Posted on 10/08/2007 6:55:07 PM PDT by lunarbicep
Nolan Herndon, a member of the famed Doolittle Raiders who bombed Japan in 1942, has died. He was 88.
Herndon died Sunday of pneumonia, Edgefield Mercantile Funeral Home director David Burnett told The Associated Press on Monday.
Herndon, a Texas native, enlisted on July 27, 1940, after attending two years of college, according to the Web site http://www.doolittleraider.com.
He was commissioned as a second lieutenant about a year later. He also graduated from navigator training and completed bombardier training.
Herndon participated in one of the most daring air raids in American history, when 16 B-25 bombers took off from an aircraft carrier and bombed Tokyo on April 18, 1942.
The raid, planned by Lt. Col. Jimmy Doolittle, was the subject of the book and movie "Thirty Seconds Over Tokyo" and the book "Four Came Home."
After the raid, Herndon was interned for about a year in Russia and returned to the United States in May 1943, where he held several assignments until the end of World War II, according to the Web site.
Herndon retired from active duty Nov. 4, 1945.
A phone number for Herndon in Edgefield was unlisted.
Funeral services were scheduled for Wednesday at Edgefield United Methodist Church, Burnett said.
Herndon will be buried at Travis Park Cemetery in Saluda.
S.C. ping
Rest in peace. Prayers for his family.
A man of great courage. May angels sing him home.
bttt
“A phone number for Herndon in Edgefield was unlisted.”
Otherwise, the reporter would no doubt have called the number in order to get Herndon’s comment on his own death?
Who writes this crap?
Newsreel of Doolittle raid carrier launch:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1F5D9OCYCas
Farewell to a man with cajones de brasso.
Yeah, I guess his family would have nothing to say.
After my father's death his voice on the answering machine continued to tell people that he couldn't come to the phone right then and to please leave a message.
He continuned to politely promise to return phone calls for several weeks.
Well said!
Some background threads
The FReeper Foxhole Remembers The Doolittle Raid (4/18/1942) - Apr. 18th, 2003
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-vetscor/895648/posts
The FReeper Foxhole Profiles General “Jimmy” Doolittle - Mar 8th, 2004
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-vetscor/1092931/posts
The Doolittle Raid will always be one of the “ballsiest” expressions of American willpower. May our country always keep this spirit !!!
Deepest Regards
alfa6 ;>}
Thanks, ya beat me to it
Regards
alfa6 ;>}
self ping
God bless him and all his comrades.
According to the website there are 12 crew members still alive. They have an annual reunion. When the final two survivors attend the reunion, there is a bottle of brandy that they are to share in memory of the comrades.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.
South Carolina Ping