to the induction center at Camp Wolters, near Mineral Wells, Texas. He received his basic training at Sheppard Field, located near Wichita Falls. He was then transferred to the Army Air Corp and

from there, he was sent to Western Reserve University in Cleveland, Ohio, and was trained at many other places, too numerous to mention.

He was trained as a fighter pilot, single and multi-engine planes. He received his silver wings at Aloe Air Force Base at Victoria, Texas, on September 8, 1944, and he flew navigators, helping them learn how to set the courses, necessary for navigation, in and around Houston, got out of the service on October, 1945, while in Houston.

Back again in Colorado, this time in Littleton, he began plastering again, but soon went into his own business. He contracted Rheumatic fever and went into the Veterans Hospital. He was advised there to move to a warmer climate with lower altitude. So, they moved to Houston, Texas. There he got a job with Sinclair at the refinery in Pasadena, Texas. He was there for 19 years. When Arco bought it out, they moved to Washington state with the start of a new Arco refinery there. He remained with the company another 16 years, retiring at the age of 62.

The couple then moved to Del Rio, on Lake Amistad, then to the City of Del Rio for a while. From there they moved to Fort Clark Springs, Brackettville.

They had four boys, two of whom died, have 10 grandchildren, and 10 great-grandchildren.

Charles Pinkney Spangler, Jr. was born in 1924 to Charles P Spangler, Sr. and Bessie Legare Simpkins Spangler in San Antonio, Texas. When he was two, the family moved to Uvalde where he attended school and graduated in 1941.

He had two younger sisters, Elizabeth Spangler Roberson, and Marion Spangler Hubble.

He attended college at Texas A&M, was in “G” Company, Infantry, in the Corps.

Following the attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, he quit college and joined the United States Marine Corp. Basic was done at Camp Pendleton, California, where he was honor man of the 1150th platoon. He was assigned to the 2nd Marine Aircraft Wing which had been hit hard at Pearl Harbor. In spite of that, they contributed to 83 operations in the South Pacific: major ones were at Wake Island, Guadalcanal, Midway, Saipan, Tinian, Guam, and Okinawa. For several months in 1945, he was made guard of British properties in Peking, China. He was on the first plane to fly to Hiroshima following the destruction by the first atomic bomb. He described his surprise

Albert Austin “Pete” Schaefer was born in Utopia in 1924 to Albert Earl and Bertie Pearl (Guess) Schaefer. As a young boy in school, he broke horses, had a true love of horses. He went into the Army at the tender age of 17; was given his high school diploma. He served three years in the service, even managed to do cowboying in the service. When he got out, he married Stella Hobbs and they had a daughter, Oveta Schaefer. Pete went to body school on the G I Bill at SWTJC. Close friends at school were Joe Buckoviney, Brooks Hicks, Ira Sansom, and Chilton Stoner.

The marriage was short lived and after the divorce, his daughter, Oveta, lived with his parents. The Schaefers raised her in their home like a daughter. Pete then went to work at a gas station for H. Ray. In 1949, H. Ray introduced Pete to Frances Burdett, who was from La Pryor. She was working in a diner across the street

from the station. They were soon married.

The result of that union was three boys and three girls. Pete opened a body shop, first on Garden Street. Later, he moved to a location near the present day Church of the Nazarene. In 1982, he handed the business over to his son Steve. It was Steve who opened up his shop in North Uvalde at 213 E. Antonio Street.

Pete retired and ran goats and horses. On the side, he tinkered with tractors and lawn mowers. He was a natural mechanic. He also loved to play the fiddle and was in several swing bands; The Nueces Play

“Bill”, William Edwin Chamberlin, was born on Saint Patrick’s Day, 1920, in East Concord, New Hampshire. He was the first son born to Harold Curtis and Ruth Marion (Bachelder) Chamberlin. His birth was preceded by an older sister. The family had two daughters and four sons in all. He was a member of the graduating class of Concord High School, graduating in June, 1936. He liked to party and stay out late, had a motorcycle which he wrecked. From that wreck, he suffered skull damage and had to have a metal plate put in his head. He lost his driver’s license permanently in the state of New Hampshire due to his folly. He was working at a hotel in Concord, but when World War II broke out, he joined the Army. He got his basic training at Camp Lee, Virginia, where he met his future wife, Dovie Maddalean Boultinghouse of Utopia, Texas. She was in the W.A.A.C.’s at the time. They were married September 11, 1943, in Uvalde, Texas. The result of that union was three children. They presently have 4 grandchildren, 12 great-grandchildren, and 2 great-great-grandchildren. Bill served

in the Army Engineering Corp in the Pacific, was in the battles of the Bismarck Archipeago, New Guinea, Southern Philippines, Luzon, and the Battle of 60 33 WD 45. He received an honorable discharge from the Separation Center at Fort Sam Houston on October 5, 1945. Medals awarded to him were the Asiatic Pacific Campaign with 4 bronze stars, the Philippine Liberation Medal with 1 bronze star, and the Good Conduct Medal. His mess kit that he carried was etched by him with all the places he was during the war and can be seen at the Aviation Museum on Garner Field Road in Uvalde. Since he had lost his driver’s license in New Hampshire and was married to a Texas girl, there was no doubt about where they would live. Because the hiring of veterans was foremost following World War II and with his background in the service in engineering, he was hired in November, 1945, at the Texas Highway Department in Uvalde. He worked many of those years in Edwards, Real, Uvalde, and Zavala Counties.

He was hired as an apprentice inspector and his first job was on

First generation American Sal Vetrano was born in 1930, in Queens, New York, to Salvatore T. Vetrano of Sicily and his World War I bride Evelyn Fullenbach of Germany who arrived in 1920 in Brooklyn, New York. As a young child, Sal went to school in Brooklyn and attended ENY vocational high school. He majored in boat building. He graduated in June, 1947, and July 1 he went into the Navy. He attended the Great Lakes, Illinois, boot camp. He graduated in September, had leave from boot camp, and was then sent to Memphis, Tennessee. There he helped reactivate the air base. By November, he was transferred to the Memphis Naval Air Base and by March was at the Brooklyn Navy Yard, waiting for seat duty. His ship was the USS Missouri, a ship special to President Harry S. Truman. While in Norfolk, Virginia, the president and his family came to visit the USS Missouri, spent the day aboard ship, and gave a gift of silver service with the seal of Missouri decorating each piece. Sal recalls the visit fondly.

When the ship was taken out of dry dock, the men were instructed to take 3 days of clothing and they would return to the ship yard. They were to load ammunition. Instead, they did not leave, and he was assigned to the deck force. He was assigned to the surrender deck and his battle station was three 16 inch main battery guns. He was left pointer, meaning he raised and lowered the guns, and fired the guns manually. The men won the Efficiency E and each member of the ship got $25 prize money. In 1949, he transferred to the electrical division, out of the deck force.

Next, they took midshipmen from Annapolis to Europe, teaching them seamanship. In June 1950, they picked up midshipmen and docked in New York. He got to visit his mother on liberty. When he returned to the ship, he found that he was going to Korea and to war. At Norfolk, Virginia, they loaded their ship and then left. By the last of June, they were headed to the Panama Canal loaded with fuel, headed into a hurricane.Trying to outskirt it, they instead went through the eye of the hurricane. He was called at 8:30 p.m. to the forward diesel room where an electrical panel had exploded. He, and good friend Eddie Smith, worked all night replacing electrical breakers. By 7 a.m. the next morning, the job was completed and they were headed to Hawaii via the Panama Canal. There the liberty boats were removed, the movie locker was removed, the aircraft crane and catapults were removed. They were converting back to a war ship. These items were replaced by three Huey helicopters. All guns for combat were reinstalled and they left Hawaii August, 1950.

On September 13, they were in Sasebo, Japan,

having made the trip in 13 steaming days. On September 15, they were in the first engagement of Inchon Harbor. Their mission was to patrol the coast and protect the Army and Marines under fire. They were at sea anywhere from 3 weeks to a month and a half with cover firing. Then they were on the north coast of Korea, at flank speed going south with 2 destroyers and another ship for the second invasion of Inchon. By this time, the Chinese were in the war. Going east on the coast of Korea they were headed to Hung Nang on December 21, 1950 providing cover fire and under heavy action when they evacuated the trapped Army and Marines who survived fighting the battle from the Yula River to Hung Nang. They left December 30 after completing the evacuation, and went back to patrol duty. Off the Korean coast, they provided cover fire for the Army and Marines. They were ordered home March, 1951, and laid over two weeks in Hawaii. They arrived back home to Norfolk at the end of April.

The ship was put into dry docks for six months.

On the first of May, 1951, Sal married Alice Ann Ridgeway. Three days before he was to be discharged, he was asked if he would reenlist, that he would be recommended for assignment to the Presidential yacht. He had already decided to take his discharge. In January 1952, the ship was brought out of dry docks. By April 7, 1952, he received his discharge at Norfolk. The result of his marriage netted two children, a boy and a girl.

The marriage however, resulted in a divorce.

He returned home to Honesdale, Virginia, and worked for an electrical company. It was there that he learned his electrical craft in the civilian world. He moved to Glendale, Arizona, and ran an appliance store, moved to Phoenix, learned television repair on the G I Bill, and worked and managed a television repair service. In 1953, he became an auxiliary police officer for the Glendale, Arizona Police Department. By March, 1956, he was requested to take a test for police officer. He did so and was accepted to the force as a patrolman. Because Sal had a bootleg photo operation in the Navy, he explained that he could develop their mug shots. He started a photo lab, developed their pictures, and also took care

at the total devastation and how flat the horizon was. He never spoke of the horrors of war, only of the friendships formed on foreign soil.

Following his discharge, he returned to Uvalde, was in the farm and ranch loan business alongside his father.

He married Mary Louise Stevenson in 1946. They had a daughter, Sandy Spangler Martin. He attended the newly formed Southwest Texas Junior College and then took engineering courses from the University of Texas. He became involved with Beretta, Greenslade, Clark, and Collins Engineering Company of San Antonio, the La Pryor State Bank, and Southwest Surveyers of La Pryor. He lost his wife in 1971, having been married 25 years.

In 1973, he married Mae Barnes who already had two children. They had one son, James, and Mae passed away in 1995. He fought the biggest battle of his life with cancer, but died at Sandy’s home in Abilene IN 1996. He is buried in the La Pryor Cemetery. A special thanks to Sandy Martin for sharing her memories of her father with me.

Boys, Texas Stage Hands, and Rambling Texas to name a few. His brother Raymond played the bass fiddle and Louis Wimberley joined on the guitar.

He also taught Glenn Schaefer of Sabinal how to play the fiddle. Glenn’s daughter, Glenda Story, and her son, Chris Story, carry on the musical tradition.

Pete’s nephew, Michael Hocker, was learning how to play when Pete passed away two years ago. Once, his son Steve recalls that Porter Waggoner made a visit and invited their band to play with him. After a discussion, Raymond confessed that he was afraid to fly and Pete decided to pass up that opportunity, preferring to play with friends like J. T. Gary and his brother. the overpass in North Uvalde. When the Resident Engineer asked for suggestions for a safer way into Garner Park, it was Bill who suggested the present entrance. Not too long before he retired, he worked over the widening of that same overpass in Uvalde. Bill retired from the Highway Department, now named the Department of Transportation, as an engineer technician, in 1976, having put in 31 years of service. Good friend Gerald Smallwood loved to call Bill a “Damn Yankee” referring to the joke about a Yankee being from New England and a Damn Yankee one who wouldn’t go home. When Bill had spent one day longer in Texas than in New Hampshire, he let Gerald know that he was a full fledged Texas, no longer a Yankee at all. During their lifetime, they made trips back to New Hampshire and Vermont, visiting family and friends.

When they made their trips, Bill made sure that his children got to see the nation’s capitol in Washington, D. C. as well as other national treasures there. They also visited Niagara Falls, the Statue of Liberty, the mighty Mississippi River, and other famous landmarks along the way. The children saw the “Old Man of the Mountain” in New Hampshire, long before it fell. Occasionally, Bill’s family would come to Texas also. Bill died on September 8,1993 and is buried in Waresville Cemetery, which is located south of Utopia.

of police radios. He was advanced from patrolman to patrolman technician.

He was provided a 40 hour course by the FBI in fingerprinting, a 40 hour Federal course taught by the FBI on search and seizure as well as jewelry theft, and a 40 hour course in photography by the Eastman Kodak Company.

He then started the ID bureau for the Glendale Police Department. He also wrote a section for the manual on cameras, fingerprinting and dusting.

He watched the department grow from 12 to 30 officers. He was on 24 hour call for major crime and accidents. In 1969, he left the police department, had bought two acres of land the year prior on the G I Bill, and had a sporting goods store, repairing fiberglass boat repairs and custom painting. He also did outboard motor repairs. In 1971, he sold the business.

He was hired as plant electrician for Motorola in Phoenix, Arizona and worked there from 1971 through 1979. He then went to work for a nuclear power plant west of Phoenix in 1979. His partner there was from Texas and explained that Midland needed journeymen electricians. When he got laid off, he was promised a job through a business agent at the electrical union hall, got a white ticket to work in Midland. He left Phoenix for Midland and 24 hours later reported to the electrical union hall in Midland. He was sent out immediately to work on the job site of Texas Instruments. In seven months, he was laid off again. The business agent then sent him to an electrical contractor at the Permian Basin Mall.

The contractor there was impressed and Sal was asked to stay with EGL Electrical out of Myrtle Springs, Texas. He was there 6 or 7 months.

There he worked at Singer Sewing Machine Company doing electrical work at a new store and completed the job. The owner of Dal Tex asked Sal to partner with him. In their partnership Sal did a mall in Baytown in 1980, and completed the mall. It was on to Austin’s Barton Creek Mall, and he moved his trailer there and did 12 stores. The partnership ended upon completion of that mall. Again working under a white ticket, he wired the science building, Welch Hall, at the University of Texas.

He had enough construction, and went overtime as a journeyman. He took the journeyman test

and passed it the first time. Next, he worked with calculations and City ordinances, studied and took the Masters Test. He passed the Masters test. The electrical experience he got in the Navy helped. After the University of Texas job, he was laid off again. He began an electrical business in Austin, became friends with a fellow from Corpus Christi and three weeks later, moved to Corpus.

There he did malls and also in Houston. The Town and Country Mall was three stories high.

He met with contractors and acquired four stores to wire. In Humble, he wired 14 stores at Deer Brook Mall. Along with 2 men from Humble and the one friend from Corpus, by 1985, they had finished the mall. Next came the oil bust and all businesses died. He returned to Corpus and did electrical work for a home owner. Corpus Christi Independent School District needed a Master electrician. He applied for the position, was accepted and worked for them fifteen years. He purchased his five years service time in the Navy and retired with 20 years in 2000.

His wife, Winnie (Heger) Vetrano, was assistantprincipal at an elementary school in Corpus and they married in 1991. For their honeymoon, they went to Fredericksburg, then visited Leakey.

They liked the area and kept coming to it and came several times to Garner Park, looking for a hunting place. In 1992, they purchased 75 acres toward Camp Wood and started hunting. They cleared an area for a barn to keep the motor home in and built it in 1994. They began planning for retirement and a home. Winnie retired the year after Sal. They then moved to Leakey.

Winnie and he helped in the early years of Big Springs Ranch for Children. They were the first grandparent couple at Big Springs Ranch and Winnie worked as their first special ed teacher, working half time at the school. The couple lived on the ranch for about 6 months while building their home near Leakey.

In 1997, the couple purchased property to satisfy Sal’s hobby and love of cooking. In June, 2003, the building was begun and by October it was open for business. It was Vinnie’s Italian Restaurant and had a full Italian menu. They had to close it in 2012, for lack of help. Now, it is a pizzeria with sandwiches, salads and desserts. Winnie currently works as a part-time diagnostician for Uvalde I S D. During his lifetime, Sal taught hunter safety for children for 13 years, fire arm safety, helped with the Boys Club giving away turkeys at Thanksgiving, helped establish a drill team teaching boys to march, and public speaking to children ages 11 to 14. He has had a full 85 years and still going strong.

Born to Arnold A. and Lady Carpenter Neal in Pampa, Texas, in 1927, Wilson R. Neal was the fifth son of a family of 9 boys and one girl. The family joke is that there were 9 boys and each had a sister. He went to school in Pampa at first.

Then the family moved to Lytle, then Devine, and in 1938, they moved to Pearsall. They were farmers by trade.

When Wilson was 17, he signed up and was sworn into the Naval Reserves, February, 1945, but did not leave for the service until May, 1945.

First stop was the Naval Training Station in San Diego, California, was there was 8 weeks of boot camp. He studied night vision, learning to identify Japanese ships; had fire fighting training; then went home on leave for 30 days. He had been promised that he could go to electrical school, but by the time his leave was up, the war was over. Since he was in the Naval Reserves, electrical school was cancelled, but by joining the regular Navy, he got to go to the Great Lakes Illinois electricians mate school. It was there that he studied and became an electricians mate. He was sent back to San Diego, California, where he learned about sound and motion pictures in technical school, how to run movies for those aboard ship. Most of the film was well worn, and a challenge to operate. He was a passanger on the USS President Jackson which docked near Ford Island which is now the site of the Hawaii Pacific Aviation Museum, located near the sunken USS Arizona, at Pearl Harbor. There he boarded the USS Prinston. Some of his vivid memories include being a passenger, but attached

to the electrical crew, on the USS Princeton, an aircraft carrier. The USS Prinston held a special passenger, United States Supreme Court Justice Felix Frankfurter, who was escorting the body of the late Manuel L. Quezon, the first President of the Commonwealth of the Philippines. Quezon had been exiled from his country, and sought refuge living in Washington, D. C. until his death. When they arrived at Manila, there were sunken vessels around Manila Bay. When the Prinston docked, they paused to observe July 4, 1946, a day which marks Independence Day in both the Philippines and America.

He remained on the Prinston until it arrived in Saipan. in the North Marina Islands. He then boarded as a passenger on the USS Borderlon, a destroyer escort enroute to Guam. It was there that he boarded the USS Jupiter. He recalled in the Carolina Islands, now Micronesia, the captain of the ship said that the men could take Japanese rifles as souveniers, but they had to be sent home. The rifles were fitted with canvas bags before being sent home. He worked on the Jupiter with the crew who picked up equipment from Samar in the Philippines and many other

Born in 1926 in Edwards County to Joseph “Joe” Daniel Wood and Violet Beatrice Colwell Wood, Harley Wood has led a good life. He attended the Barksdale School for 12 years. His only sibling, Dahlia Maurine Wood was married to Jeff McFatter, and was younger than himself.

Harley played football one year and had his nose skinned up tackling an opposing player. Upon the advice of his coach, he was the first person ever to wear a face guard, he was proud to announce.

He graduated from school at 18 years of age but was delayed going into the service, having vision trouble. In 1946, Harley was sent by the Army Air Corp to Amarillo for basic training, but his problem came up again.

Again he had to pass a physical and was sent to Fort Sam Houston in San Antonio where again he passed the physical. He was then sent to radar school in Boca Raton, Florida for three months.

Headquarters readied him to be shipped out. He and one boy from It was 1923 when Lee Barton was born in O’Fallon, Illinois to Freeman Fletcher Barton and Marie Brown Barton. His mother was adopted at the age of 6 by the Weaver family, and since Lee was the youngest of four children, that is all that he knows of his mother’s family. His dad met his mother in Collinsville, Illinois in 1918. The result of that union was 1 daughter, LaDorris, and 3 boys, Muryl, Rollin, and Lee. During the Depression, his dad lost his business, got an insurance job, and sold door to door. He recalls singing in the choir with his siblings, belonging to the Baptist Young Peoples Union, and being in church services each Sunday and Wednesday. He also emphasized that all his life he has had a thirst for education. He graduated as a member of the Honor Society from high school in 1940. He enlisted in the Naval Flight Program.

He first went to Civilian Pilot Program in June, Pre-Flight School in October, Primary training in Lambert Field, St. Louis, then to Pensacola, Florida for Basic, Instrument and Advanced. The latter was in PBYS. He graduated in June, 1943, and was commissioned a Second Lieutenant in the Marine Corps. Lee said, “he didn’t know nothing” at that point. He didn’t even know what an officer’s pay was.

His first duty assignment was Camp Kearney, now Miramar, for a few months. He volunteered to go

In 1920, Howard Wakefield, Sr. was born in Superior, Wisconsin, and spent his early years there. At the age of 4, his parents, Ben and Marie (Roe) Wakefield moved to Tulsa, Oklahoma.

He worked for his dad who did sand blasting, and at the age of 14, Howard was driving eighteen wheelers. At about that time, he also took a bicycle trip back to Wisconsin, living off the generosity of people along the way. It was in Tulsa that Howard graduated from high school.

At the age of 20, he went into the Army and was there for two years. He was then transferred to the Army Air Corp, serving as airplane mechanic crew chief of the 147, a transport plane. He then went into the Air Force and retired after 23 years.

Next, he went to work for Gus Nuetze, having had a course while in the service, and learned more about, air conditioning and refrigeration. Eventually he had his own business, Modern Refrigeration, in Uvalde, and later Carrizo Springs.

He retired from this at the age of 72.

Howard was married to his wife Billie and lost her after 18 years of marriage.

South Pacific and South Western Pacific Iislands, and from Okinawa, Japan, they observed abandoned landing crafts.

From Tsingtao, China, and many South Pacific islands, part of the cargo was delivered to China. It was decided in 1947 to place the USS Jupiter into the mothball fleet.. Then he helped place other ships into the mothball fleet. He got out in August, 1949.

At first, he used the G I Bill, enrolled in the Californina Baptist Theological College, located in Los Angeles, graduated in 1953. During that time, he met and on May 28, 1951, married Sarah Howell, his first wife. In August, 1953, they moved to Kansas City, Kansas, where he enrolled in the Central Baptist Theological Seminary. In November, 1954, his young daughter got bronchitis, and they were advised to move to a warmer climate. In 1957, they moved back to San Diego, where he got a job as an industrial electrician in air craft plants.

In 1959, he was hired as a shipyard electrician at the National Steel and Ship Building Company, located in San Diego. The company had a high rate of accidents. He worked out of the electric shop office, using a bicycle to and from places he needed to go. One day, a big crane was moving

New Jersey were sent to Spokane, Washington, instead of being shipped out. There they learned auto mechanics for two months. On the way home on leave, they were in a train wreck near White Fish, Montana. With a lieutenant in charge, they stayed in three cabins until they could be rescued. He was given 10 days leave and he went home for a visit, back to the ranch that had been in his family for 110 years. Next, he was to report to San Francisco, California, with orders to be shipped out. There were 3,000 GI’s aboard that ship, headed to Manila, Philippines. He made friends with another soldier by the name of Woods and they decided to say that they were brothers and really enjoyed fooling others aboard ship.

The ship made it to Tokyo, Japan, on Christmas Eve where he recalls he got kitchen police or “KP” duty two days in a row.

At Okinawa, 2,500 men were delivered off the boat. Next were

to El Centro to fly the Lockheed R50 and also flew the SBD and F4U. Next assignment was flying transport aircraft all over the Western Pacific out of Guam in support of Marines wherever they had landed, delivering personnel, supplies, parts, and mail.

After World War II was over, he applied for a regular commission and was accepted. He had a plethora of duty assignments: Amphibious Warfare School and Aircraft Maintenance Officers School at Quantico, two tours in transport squadrons, Officer in Charge of Assembly Division in an Overhaul and Repair Department, student at Marine College Mathematics School, Pilot in an AD Squadron Korean War, lead flight of four Ads, dropped the last bombs of the Korean War. After the war in El Toro, he was Officer in charge of an Officers Club, Station squadron Commanding Officer, Airfield Operations, Pensacola Operations Officer of a Student Pilot Training Group, Executive Officer in A4 Squadron Cherry Point and Iwakuni, Japan, in the Pentagon with the Navy as Program Director of Aircraft and Weapons Programs, College Degree Completion Program Chapman University in California, Chu Lai, Vietnam, Executive Officer of Aircraft Group A4 and A6 squadrons. He flew 176 combat missions and was selected for Colonel.

Lee was Officer in Charge of Chu Lai Airfield

He has three children, and eight grandchildren.

He knew Nadine Chapman Chenault of Uvalde, met her in 1948 while he was working at Laughlin Air Force Base. Nadine lost her husband Jack in 1968 which ended their 22 year marriage. She and Jack had 3 children, have 4 grandchildren, and 7 great-grandchildren. She was living in Uvalde, and he was living in Carrizo Springs, and they were married in 1989. They compromised by moving to Fort Clark Springs where she still resides, keeping in close touch with both his and her children. The first years of their marriage, they travelled in a recreational vehicle. She likes to brag that they went to every state in America, excluding North Dakota. They went to Old Mexico twice. When they went into Canada, in Quebec, their French was non existent and they had some difficulties there, she laughs. Nadine lost Howard in 2008, ending a marriage of 19 years. She continues to live at Fort Clark Springs and enjoys her many friends, a wonderful church family, and all the memories that she and Howard made over the years.

Saipan and Luzon, Philippines. It was in Manila where they were anchored 3 miles out and were placed on pontoon boats. Upon arriving on dry land, they were met with a toonerville trolley.

They stopped and bought Hershey bar candies. The candies were melted and old and had to be thrown out. They spent 3 months in the Philippines and the war was declared over. They had 6 months to get out. He was sent to Oregon to disembark and receive his discharge. He recalls riding busses to El Paso and then to Uvalde.

From there, he went home and went into ranching with his family who had 3,000 acres, begun by his grandparents George Washington Wood and Lebby Taylor Wood. He spent 10 years sheering sheep, hurt his back, which he still suffers from today.

The family turned the ranch into a hunting lease and made their living off of hunters in the front of the ranch while they lived on the back side. Harley had a lady friend once, but never married.

He has moved to Uvalde where he leads a quiet life. He retains his good sense of humor and is content with his memories.

Headquarter Marine Corps. He was selected for the Industrial College of the Armed Forces; holds a Masters Degree from George Washington University; Operations Fleet Marine Forces Pacific in Hawaii; Marine member Commander of the Pacific; and Inspector General’s Office. He retired in 1974 in Hawaii.

Lee then acquired a Securities Salesman’s License then Real Estate Salesman and Broker’s licenses.

He was also Adjunct Instructor for Chaminade University and taught eight different business courses. He then became a full time monitor of instructors who taught at Schofield Barracks Education Center and did this for eight years. He lost his wife Roberta and retired. He travelled, played golf, and tennis. For five years, he then rated golf courses in Hawaii and Guam.

He next moved to Pinehurst, North Carolina, where he met future wife Mary Macho while attending a reunion in New Bern, North Carolina.

When they married, they moved to San Antonio, Texas, where she had a jewelry business. When Mary inherited a ranch near Utopia, Texas, she retired and the couple moved to the ranch. Lee now describes himself as a gentleman rancher and stays busy with reading, writing, computer, family, and friends.

One unique memory that he shared was that in 1963, while in A4 Squadron in Japan, Lee was

Hubbard “Hub” Oran Boultinghouse, the third son out of eleven children, was born in 1911 to John Franklin and Martha Louisa (Smart) Boultinghouse at their home north of Utopia, in Uvalde County. When their home was burned to the ground, the result of two, visiting, little boys playing with matches in a bedroom away from view, they then moved their home on the same farm, but in Bandera County. He graduated from high school in Utopia. He attended the Sabinal Christian College for a short while which was located east of Sabinal. Hub was one of many young boys who worked at the CCC camp located at present day Garner State Park. While Hub was in Sabinal, he met Lodie Morris who was to become his wife.

When he received his draft notice, before going into the service, they decided to marry. On May 15, 1942, Lodie graduated from high school in Sabinal and that evening they were wed at the Bandera County

ship sections and the boom fell, crashing down where, just 30 seconds before, he had been traveling on his bike. It was then that he began a search for other work.

He took an exam for the job as a building inspector for the County of San Diego, and was selected as one of three of the of 60 applicants.

After months of training, he was assigned an area to make inspections of houses for the County of San Diego. He was then promoted to electrical specialist, and later to Building Inspector Supervisor. He became a licenced general building and electrical contractor in the State of California. During that time, he helped write exams for the applicants to take. When he got his State Contractors License, he then taught classes for 21 years, helping others prepare for their state exams. He also did home inspections for realtors.

He retired from that in 1996.

He sold his property in California in 1999, had decided to move closer to family, and moved to Pearsall that same year. He lost his beloved wife in 2010. By June, 2011, he married a second time, this time to Janis Shelton Johnson. He has one daughter, 8 grandchildren, 7 boys and 1 girl, has 8 great-grandchildren with another one on the way. His second wife has 4 daughters, 8 grandchildren, and 6 great grandchildren with one on the way. He stays active with contracting work, repairs, and upgrading. He is also President of the Devine - Pearsall Gideon Camp of the Gideons International. Their mission is to witness, do testimony, and provide Bibles in hotels, motels, and as handouts to young people.

selected as Executive Officer of a Navy/Marine Team called Flying Brothers. It was composed of three Navy and three Marine pilots. There were two Marine Warrant Officers in charge of ten sailors and twenty five Marines. They trained for a month, then went to Clark Field in the Philippines. There were Flying Brother teams from other countries: Free China, Japan, the Philippines, South Korea, Taiwan, and the U. S. Air Force. It was an unusual and grand two weeks of flying simulated missions ending in ordinance delivery, insurgency warfare classes, and nightly gatherings hosted by the different teams.

Courthouse. The next week, he left for the Army Air Corp, later made the U S Air Force. He was trained as an aviation mechanic, spending two years in Newport, Delaware. His wife soon joined him there.

About a year before he was discharged in 1945, he served in Newfoundland.

He received his honorable discharge as a Corporal at Ft. Sam Houston on December 13, 1945.

He, his wife, and young daughter then moved to Utopia and he tried his luck at farming. When that did not prove profitable, he got a job with a road building company. In 1946, he moved his family to Uvalde and landed a job with the Texas Highway Department. He worked in the engineer department at first and then was assigned to the lab at Blewett, still a part of the engineering department. When he had time off,

he loved to hunt and fish, and spent many hours playing the family game of 42. He received his 25 year pin from the Texas Highway Department in July 1971 while fighting his battle with cancer. He lost his battle in December, 1971.

His family has grown from his three children: Joyce Faust, Janice Bohannan, and Charlie Boultinghouse who still reside in Uvalde; to five grandchildren, ten great-grandchildren, and two greatgreat grandchildren.

Howard Webster Cole was born in 1922, the only child of Maxwell and Millie Johnson Cole, near Mission, Texas. He graduated from Edinburg Junior College. He began flying lessons in McAllen with Walter S. “Pop” Fullwood who was a friend with famous pilots of that era including such notables as Amelia Earhart, Charles Lindberg, and Wiley Post. Howard completed his Civilian Pilot Training at Kingsville, Texas and then volunteered for the Army Air Corps, hoping to become a military pilot. His vision however did not meet pilot standards so he was sent to navigator school and was eventually trained at the Hondo Air Base. Based in England, he flew 30 missions over Germany in B-24 Bombers. At one time he flew as Lead Navigator with famous actor Jimmy Stewart as pilot. He flew night flights over Norway from Scotland, an extra 14 missions, which was in support of the Norwegian Underground.

King Haaken of Norway, then in exile in Scotland, awarded Howard and the crew with medals for their services.

Following World War II, Howard began life anew, visiting family in Mission, and then on the G I Bill, enrolled at Texas A & I University in Kingsville, studying General Engineering. While in college, he met the love of his life, Vera Kathryn Hawkinson, daughter of Leslie and Hazel (Camp) Hawkinson. Howard and Vera were married in McAllen in the First Methodist Church, spending their honeymoon in Kerrville. Still in school, Howard completed another semester, then re-entered the Air Corp, attending Air Weather School at Chanute Air Force Base in John Harry Hardt, Sr. was born at the home of his parents, Lee and Alice Grace Robinson Hardt in 1925, during a pouring rain. They lived west of Uvalde on a little ranchito, and John did not wait for the doctor to come in his horse and buggy. John arrived before the doctor did. School began with kindergarten in Uvalde.

John has a sister, Ann Eve, who is three years younger than him. The Hardts moved their dairy farm to Eagle Pass and ranched along the Rio Grande.

Mom and Dad soon divorced and the children went with their mother to San Antonio where they were enrolled in St. Joseph’s Catholic School. When his mother married a second time, the children went to live with their father, who at that time had remarried.

While living with him on the farm, Alice learned of the conditions in which the children were living.

She became outraged, and came with detectives to remove the children. Ann Eve stayed with her mother and John stayed with his great-grandfather, John Frances Robinson, in Uvalde. His greatgrandfather died suddenly of typhus fever and John then moved to Batesville in the home of his Uncle Guy and Aunt Maxine Robinson. Thus the siblings were raised apart. Uncle Guy, “Tio”, was with the Border Patrol and as they moved John went with them from Batesville to Uvalde to Eagle Pass. He attended Austin Elementary School in Eagle Pass, and most of his education in the Eagle Pass School District. When the new high school was built on Del Rio Boulevard, he took vocational agriculture under Mr. Boyd. He ran track and played football for two years, but quit school to join the Navy on the advice of his football coach, Mr. Miller. John spent three years in the South Pacific on the USS San Diego, an AA cruiser. This ship was the flag ship, the first to enter Tokyo Bay. The ship was awarded the Japanese Occupation Medal. He received several medals, among them the Asiatic Campaign Medal and Good Charles Pinkney Spangler, Sr. known as “Pink” was born in 1897 in Karnes City, Texas, to William Henry Spangler and Avie (Davis) Spangler. He was born into a family of nine children, six boys and one girl. He had red hair and a ruddy complexion. He graduated from the San Marcos Baptist Academy in May 1918. Two years later he reported to West Point as a cadet.

He attended school there for one and a half years, but was needed back home to run the family farm. In April 1923, he married Bessie (Legare) Simpkins in San Antonio. The result of that marriage was three children: Charles Pinkney Spangler, Jr., Elizabeth Spangler Roberson, and Marion Spangler Hubble . They made their home in Karnes City but in 1926, they moved to Uvalde. There he ran for office and was elected Uvalde County Judge and served from 1931 to 1933 in that capacity. Popular tourist attraction Garner State Park was established during his tenure. His was a delicate position as John Nance Garner was opposed to the park while his wife, Ettie Rheiner Garner, was for it. The original site of Garner State Park was purchased for $12 an

Illinois. He then began flying Air Weather Reconnaissance at Yokota, Japan. Sent to Lubbock, Texas, he became Weather Officer at Reece AFB. He retired from the Air Force in 1964 and returned to the family farm near Mission, Texas.

Other decorations and medals awarded to him for his service to his country were the Air Medal with 5 Oak Leaf Cluster, Distinguished Flying Cross, European Theatre of Operations Medal with 2 battle stars for the Air Offensive against Germany and the Normandy Invasion, a certificate for Meritorious Service signed by General H. H. “Hap” Arnold, the Air Force Commendation Medal, Service Ribbons for the Rhineland, Ardennes-Alsace and Korea. Howard flew 290 Combat Hours in Europe in B-24’s and 51 Combat Hours in Korea in B-29’s. He received his Master Navigator Wings in 1959 and retired as a Lieutenant Colonel in 1964. He was a member of the American Meteorological Society, Retired Officer’s Association and the Air Force Association. When he retired from the Air Force, he returned to the family farm near Mission, Texas.

Howard next spent 15 years as a Science teacher to junior high students, became involved with Sharyland Rural Water Supply Corporation, serving as Operations Manager for 8 years. He

retired from this in 1987. With the sale of the family farm early the next year, the couple then moved to Leakey. It was there that their sonin-law built the couple their retirement home complete with a dark room from which Howard could enjoy his hobby of photography. Howard became involved in the water supply for the Twin Forks Subdivision, a gated community near the City of Leakey. Because of his voluntary time, and because of his expertise, the subdivision named their water plant the TNRCC Howard Cole Plant.

Texas Natural Resources Conservation Corp was the forerunner to the present day TCEQ or Texas Commission on Environmental Quality. Speaking with Mr. and Mrs. Glen Bradley, they recalled that he volunteered his time for at least 15 years. Mrs. Bradley also recalled that in appreciation for his service to their community, she would bake him a cake each week. She was pleased to learn that he really looked forward to her cakes. “Each week there was a fresh cake delivered and an empty plate returned,” she said.

Howard died two years ago. He and Vera had three children and 6 grandchildren. I want to credit article F163 from the book “Wagons Ho!”, published by the Real County Historical Society, for much of the content about his life.

Conduct medal. He received his honorable discharge in San Diego, then flew to Houston and first headed to Louisiana to visit his mother and sister. He then went back to the dairy and back to work, but he lived in town, in order to eliminate conflict with his step-mother. John soon got a job in the import/export business in Eagle Pass. He got a better job, a federal job with the Hoof and Mouth Disease Program. The job was a joint effort of the United States and Mexico and was located in Mexico. He worked there five years, the first three years in the first campaign and the next two years in the second campaign. During the time he was working in Mexico, he married his first wife, Margaret Ritchie, daughter of John Ritchie who farmed in Eagle Pass and Crystal City.

They had three children and the marriage ended in divorce. He then married a San Antonio girl, Johnnie Mae Akin, and they lived in Eagle Pass.

They too had three children. John and Johnnie Mae ran a gravel business for a while. He delivered the gravel and she did the bookkeeping. He then worked for Txan Energy Propane, starting out as a delivery man, ending up as manager. His wife got ill and he took leave for three years. She died in 1992. The company had been bought out by Fletcher Butane during that time, and he went to work with the new company, doing installation of plumbing on homes, and the company is now American Propane. John retired in 1999, after 32 years with the company. He was 74. He is a member of the Word of Life Church in Eagle Pass and attends regularly. At last count, John has six children, seventeen grandchildren, and six great-grandchildren. He had an inheritance from his mother’s estate which he invested in the stock market. He decided upon retirement to invest the money and he bought a farm in Quemado. He raises cattle and has a pecan farm. He was nominated for Man-of-the-Year, won the nomination, and received all the accolades as Man-of-the-Year for the 2014 Maverick County Junior Livestock Show.

acre with a total of 480 acres in the purchase. That made the investment total come to $5,760 dollars, a huge sum at that time. It was “Pink” who persuaded the Civilian Conservation Corp, or CCC as it was commonly known, to establish a camp, build a concession stand and other necessary buildings on the site. Quoting from a newspaper article which was written in 1982, “Texans everywhere owe a debt of gratitude to Judge Spangler, both for his foresight in seeing what was needed by his fellow Texas, and for his determination in seeing that the dream of Garner State Park came true.” In 1940, he was elected a Texas State Representative from the 77th District which included at that time Uvalde, Medina, Zavala, and Dimmitt

Jay Myers of Carrizo Springs was born in Houston in 1921 to William Scott Myers and Helen Cullie Myers. His father was in partnership with H. F. Spalti in the Myers Spalti Manufacturing Company of Dallas and Houston, which built and sold furniture.

His father died when he was still in school. Jay graduated from San Jacinto High School in Houston, class of 1938, at the age of 17. He wanted to go to Harvard and was accepted. Jay’s ship left from Galveston to New York in September of ‘48. Coming into New York City, they were met with a strong wind, with winds clocked at 111 miles per hour, it was the Great Hurricane of ‘38.

It had rained for four days, then on September 21, there was a deluge. On that day alone, over 600 people lost their lives as a result of the hurricane. The entire New England coast suffered great losses from the storm. He met his roommate, George Dexter “Deck” Sohier of Concord, Massachusetts, in Memorial Hall. At the time, Harvard was an all male college. He spent four years at Harvard and earned his degree economics. Jay was in the Naval ROTC at Harvard. He graduated in June, 1942, and received his commission in the Navy the same day. He was given two weeks to go to his battleship, the USS Mississippi. He had a quick trip back home and then boarded his ship for one year. He arrived at Pearl Harbor, which was still a mess from the devastation by the December 7,1941, attack by the Japanese.

From June 1942 to June 1943, he was in the South Pacific, the Aleutian Islands, and then got orders to go to Camden, New Jersey to be assigned to the brand new USS Cabot, an aircraft carrier.

After about two weeks under sail, he arrived at San Francisco. He was on a shakedown cruise. His orders next were to Bremerton, Washington, and now a lieutenant, he was assigned to the Kitkun Bay Aircraft Carrier. This small ship was built by Kaizer, there was no armor, it travelled slowly, but it took airplanes to wherever

Counties. In 1943, Pink was commissioned as a first lieutenant because during World War I he was in the National Guard. He served during World War II from 1943 until June 1946. Places he served were Fort Sill, Oklahoma, Camp Barkley in Abilene, Texas, as well as other Prisoner of War camps as an interpreter before going overseas.

One prisoner honored Pink with a picture that he painted of his interpretation of his home town in Germany. It is this picture that serves as background for Pink’s service picture.

It remains a treasured keepsake of the Spangler family. In Germany, Pink was assigned to the War Crimes Commission and assisted in building court martial cases again the Nazi and Gestapo

they were needed. It played a major role in the war effort. They were engaged at the battle of Saipan and Guam. While in the South Pacific, his orders next were to go to San Diego to an Army outfit, the Joint Assault Signal Company or JASCO, with three or four weeks of training to ready them to enter Japan. There was to be one Naval officer, Jay, and one Army officer, with the Army in charge of operations.

The enlisted men had various duties, one of them being to run the generator as it had to be run by hand. Back to the Philippines, they were in North Luzon until the end of the war. They were in the camp, with most of the men at the movies. Jay was listening to his short wave radio instead of at the movie. The news was “Flash, the Emperor has accepted terms of surrender.” Jay quickly located the skipper and told him the news that the war was over. Located 150 miles north of Manila, off the coast of Luzon, Jay requested to go home. The captain agreed to send him home. First they had to locate a jeep and driver, then they went to Manila where he hoped to intercept a boat with a ride to San Francisco, California. While waiting in Manila for his ride, Jay also found his college roommate who was only a private in the service. They took three or four days of sightseeing, looked for a place to eat. Jay recalls that since he had two stripes, he took one off and gave it to “Deck” so that they could eat in the officers mess. Soon he found his ship to go home.

Several years after World War II, Jay recalls on a visit to Hawaii, renting a bicycle from the hotel, riding to Diamond Head, then

with the Nuremburg trials. Pink also worked for the Office of Strategic Services, impersonating a German officer and infiltrating enemy lines.

When a German officer suspected he was an American, Pink used his bare hands to choke the officer to death. He could not have used a gun, for fear of it being heard. It was at night and Pink was a passenger in a jeep which was the target of a grenade which caused the jeep to wreck.

Pink’s back was broken and he was removed by his American friends from the wreckage.

He was listed as Missing In Action (MIA) but was returned and stayed at Fort Sam Houston and Brooks General Hospital for rehabilitation.

Because of this wreck, he had to use crutches and wore a back brace for the rest of his life.

When the Korean War broke out, he requested to be active duty. He offered to waive his military disability, but was denied. In his latter years, Pink suffered flashbacks about his time during World War II. He began to have mini strokes, and he died in 1978. He is buried in the Uvalde Cemetery.

hiking to the top of Diamond Head. A young Japanese couple were there and the young man appeared to be bragging about the damage the Japanese did to the United States fleet. It is a sight that Jay remembers vividly even today.

Back in Houston, he went out to the factory, son of the founder. He worked there for five years in the office. In October 1953, he went into ranching, moved to the ranch at Carrizo Springs that has been in his family since 1910.

He liked it so much that he stayed in ranching. At first, Jay did not know anyone in Carrizo, was persuaded to run for County Judge. With the help of Ben White, Jay won the office and served one term. He became active in the community, has been in the local Lions Club for 60 years. He taught Sunday school, the intermediate class. He met and married his wife Lucille (White) Myers. She was the granddaughter of “Doc” Grey White, an early settler from Goliad, Texas, to Pendencia Creek, near present day Carrizo Springs. Jay and Lucille had four children: Beverly, Scott, Barbara, and Marilyn. Marilyn lost her life in an automobile accident at a young age. Jay has one grandchild and two great-grand children. His wife, Lucille, was active in the garden club and made many friends throughout the area, including the hill country. In February, 2011, Jay lost his wife. He remains in the home place with the help of his daughter, Barbara. He is a member of the Episcopal Church and attends faithfully.

William John “Bill” Mechler was born in 1926 in San Antonio to Henry and Josephine Zinsmeyer Mechler and weighed 13 and a half pounds, was featured in the San Antonio Light newspaper, as a cover story, as being the largest baby on record. He grew up in Castroville, went through the eighth grade, and then went to work with his family in the fields. He met his future bride while working for her parents, Edward and Cecila Becker of Macdona.

Bill was 19 when he enlisted in June, 1945, got basic training at Fort Sam Houston, was attached

to the Army Corp of Engineers 36th Texas division, and advanced to the rank of Sergeant. He was in charge of approximately 9,000 German prisoners of war (POW’s) and served as translator. He also aided in the contruction of a bombing strip to be used in the bombing of Berlin, but it was never used. Later it was used for bombing missions during the War in Iraq. Bill was a sharpshooter

with a rifle. He became a liazon between the prisoners and the Army, aided in meeting basic needs of the prisoners.

After the war, he returned to the farm, married Agnes Ann Becker, and farmed. During the drought, he worked at the Medina Base in San Antonio. When the drought broke, he went back into farming in Macdona, Texas. In 1973, the family moved to Sabinal and

Andres Contreras, now of Michigan and recently retired military, has many ties to Sabinal, Texas. He is the namesake of Andres S. Contreras, Jr. whose name is on the list of those who were killed during World War II, which can be found at Veterans Memorial Live Oak Park. His lineage boasts of his grandfather, Andres Contreras, Sr. and great-uncle, Felipe Contreras, both serving in World War I; uncle, Andres Contreras, Jr. and cousins Felipe and Dimas Contreras who served in World War II; uncle Fidencio Contreras and Andres’ own father, Santos Contreras, both of whom served during the Korean War. Our Michigan relative, Andres Contreras, served in the military during the Persian Gulf War, Operation Iraqi Freedom in Iraq, and Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan. Many other members of both sides of his family also have military service.

A special thanks to retired military cousin Richard Musquez of Sabinal who made this unique story possible.

His grandmother’s home was burglarized in Sabinal years ago and the Purple Heart and American flag that had been presented to the family were among the items missing. It was so painful for the family who had suffered the loss of both his Uncle Andres S. Contreras, Jr. and his cousin, Zeke P. Herrera, whose name is also on the list of names in Veterans Memorial Live Oak Park.

That despicable act triggered a response in Andres, the namesake of the man he never had a chance to meet. He wanted these two relatives not to be forgotten, his pledge to his family.

In 2009, while on a business trip to Singapore, Andres was able to fly into Manila, Philippines and visit the gravesite of the uncle he never got to know. Andres learned that his namesake, PFC Andres S. Contreras, Jr., was assigned to Delta Company, 1st Battalion, 34th Infantry Regiment, 24th Infantry Division and was Killed In Action (KIA) on 27 October 1944. He participated in the Battle for Leyte Island to retake the Philippines from the

Japanese that started on 20 October 1944. It was the battle of Leyte that sealed the fate of the Japanese Imperial Navy and eventually led to the fall of Japan at the end of World War II. Andres said, “I have mixed emotions. I never got to meet the one I was named for. It tears one apart.”

Cousin, SGT. Zeke P. Herrera, served in the 532nd Bomb Squadron, 381st Bomber Group (Heavy), 8th Air Force. He was assigned to Ridgewell, England, on March 15, 1944; was Killed In Action on March 24, 1944.

His squadron was assigned to bomb Schweinfurt, Germany, but instead crashed at Bailey Hill Farm. There were no survivors.

In March, 1998, it was decided to place something in the Essex St. Lawrence Church, a memorial to the men in the USAF B17 Flying Fortress, which had crashed at that parish. Thus Sgt. Zeke P. Herrera, of Texas, is one of the names listed on the plaque of that centuries old church.

Andres, received orders for his first duty station and was assigned to Conn Barracks, Schweinfurt, Germany, as part of the 3rd Infantry Division. He could not help but recall his cousin, Zeke Herrera, who met an untimely death. In the spring of this year, Andres attended a funeral of a man who was in the Army Air Corps during World War II. His thoughts wandered to cousin Zeke once more. It was decided to visit relatives of Zeke and by April, relatives met at the home of Nestor and Alicia Moreno, Zeke’s niece, in San Antonio. Alicia showed pictures of their growing up in Sabinal, and they later visited Zeke’s grave in Sabinal. For Andres, his uncle and cousin are truly members of the Greatest Generation and will never be forgotten. These great Americans must remain in our memories. It is true to say history is vital. If you as a country don’t know where you have been, you can’t remember where you are going. Let us not forget so that they will not have died in vain.

Third generation American, Ernest Alfred “Al” Huebner was born in the Santa Rosa Hospital, in San Antonio, in 1924, to Ernest Alexander and Laura Winifred Smith Huebner.

His family came from the city of Gablonz, then in the Austrian Empire, now in the Czech Republic.

Coming to Texas, the family settled in San Antonio, Huebner Road bears his family name. Al attended school in San Antonio, graduated from Brackenridge High in early 1941. He became a page at the San Antonio Public Library and in September attended the San Antonio Junior College, wanting to become an engineer. He also was hired on as an apprentice electrician, working at Lackland Air Base. He became a lineman, working on power lines for the new base. They wired barracks, the bank, and cafeteria. He remembers there were lots of rattlesnakes. His first engineering challenge was space lighting in one of the big buildings.

Next, Al attended the University of Texas two semesters; his parents had divorced and his mother turned their home into a duplex to support herself. By 1943, Al was faced with possible draft and instead, signed up as a seaman in the Navy. The Navy sent him a letter telling him to report to the University of Texas to study engineering, paid for his room and board and $54 to live on.

He was next sent to Navy shipman school at Columbia University where he was rejected. He went to Great Lakes, but not for boot

training. Instead, passing Captain Eddie’s test, he got electrical school training at the Hugh Manly Junior High School in Chicago, Illinois. Next, he was sent to the Del Monte Hotel in Monterrey, California. There he had classes until noon and a three hour lab in the afternoon. In the room, he and others were studying the Points System.

Germany surrendered in the spring of 1945, Japan surrendered that August.

The Navy did not know what to do with these men they had educated. The sent them on a train to Stockton, California, the men had lunch and at 2 p m, took the train back to Monterrey. It was decided to send them for further training to Corpus Christi, aviation training this time. On the way to the Texas coast, the train stopped in San Antonio. He got off and managed to call his mother, letting her know that he was on his way to Corpus. In 1945, the Points System was the way a soldier got out of the service and by Thanksgiving, he had a total of 36 points. He figured he could get out by Christmas. When he got his discharge, he turned all his books and got enough money together for a bus ticket back home. He arrived on December 23, two days before Christmas. He visited his fiancé, Verna Mae Shields, a widow with a young daughter, Edith Ann Dixon. They were married in San Antonio in April 1948. They were married 50 years, had five children, two of whom have died. Through the years, Al loved to go fishing, became acquainted with the Sterling Fisher family, and often would visit the Utopia area. The family leased a place from

James Arthur “Jay” Howard, Jr. was born in Brice, Texas, at home, which was located in the middle of a cotton patch, son of James and Notie Howard.

He graduated from high school, then enlisted in the Navy in 1943. Boot camp took two months, then he went to the New Hebrides and then on to Guadalcanal for 16 months. He was attached to Squadron #1 Photographic Intelligence, the first of its kind. They flew planes and took pictures.

From those pictures, the military could determine where there were gun emplacements and where to bomb most effectively. The reports were sent all over the South Pacific. He was next stationed at Corpus Christi for a year and then to Nashville, Tennessee a year. His rank was yeoman and he worked for a while at the seperation center in

the chaplain’s office. After discharge, he went to school at Clarendon Junior College. He also attended a photographic school in Dallas. He had a photography studio in Memphis, Texas, but sold it after a year. He went on to get his bachelors degree at West Texas State, now known as West Texas State A & M. He became an instructor on systems of aircraft at the Amarillo Air Force Base during Korea.

Going to night school, he got his master’s degree in psychology and counseling. When the base closed, he went to the Defense Language Institute at Lackland Air Force Base and worked there a year. He went to Lybia as an advisor to the Lybian Air Force. During their short war, he was evacuated. But after about a month, he went back

continued farming and also ranching. He also had a meat packing plant in Sabinal. He ran a teacher education store for a few years. He was involved in the Boy Scouts and the Sabinal Lions Club where he was on the hearing board and did eye testing throughout the area. He later became involved with Sabinal Helping Hands which served Sabinal area citizens as a food pantry. He passed away in June, 2013, and Agnes passed away ten days later.

He and Agnes are survived by 5 daughters, 7 grandchildren, 10 great-grandchildren.

Elby Hutto once. He and Verna Mae bought a ranch at Utopia in 1976, came hunting each year, and in 1990, when she became ill, they decided to sell their holdings in Orange County and move to Utopia. By August, 1995, they were on the ranch thanks to help from family. In their retirement, they made a trip with friends to the Copper Canyons in Mexico, In January, 1998, Verna Mae was hospitalized. She succumbed to cancer in 1999.

Al has held a number of different jobs. First, was the Spindle Top Refinery at Beaumont, where he was a mechanical engineer.

He was given small jobs at first in maintenance engineering. His designs were different, and they worked. In 1954, he was in charge of salvage operations, built a rack, separated the pipe by category.

Samson Iron Supply got all the pipes. He had a sand business in Vidor from which he later also sold top soil.

The present day Mrs. Huebner, Judy, was a nurse at the clinic in Utopia and it was there that Al got to know her. After the loss of his wife, Al decided to get out of the house and joined the Utopia Lions Club. Because of this, he went to the Sabinal Lions Club Hog Festival where he saw Judy LaFrance, who was a judge at the chili cook-off. He was well acquainted with Dr. Pittman and knew his daughter, Mary Virginia Pittman-Waller, who was a good friend of Judy’s. At Dr. Pittman’s birthday party, Al went with Ernen Haby and his wife and there was Judy again. Judy and Al really hit it off. He invited her to show off his ranch. That went well. Then Judy invited him to a wedding. They both went to the same church, were involved in Lions Club, had lunch together.

She invited him to her home for holidays, if he did not have family with him, so he would not be alone. They were wed in 2000, and he came to know and love her two children. They remain at the ranch and are still active in the Utopia Lions Club.

to finish his job, then returned to the States.

Next, he became an advisor to the Thai Army in Bangkok, Thailand. He advised from Laos to Malasia, border to border. Then he returned to Lackland AFB. He next became advisor to the 5th Army Reserve program at Fort Sam Houston; 2 years with the Defense Department.

At age 52, he was offered to opt out and thus he retired.

He then went to work in public relations for Phipps Plating Company of San Antonio, was there two years; tried his hand at substitute teaching; and completely retired at the age of 55. After that, his wanderlust took hold and he traveled to Europe several times as well as other places. Five years ago, he met Alta Anderson and

they have been happily married ever since.

Roland A. Blair was born in 1908 at Vance, Kimble County, at Bushy Creek on the Blair Ranch. His parents were Lloyd and Cora Lee (Mankins) Blair.

He went to school at Vance through the 10th grade. It was then he left home and became a ranch hand. His friend, Enoch Nelson had a sister, Clara, who was from Eden, Texas. He met her in Uvalde and they were married at the Uvalde Court House. They both worked at various ranches in the area, one of them being the Tin Can Ranch. In Laredo, he became an assistant to Dr. Cooper, local veterinarian. Then he was drafted by the Navy, but instead, he joined the Marines. Boot camp was at Camp Pendleton, San Diego, California. Clara and her brother who had a bad back worked in the aircraft factory while Roland served as a Marine in the Pacific. He and his wife had a code worked out. Both had identical maps of where the war was going on. He would use a sheet of typing paper and prick it with a pin point. He would then wrap the outside of his letter to her with this same paper and when she got her mail, she could place the typing paper over her map and know exactly where he was. He was in 4 major battles: Saipan, Tinian, Roi-Namur, and Iwo Jima. Because he was 33 when he was drafted, he was called “Pop” by the younger soldiers. Items of war that he brought back were a set of gold teeth, a Japanese doll that was in actuality the Japanese soldier’s dog tags with information written on a cloth under the back of the doll. He also confiscated an M1 rifle, a carbine rifle, 2 bayonets, and a 45 pistol. The pistol had belonged to a young 17 year old who had “Pop” promise to bring it back stateside if he perished, which “Pop” did. By the George Wyatt “Dub” Haney was born in Yarbro, Grimes County, Texas, in the home of his grandfather, Sheriff elect Wyatt H. Binford. His parents were L. T. and Ida Lee Haney. He went to school in Navasota, played baseball and was injured, hit by a baseball bat in the knee. While still in high school and at the age of 17, he persuaded his parents to give him permission to join the Navy in June of 1945. While in boot camp at San Diego, California, the old injury resurfaced and he was sent to Balboa Hospital for surgery. On August 6, 1945, the Enola Gay dropped “Little Boy” over Hiroshima followed by another bomb over Nagasaki, and Japan surrendered August 15.

Still at Balboa Hospital and awaiting surgery, Dub spent his time assisting wounded soldiers. Surgery was never done on his knee, he did not qualify for the G I Bill, and when he got out, he resumed high school in Navasota. He was president of the Senior Class of 1947; played in the band. Like his father before him, he worked at Gulf States Utility Company. He was a customer service Two World War II veterans from Leakey, Edith Smith and A. G. Hood, took Honor Flight #22 from Austin, Texas, to Washington D. C. leaving Austin at noon Friday, April 10, and arriving in Washington D.C. four hours later. There were 40 veterans in all taking the flight. Some, A. G. commented “were very handicapped.” They stayed at the Hilton Hotel, where they had dinner. All of the veterans were placed in wheelchairs and all had guardians, who took excellent

time Roland got out, he was the only survivor of his squadron, a fact that haunted him the rest of his life. Roland recalled that he saw the American flag raised during the battle at Iwo Jima. They had Christmas dinner in Honolulu and he was discharged in San Diego, California, in late 1945. While this was going on, Clara had quit the San Diego factory and moved to Phoenix, Arizona to live with her Uncle Rufus Nelson on a dairy farm. His wife, Aunt Velma, took in young women who got themselves into trouble. She would deliver the babies in her home clinic, and place the babies with a loving couple. Clara helped her in this process. Uncle Rufus did not approve, so his wife had to do it when he was busy with the dairy. One child, Sammye, was born in 1946, and she was given to Clara who really wanted a baby of her own. Roland bought 75 acres at Quemado and went into stock farming. After 18 years, he sold the farm. So that Sammye could go to college in Uvalde, they bought a home there. He worked for Riley “Boots” Kothman at the auction and also at the auction at Pearsall. Clara went to work at the high school cafeteria and later in the cafeteria at Southwest Texas Junior College in Uvalde. She also worked as a substitute mail delivery person for Nellie Lawton. Roland worked until his health failed him; had the biggest battle of his life against cancer, and lost that battle in 1978. In January, 1983, Clara passed away at the age of 74. In August of that same year, Sammye learned of her adoption through her aunt, Mary Blair. She has located her birth mother and it has been a special blessing for her. One thing for sure, she knows she was and continues to be loved.

representative in Navasota. He met May Estes of Mountain Home on a blind date and they were married in 1948 and made their home in Navasota. Her parents owned Mountain Home Cottages; the buildings are still standing today. As they aged, they needed help and Dub and May moved to Mountain Home to help with running the business. The postmaster, Loy Estes, decided to go into the ministry and Dub applied for the job, taking the test and meeting all qualifications for the job. He was appointed Postmaster at Mountain Home in January, 1950, and served until 1973. He also went to night school at San Antonio College for 5 years. They adopted a three month old baby girl, Gayle, in 1950. In 1954, a terrible accident occurred in which May lost her life, but Gayle, age 4, survived.

In 1956, he met Raye Pickett of Kerrville, again on a blind date.

They were married in April, 1957, and had a daughter, Joan. He then transferred to the Ingram Post Office where he worked for 4 years, worked at Comfort 6 years, was President of the National

Association of Postmasters from 1978-1979, retiring from the Postal Service in 1982. He then worked at Ingram State Bank, a part of the Schreiner Bank Share as a Special Services officer. He also worked with Ultra Fit Fitness Center as a personal trainer; worked for Cecil Atkisson Motors where he transferred vehicles within the dealership in Arkansas, Illinois, Louisianna, Oklahoma, and Texas for 18 years. He had a wedding photography business for 30 years also. Health problems have slowed him down and he and his wife of 57 years are active in their church and enjoy their only granddaughter, Kate.

care of them. Each veteran was given a cap and two shirts to wear during their visit and as a souvenir to take home. On Saturday, they were taken to the Washington Monument, Lincoln Memorial, World War II Memorial, Korean Memorial, Womens Memorial, and the Arlington National Cemetery. It was there that they witnessed the changing of the guard, and a lady in a red dress, A. G. observed, placed a wreath

About Freedom Honor Flight Freedom Honor Flight is a La Crosse-based organization founded in April of 2008. Our goal is simple: to fly our veterans to Washington D.C. to visit the memorials that stand in their honor.

Veterans are chosen for the trip on a first-come, first-served basis with priority given to WWII veterans and veterans with a terminal illness. The trip is all in one day, spending several hours at the World War II Memorial, and visiting other Washington D.C. landmarks such as the Korean War Memorial, Vietnam Wall, Lincoln Memorial, the Marine Corps War Memorial and others as time permits.

All veterans on a flight are accompanied by trained volunteer

guardians, who assist veterans for the day. Veterans and volunteers interested in applying should visit and read our FAQs at http://www.freedomhonorflight.org We are supported solely through donations and run by volunteers. We have no paid staff. Our volunteers coordinate fundraising, communication with veterans and volunteers, training, medical supervision, travel to and from Washington D.C., and all transportation, activities and meals in Washington D.C. We will continue to organize flights as long as we have the financial support to do so.

Many organizations and individuals support Freedom Honor

Flight through fundraising events. Please visit our website and Facebook regularly for event information. Thank you for attending the many fundraising events that support us!

National Honor Flight Network We are an affiliate of the national Honor Flight Network, which began in 2005 in Dayton, Ohio. There are now about 40 “hubs,” or cities from which flights originate around the country.

National Honor Flight Network provides us with technical and travel support and helps arrange activities in Washington D.C.