Oregon Veteran's Medal of Honor Memorial
Posted on 01/06/2013 5:05:36 PM PST by Kathy in Alaska
The David R Kingsley Memorial greets us every morning just beyond the front gate at Kingsley Field. The memorial is made of actual wreckage from his B-17 retrieved from Bulgaria. We also got to tour his former fiancee around the base.
His former fiancee, in her 90s now, never married! David R Kingsley made the ultimate sacrifice for his fellow man.
Oregon Veteran's Medal of Honor Memorial
Good morning. I know this is yesterday's thread but I had to add: WOW! That's amazing. Did she ever say why?
Nice!
Thanks Archie for adding some personal tidbits to the thread.
Harriet Zalabak was at a loss for words when she tried to describe what visiting the memorial dedicated to her belated fiancé meant to her. It was even more powerful when she reflected on what Second Lt. David Kingsley did to earn that memorial.
“No one who knew him was surprised at what he did,” Zalabak, 93, said while visiting the site Thursday morning. The trip was sparked by a chance visit to Klamath Falls by Zalabak’s friend Jill Cress. She was on her way to the Running Y Ranch when she saw the downtown mural dedicated to Kingsley. She instantly recognized the name from the stories she was told about Zalabak’s former war hero boyfriend. After being refused at the base, Cress found a few airmen in the Klamath Falls Airport restaurant. She explained her connection to the field’s namesake and was put in touch with Air National Guard base historian Capt. Ryan Bartholomew. From there, it was simply a matter of finding the right date.
The memorial is a small site near the entrance to Kingsley Field. It contains four placards surrounding a piece of wreckage from the aircraft Kingsley was shot down in.
As she visited each of the placards, Zalabak recounted how Kingsley took her to movies in Portland and taught her how to ice skate. She laughed at her nickname at the time, “Peanut,” and how she was one of the few people who saw Kingsley’s soft side.
The two met when they were teenagers at a dance in Portland. Their engagement was like a movie. A troop train was rolling through Sacramento. She went to say goodbye to Kingsley. She fell into a panic at the station, unable to find him in the crowd.
Just before the train left, the two spotted each other. He ran to her, picking her up in his arms as the train whistle signaled its departure. Kingsley hopped onto the steps of a moving train car.
“Will you wait for me?” he asked as the train rolled away.
“I’ll wait for you,” she responded.
It was the last time the two would see each other.
The story of David Kingsley lives through her family lore. Now in her elder years, she’s happy to have had such an interesting life, she said. Visiting the memorial was one more thing she could cross of her list, honoring her late fiancé.
“If I didn’t make it now, I don’t know if I ever would,” she said.
Another WOW moment.
Thanks again.
Congratulations, Luvvy, She is beautiful.
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