|
Over The Coffeecups
Warren Mitchell - Editor
TODAY'S PROGRAM
Dick Price
will introduce Larry Jones, who worked with Dupont
Agricultural Products and had 34 years there until retiring in
1998.
Larry has a B.S. and
M.S. in Agronomy from the University of Tennessee –
Knoxville. (Agronomy is the study of crops and soils.) His
M.S. degree specializes in weed science. While with Dupont,
he worked 3 years in research and development and 31 years in
sales. He worked with weed disease and insect control with
corn, cotton, soybeans, vegetables, fruits, etc. He is a
certified for commercial application for turf, ornamental and
crops.
Since retirement, he and
son Craig have started Alabama Lawns. He is from Tennessee.
LAST
WEEKS PROGRAM
Bob Bonn
introduced Dr. Judd Katz, Vice Chancellor of AUM. Dr.
Katz has a PHD in psychology and has written a book about
enlisted men in the Air Force receiving the Medal of Honor.
Bob said they are related by marriage, his son married Judd’s
daughter. The marriage increased the family’s IQ
considerably.
Dr. Katz said he served
in the Air Force 5 years and then went into the reserves. He
served in the Oral History section at Maxwell. He attended a
talk at the Sr. NCO graduation; the talk was by a disabled
airman, Red Irvin. He asked superiors if he could do an oral
history on Mr. Irvin, a Medal of Honor recipient. He asked
the Sr. Master Sergeant in charge and he agreed. He
discovered there were enlisted members of the Air Force to
receive the Medal of Honor, Red Irvin being one. Red is an
Alabamian, being from a little town north of Birmingham. He
had Red speak to an educational group at AUM.
When he was 22-23, he
enlisted at the start of World War II in the Army Air Corps.
He passed the test to be a pilot, but the training took too
long and he decided to become a radioman to get in the war
sooner. He flew in B-29’s over Japan, being badly burned by a
flare.
One of the Medal of
Honor winners was a radioman from New York who flew in B-17’s
over Europe in World War II. Another recipient of the medal
was John Levantau, who was in the Vietnam War.
Oral history is an
historical view to look at history; selected transitional
records collected by telephone and conversations. They are
selected recollections told to us about what you did 20-30
years ago.
Red passed away a couple
of years ago, but his records as a narrative lives on. He was
a Staff Sergeant flying in a B-29, from the city of Los
Angeles, in the 20th Air Force. He was on his 18th
mission over Japan; his plane was the path finder of the group
and was supposed to light the target with phosphorous flares.
Red’s job was to pull the pin and drop the flares down a
shoot. He knew something was wrong with the last flare,
because it came back in the plane. It exploded in his face,
blinding him, burning his hair and his uniform; burning at
1,500 degrees it filled the cockpit with smoke. The pilot
could not see the controls for the smoke and the plane went
into a dive. The bombs aboard were charged and could
explode. He was burning and needed the help of the Lord.
Picking up the burning flare with his right hand, he crawled
past the flight engineer and asked for the window to be
opened. He knew if he could get to the cockpit, the Captain
would open the window and he could throw out the flare. The
flare went out, the smoke cleared and the Captain brought the
plane under control. A crew member administered morphine
until Red said he didn’t want anymore. He couldn’t see; was
badly burned, especially his right arm. The squadron
Commander was in the plane. He ordered the bombs be dropped
and to head to Iwa Jima. General LaMay presented him the
Medal of Honor 2 days later.
After 2 years of
operations, his sight returned, but his arm was useless.
After release from the Air Corps he worked for the V.A. and
retired.
Before the war, Henry,
his real name, worked in a steel mill in Birmingham. He
joined the CCC (Civilian Conservation Corps) and went to
California. After the war started, he took a test for the
Post Office, but wanted to get in the war.
The Medal of Honor has
been given 3,421 times since 1861. It was originally, only
for the Navy, but in 1862 the Army and officers could receive
it. In 1863, 20 Union soldiers captured a Southern train and
took it to Tennessee; they received the medal. Officers were
bereted, and promoted to the next highest rank. The medal is
similar to the Legion of Honor.
The Air Force is the
newest service, so not as many medals have been awarded. Few
enlisted men have received the medal, because bombers and
fighter pilots are the ones usually awarded the medal.
Red’s daughter attended
AUM; one day she and her young son were in Dr. Katz’s office
when the little boy saw a picture of Red on the wall. He said
to his mother, “Look there’s a picture of Grandpop!” Dr. Katz
showed us the picture.
LAST
WEEK'S GUESTS
Linda Wilson
joined George for breakfast.
Scott Powell had as his guest, Jim
Reynolds, a new member.
THOUGHT
FOR THE DAY
Mike Winstead
told the following story. An elderly couple had dinner at a
new restaurant. When the man was asked the name he couldn’t
remember. He said, what is the flower that is red and has
thorns? The man called his wife, “Rose, what is the name of
that restaurant?”
ENTERTAINMENT
Al McLellan sang “The
Man Who Never Returned”; a living rendition.
DALRAIDA
SCHOOL
Last Thursday at
Dalraida the following members read to the students; Mark
Wilkinson, Dick Bennett, Al McLellan and Ken Carrick. The
Club provided lunch for the teachers. The following members
watched the classes in the cafeteria; Frank Wells, Jean
Ash, Dick Bennett, Mark Wilkinson, Jim Jones and Ken Carrick.
Ken thanked the members for participating.
ANNOUNCEMENTS
The Club welcomed back
Dough Speight from having surgery.
The Board meeting will
be October 20th, 6:30 p.m. at Al McLellan’s
office.
The Governor’s Dinner
will be this evening at Frazer Methodist Church.
PEANUTS
Monday, October 6th,
the following members bagged 1,100 lbs of peanuts:
Dick Bennett, Hoyt Middleton, El Kidd, Jerry
Evelan and his wife, Jean, Ken Carrick, Malcolm Bush, George
Worley, Mark Wilkinson, Pete Summer, Barnie Paulson and Warren
Mitchell.
Fast Starters in the shell game
A list of leading
salesmen:
El Kidd
– 303.00
Pete Summer
– 120.00
Malcolm Bush
– 120.00
Frank Abrams
– 85.50
Ken Carrick
– 60.00
Mike Winstead
– 60.00
George Worley
– 60.00
Jerry Evelan
– 45.00
Jerry Evelan,
Peanut Program Chairman, reported $900.00 has been collected
so far.
|
