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Showing posts with label Scan. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Scan. Show all posts

Monday, May 28, 2012

Remembering


- Since it was Memorial Day I thought I'd share some memories from Cindy's family during WW II. Cindy's great grandmother Della Bray recieved these two War Department telegrams about her youngest child, SSgt. Vernon C. Bray who was serving in the US Army Air Corps, 93rd Bombardment Group, 330th Squadron.

On December 7, 1942 his squadron along with the 328th and 409th squadrons left their base at Alconbury, England on a long flight that would end at Tafarouri Aerodrome, a former French airfield outside Oran in Algeria. The 93rd was sent for temporay duty to supplement the newly formed Twelfth Air Force, which had been recently activated in North Africa under the command of General James "Jimmy" Doolittle. Vernon's crew flying a B-24D Liberator named the Blastin' Bastard was lost when their airplane crashed into a mountain while attempting to land at Tafaroui. Personnel at the base had not been alerted that the B-24s were coming in and no plans had been made to light up the runway. Gasoline flares were then lit and the rest of the group landed safely on the muddy airfield.

Lost with Vernon were 2Lt. Iceal W. Alford, Jr. (IN), TSgt. James E. Davis (TN), 1Lt. Leo A. Donze (MO), MSgt. Harold J. Hanna (IL), 1Lt. Robert A. (Ox) Johnson (KS), 2Lt. Robert L. Lynch (ND), TSgt. Samuel McNeeley (TN), SSgt. William J. Nagle (NJ), MSgt. Oscar S. Olsen (IL), Sgt. Kenneth R. Pastrof (NJ), SSgt. Jack E. Pinion (TN), SSgt. Samuel F. Powell (UT), and Capt. Richard S. Scott (NY). The crew is buried at the North Africa American Cemetery and Memorial, Carthage Tunis, Tunisia. Names and stories are important, let's remember all who serve and especially those who gave their lives.

Sunday, June 21, 2009

172 - Dad

From 365 Project
I took a lot of pictures today but decided to do some restoration work on an old photo of my dad for today's post. This photo of Edward H. Sullivan was taken in 1945. Dad retired from the U.S. Army after 20 years and served in France and Germany with the Eight Infantry Division in WWII and during the Korean Conflict with the 25th Infantry Division. He was twice awarded the Bronze Star Medal with Valor and also the Combat Infantry Badge and the Purple Heart with several Oak Leaf Clusters. Dad celebrated his 18th birthday in France in August 1944, six weeks after coming ashore at Normandy as a 17 year old soldier. He passed away on January 15, 2005. Happy Father's Day dad, I sure miss you.