WOW! Thanks, Rushmore Rocks, for sharing your Dad and your experiences with us all.
We thank him for his service to our country.
My thanks and continued gratitude to all on FR who have served this wonderful country.
I want to tell you a bit about my incredible father. He is now 98 years old. He lived with us until about a year ago, when we had to move him to a nursing home. (Altzhimers) We just couldn’t take care his nursing needs any longer. It broke my heart, but we had to do it.
At age 17, he left his family’s depression era farm in Kansas and hitchhiked to Fort Bliss, Texas. He grew up on a horse and wanted to serve his country. He enlisted in the Seventh Cavalry (lied about his age)as a horseman. When WW11 broke out, he went to the Army Air Corps and was stationed in the Pacific Theater. He was at Ie Shima when the Japanese delegation flew in to surrender. He took pictures of the Betty Bomber that flew in there that August. I treasure those old black and white photos.
After the war, He went to Germany and was an Air Force navigator during the Berlin Airlift. My mother, little sister and I followed him there to Ramersdorf, just outside of Munich. My Dad wanted me to understand the freedoms we have in our wonderful USA and took me to tour Andau, Dachau and Bergen-Belsen. This was in the late 40’s and the concentration camps had not been cleaned up yet. I’m certain that I was probably too young to see the horrors. I still have nightmares about it. On the upside,it made me the rather fierce patriot that I am today. Not a bad thing.
Returning stateside, we moved to Elmendorf AFB in Alaska, where he continued as a navigator. He was a gentle but firm father. His dad used the buggy whip on him and because of that he didn’t believe in spanking. Just seeing disappointment in his eyes was enough to make us want to please him. He was and is a remarkable man.
Right now, he is ready to die, I hate let him go, but if he’s ready, so am I.
Good morning Rushmore Rocks
Thank you for sharing that wonderful story of your father.
May God grant him a special place in heaven when his time comes. And, your family eternal peace while you live without him.
WOW! Thanks, Rushmore Rocks, for sharing your Dad and your experiences with us all.
We thank him for his service to our country.