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VETERANS' DAY 2012
Here in the USA, today is Veteran's Day, on which day we pause to reflect on what our veterans and active duty military personnel have done and are doing to defend our way of life.
This Veterans' Day is poignant for me because a man who I considered to be a father-figure and mentor passed away earlier this year. This gentleman, "Ralph", was a World War II veteran who joined the U.S. Army at age 17, right out of high school. Following basic training, he was assigned to the newly-formed Eighth Air Force and flew many missions over Europe, primarily as a waist gunner aboard B-17s and B-24s. The word "dangerous" didn't even start to describe what young airmen like Ralph were assigned to do.
Ralph's baptism of fire came on the very first mission he flew when his plane was hit by 20mm cannon fire from a German ME-109. His buddy, who was manning the port waist gun, was killed before his eyes. Their crippled B-17, badly shot up and with two engines out, somehow remained airworthy and made it back to England with one man dead and another gravely wounded. Ralph was but 18 years old when this happened.
Following the end of the war, Ralph went to school on the GI bill and then was hired by a major supplier to the railroad industry, where he would work until retirement. I met Ralph in the 1970s when his company hired me. He was the only boss I had there until he retired.
Ralph was a gruff, but patient man whose wartime experiences obviously shaped his outlook on life and approach to getting things done. I had a lot of book knowledge when I went to work for him nearly 41 years ago, but not a lot of "life knowledge" or sense of purpose. He changed all that, treated me almost like a son and got me headed in the right direction. He and I often worked together in the field on a variety of projects, and it was a learning experience for both of us, as I believe I was the closest thing to a son that he ever had (his wife and he raised two daughters).
It was only after Ralph retired that I learned the full extent of his experiences during World War II, many of them related to me over endless cups of coffee. He was definitely one of what we refer to as "The Greatest Generation," whose ranks, unfortunately, have been greatly thinned by the ravages of time and old age. His wife passed away a few years ago after some 63 years of marriage. And now Ralph is gone.
If you know a World War II or Korean War veteran and have the opportunity to thank him or her for his or her service, or better yet, to sit down with them and talk for a while, DO IT! The opportunity may be gone before you realize. The experiences that these men and woman went through are excellent food for thought, and help each of us to understand that the freedom that we all enjoy as citizens of the United States has come at a sobering price, a price paid with the lives of very brave people.
- Stars and Strips Forever!
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