He was just Mr. Downs to me...

[Rick Courtright]

Hi,

The post about the piggy back landing of WWII bombers got me thinking about how many "heroes" any of us may have known, but didn't really "know."

When I was in 8th grade, a new school to me, I met a kid who was no stranger to new schools. He was a Navy brat, which probably described half the kids I knew, growing up in 1950s San Diego. It was a different time and place then--one where I could never put the timelines together when we studied history. It was supposed to be something that happened way in the past, so to study WWII at school and then go outside at home and talk to neighbors who were real live vets who'd been there, particularly in the South Pacific, was a bit of a strange concept to me. Today, as kids study Viet Nam, and even Gulf I, out of books and my buddies who were there are starting to leave us, I get the concept a little better!

Anyway, the two "new kids" in school, David and myself, hit it off and became fishing buddies for the next three years before I moved again. David and his family had finally been able to settle down with a permanent duty station for his Dad. We kept up with each other until graduation from high school, and I think when I was in college I visited his folks once and he found me in college once, as well, then we drifted off in separate ways. It was probably 1970 by then. Fifty years have gone in the blink of an eye.

During those years David and I hung out, his Dad would tell us all kinds of stories, but they were "life lesson" kinds of things. He hardly ever told us anything about what he'd done flying for the Navy. He was still flying, but drove a desk during the week and just "got in his hours" every month for the extra pay. A few years ago, I tried to find if Mr. Downs was still around, since he was about two years older than my parents, who were both gone by that time (my Mom was 90.)

For whatever reason, I couldn't find much at all, except a short blurb that he'd been shot down in Korea. He flew Corsairs in that war, same as my brother in law's Dad did in WWII (though his wore Marine colors.) We never heard any of those stories. Once in a while over the years I've gone looking, and today, I found him. In an obituary from last Fall, which opened up all kinds of doors with stories of his military service, as well as some of what he'd done after retiring. It looks like he lived a very full life (93 years of it), with a large family (10 kids) and lots of friends who might have just learned some of the other stories of his life that were kept quiet along with me. As I read them, I wonder what I'd have thought about him as a service member, a hero in real life, the guy who taught me those "noisy darned planes" my Mom always complained about when they flew over our house were "the sound of freedom," the strict Dad who wouldn't let us go fishing on Saturday, November 23, 1963 when he told us "Come in here boys, and watch this. You're seeing history right before your eyes." We protested, but today I'm thankful he sat us down and made us watch.

I wonder, with what I've learned now: would he still have been "just Mr. Downs" to me? LCDR Downs, I must wrap up all the lessons you taught me in three words--"Thank you, Sir!" It's been a great find for Memorial Day.

https://lakeviewfuneral.com/obituaries/les-downs/181/

Rick C

 

[AJGUNNER]

Thanks for sharing.

One of the longest obituary's I have read for someone I never knew.

This is what Memorial Day is all about.

Perhaps you can make the trip for the spring memorial and reconnect with your old friend.

 

[JackpineWillie]

THANK YOU

 

[contender]

Excellent.
Just excellent.

Quite often,, history lives all around us,, if we look for it.

 

[BearBio]

Lest we forget...……

I had a scout master as a cub scout who survived the Bataan Death March.

I had a neighbor who was Hungarian. At 12, he joined his brother in defending a bridge from being destroyed by an SS unit (to block Allied troops). He later fought in the '56 Hungarian revolt and was sent to jail. He escaped by killing two guards and fled to France, spent a year in the hospital, emigrated to Canada and moved to the US.

My Executive Officer was an Airborne Ranger, three tours in the 'Nam, battlefield commission. Used to tell me war stories at lunch (took a while to get to know him. I think he only told me because I was supposed to go to the 1/7 Air Cavalry).

All were extremely mild men, who rarely raised their voices.

My dad was in the 14th Air Force with several of the (former) members of the American Volunteer Group (the Flying Tigers). He was a crew chief and flew the "Hump" several times. He brought back two kukris that he got from some Gurkha troops. He also had his "blood chit", and silk "Escape and Evade" maps. My trash brother sold all of his stuff (also my coin collection-my rare pennies ended up in bubble gum machines.). I have one of the knives and am creating a shadow box. I have been able to acquire duplicates (either original or reproductions) of his blood chit, CBI patch, 14th air corps patch, and survival map of SE Asia and the China Sea.

Lastly, I had a boss who grew up in Germany and remembered Hitler speaking in his town. He was Jewish and had a summer job in England when war broke out. He brought his mom in to see where he worked (She lived in Switzerland). When I was introduced, I noticed a six digit number proceeded by the letter "A" tattooed on her left arm. I asked him why she didn't have it removed because it must be a horrible reminder. His answer sums it up perfectly: She wore it not so she wouldn't forget but so that others would remember!

I am shocked at how little the younger generation knows.

 

[Rick Courtright]

When I was introduced, I noticed a six digit number proceeded by the letter "A" tattooed on her left arm. I asked him why she didn't have it removed because it must be a horrible reminder. His answer sums it up perfectly: She wore it not so she wouldn't forget but so that others would remember!

HI,

The first time I ever saw one of those tatooes, my blood ran cold. It still would today. I understand that the Auschwitz camp the "A" represents was the only one that used the tatooes. I remembered.

Rick C

 

[BearBio]

My wife's father was Jewish. They've been here since the Revolutionary War but she had German relatives, some of whom died in the camps.

 

[BearBio]

Proves what the Spanish philosopher Jorge Santanna said " Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it".

He also said: "Only the dead have seen the end of war".

 

[WendyZXZ]

A fine post Rick!

 

[harley08]

I lived across the street from a Husband and Wife who both had tatoos on their left arm.

 

[blume357]

Was at a machine gun shoot a few years back and an older man who lived near by showed up... the guy hosting the event saw him walking up and explained that he had flown 25 missions as a rear gunner over Europe.... when he walked up my friend the host offered to let him shoot the belt fed machine gun .. the old guy just shook his head and said "no thank you". my buddy started to insist and I stopped him... I saw it.
I had the honor of shaking his hand and thanking him.

 

[turd]

Thank you, Rick for a great post. Many of my friends' fathers and mine were WWII vets, but we never heard anything about it. My father didn't speak about it with me until I was nearly 40 YO, and then not much. They did what needed to be done and were happy that my generation didn't have to for the most part. In Iowa, my across the street neighbor told me after several years of friendship that he had been a B-17 bomber pilot trainer. Never left the states, but was very involved in WWII. Walt was a retired electrical engineer and volunteered at a local grade school to tutor kids in math. Super mild man, a very nice guy. We will miss them all.

 

[Colonialgirl]

My Dad was US Navy and went through the war without ever hearing an enemy shot fired; However he did lose friends aboard the USNS LEXINGTON when she was sunk during the war; He had served aboard her before the war and at the time she went to the South Seas searching for the lost Amelia Earhart (sp?). The story he had was that his friends were trapped by fire down in the engine room and could not escape even though it took time for her to sink; He heard that they were called on the phone to let them know they were trapped and they told the caller that they ALREADY KNEW THAT and to get the HADES off the phone so they could finish their poker game.

 

[Johnny-Baseball]

My father served aboard the destroyer USS Ellet (DD 398) as a fire controlman (directed fire of the ship's main 5" guns) from 1942 through war's end. The Ellet did not gain individual notoriety, but it did participate in a virtual who's who of WW II Pacific theater engagements. Dad boarded the Ellet immediately after it returned from escorting the Hornet and Enterprise on their launch of Doolittle's B-25s to bomb Tokyo (April 1942). While dad was aboard the Ellet it saw action in the following naval battles:
1942 – Coral Sea…Midway…Tulagi…Savo Island
1943 – Guadalcanal
1944 – Kwajalein…Enewetak…Palau…Saipan…Bonin Islands…Guam…Philippines Sea/Marianna Islands
1945 – Iwo Jima

While heading towards Okinawa from Iwo Jima the Ellet ran through a typhoon, enduring a 78-degree roll. Typhoon damage sent Ellet for repairs (to prepare it for participation in the anticipated invasion of Japan).

Dad was honorably discharged in December 1945. Until a couple of months before his death in 2017 (at age 93) he would not talk to me about his war experiences on the Ellet other than describing his shipmates' hijinks and the ship captain's FUBARs (backing over depth charges, etc.).

The only event Dad ever discussed in detail was when he helped corpsmen with body bag duty at Guadalcanal. The Marines' suffering that dad witnessed caused him to want Marines as honor guards at dad's graveside service. In dad's own words, "I want to be in the presence of such honorable young men one more time."

So I called the OD of the closest navy/marine detachment and described dad's request. Sure enough, three young Marine volunteers in dress uniform - a corporal and two lance corporals - served with two Navy CPOs as the burial detail. [I described these Marines' voluntary service in a letter I wrote to the Commandant of the Marine Corps. The Commandant personally responded and assured these Marines' volunteer service would be noted in their personnel jackets.]

My youngest son had t-shirts made to honor my dad's military service and my oldest son's ongoing Army service (together with my grandfather's WW I Army service and my military service during Viet Nam). FYI, my son's deployments as a 160th SOAR enlisted Chinook maintainer and subsequently as a Blackhawk Pilot are as follows:
2007 – Iraq*
2008 – Afghanistan*, Iraq*
2009 – Iraq*
2010 – Iraq*
2015 - Afghanistan**
2020 - Kuwait***
2022 - Eastern Europe****

*160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment
**101st Airborne
***82nd Airborne
****1st Air Cavalry

My father was immensely proud of his grandson, and that feeling was reciprocated. There was a very special bond between them.

 

[Watertender]

For years I can remember going to a hardware store and being waited on by a nice little man named Danny. He would carefully count or weigh the things you wanted and always with a smile. When he passed, I was very surprised to read in his obituary that in 1942 as a Navy Ensign he took on 3 Japanese fighter planes while flying a patrol from the USS Yorktown. He shot down 1 and drove the other 2 off while being severely wounded during the encounter. He flew his damaged plane back to another American carrier and landed safely. For this action he was awarded the Navy Cross and ultimately retired as a Commander. It shows you that you never know who you are talking to

 

[Johnny-Baseball]

Watertender, you're surely right. My father never discussed details of combat actions during his Navy service (other than the Guadalcanal experience I mentioned in my above post). Yet, when I (finally) received dad's military records this month, I discovered that dad was awarded three bronze stars (for valor) - at Guadalcanal, the Southern Solomon Islands, and Palau. But his records do not disclose what dad did to be recognized. I'll never know now.

 

[rugerguy]

All well said above and as noted you just may never know who you have met, known, passed by in life, so be grateful, and thankful for all they have done..God Bless them ALL..........

 

[ned]

Off subject but only a few degrees….a good read “the happiest man on earth “ by Eddie Jaku, an Auschwit survivor.