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Charles Edward Bettinger21 views
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Thomas Michael Church15 views
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Geroge Maxwell Flanders, D.D.S13 viewsPracticed Dentistry in Whittier from 1933 to 1977
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Robert Kennedy Gregorie14 viewsRobert was drafted into the Army Air Corp in 1943 and shipped to Biloxi, Mississippi for boot camp. During the first few weeks he pulled his shoulder out of join (recurring from an old football injury) and spent the balance of his time in the hospital.
His first training period was for radio operator in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, in the summer.
His next location was in Rapid City South Dakota for B 17 training, in the winter. He hated both places because he had spent some time in South Dakota when he was a young boy and hated it then. The whole squadron flew to England in the spring of 1944 shortly before D-Day.
Robert flew 25 missions from England over the German Occupied countries in less than six months.
He was returned to home and then stationed at Fairfield Susoon Air Field Base of the Air Traffic Command (A.T.C.).
They flew supplies to the Pacific Islands and returned wounded personnel to area hospitals. He received his honorable discharge in 1946 at age 28.
Medals:
Distinguished Flying Cross in August 1944
Air Medal on June 1944
Good Conduct Medal and thank GOD no Purple Heart.
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Myron M. (Mike) Loyett36 viewsSUBMITTED BY RETIRED AIR FORCE LT. COL M. M.. "MIKE" LOYET. BORN IN 1918 IN SOUTHERN ILLINOIS AND GREW UP ON A CATTLE FARM..INDUCTED INTO THE ARMY AT SCOTT FIELD ILLINOIS ON FEB. 28,1942;, TRANSFERRED TO CAMP GRANT, ROCKFORD ILLINOIS AND BECAME A BATTALION CLERK; THEN APPLIED FOR AIR CREW TRAINING AS AIR CORPS CADET AND WAS ACCEPTED; AND ARRIVED IN CALIFORNIA IN DECEMBER 1942 AND WAS ASSIGNED TO PREFLIGHT TRAINING AT
SANTA ANA CA AIR BASE, RECEIVED PILOT TRAINING AT HEMIT AND BAKERSFIELD CALIFORNIA- THEN T
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Eugene Wayne Noller30 viewsHe served in the USAF in the Korean War, he ranked as S/SGT., Sergeant. His service dates were 1951 to 1955. He had worked with the 7th Bomb Wing Strategic Air Command A2 Intelligence, and also with 8th Air Force.
S/Sgt. Eugene W.Noller AF 19424012
In the July of 1951 the Korean War was on and I got my notice that I would be inducted into the Army in mid-August. I had a big decision to make quickly. I decided to enlist in the United States Air Force on August 31,1951, and left Los Angeles for San Ant
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Daniel Lewis Orr30 viewsDaniel Lewis Orr was born 8 May 1925 in Williams, AZ, the son of Earl Franklin Orr and Mary Dorcas (Butman) Orr, and subsequently settled in Whittier, CA. He passed away 10 September 2003 in Las Vegas.
Daniel earned the rank of Eagle Scout in the Boy Scouts of America in Whittier in 1940. He was an All Southern California water polo player at and graduated from Whittier High School in 1943.
She finished USAF Flight School in June 1945 and was awarded the WW-II Victory Medal. Daniel and Loletta Mary (Bacon) Orr were married 13 January 1946. After enrolling at the University of Southern California, Daniel graduated with a degree in Civil Engineering in 1950.
Re-activated for the Korean War in June 1950, Lt. Orr joined the 731st Bomb Squadron (L-NA) as a bombardier/navigator. He was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross, the Bronze Star, and the Air Medal with 7 Oak Leaf Clusters, the American Campaign Medal, the National Defense Service Medal, the Korean Service medal with 3 battle stars, and the United Nations Medal. Daniel flew 78 missions and also Temporary Base Commander at Lwakune, Japan before his honorable discharge.
As a hydraulic engineer, he placed some of the first subterranean water well pumps in Clark County and surrounding areas in the early 1950’s and was ultimately in charge of all Layne & Bowler Waterwells company’s sales operations west of the Mississippi River. He moved to Idaho Falls, ID in mid-1960 and successfully managed the McCullough certified seed potato farm.
Daniel retired to Cody, WY, was elected 24-2 Precinct Committeeman and earned certification by the WY State Derpartment of Education as a teacher while serving as a Ranger in the Wind River District of the Shoshone National Forest. He moved to Las Vegas in 1991.
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Alan Ortolani19 viewsHe served in the USAF in the Vietnam War, he ranked as Airman First Class and was stationed at Dinang. His service dates were August 38, 1963 to July 22, 1967
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John R. Park25 viewsJohn R. Park served in the U.S. Army Air Forces during World War II from November 1942 to October 1945 as Staff Sergeant.
He served fourteen months in China, Burman and India flying the Hump as a Flight Engineer. Following that he spent ten months at Long Beach, CA. During the period he spent four months as a Flight Engineer on B24’s and the next six months he was a Line Chief on C47’s.
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Wilson "Bill" Scavo31 viewsWilson Scavo, known familiarly to friends and family as Bill, volunteered for the U.S. Army Air Force in August 1941. For the next four years, as aerial photographer, had a bird’s eye view of the action in the Central Pacific Area. In his 67 flight missions, Bill took thousands of photographs of potential bomb locations and enemy troop movements.
Bill explains that it took almost two years of training before our military was ready to take on the enemy. He recalls that his first mission was almost his last. He was assigned to fly in the plane on the right of a three-plane formation. They flew in the formation because of a lack of bombsights. Their mission that day was to fly from Tauraa Island to Milli Island. Milli Island had been captured by the Japanese and was completely fortified.
At the last minute, the commanding officer approached Bill on the Tarmac and ordered him to go up with the crew leading the other three planes. That order saved his life. The plane on the right that he had been scheduled to be on was shot down and the entire crew was killed. This was not the only time that happened to Bill Scavo and he was beginning to think he led a charmed life.
Most of the crews Bill flew with in the next two years got extra pay for each mission. Bill volunteered for his missions so he was not awarded the extra money. He went up on flights with a six-man crew and his trusty hand-held cameras, a K25 and K20. There was a K-18 camera mounted on the fuselage of the B-25 planes, but because of the movement vibrations of the lanes, Bill opted to get the clearer photographs by using the hand-held cameras.
The best think about being in service was meeting some wonderful people, but the worst part was losing good friends in plane crashes. “During my time in service, or unit lost many crews and planes. It was sad to lose good friends,” he revealed. He described his survival as a trick of fate, like playing checkers. “The other downside of being a part of World War II was that it took years from the prime time of our lives,” he stated. “I felt extremely fortunate to come back.”
On his last mission, flying over the Tauraa Island, just about the equator in the Central Pacific area, Bill’s life took another direction.
That island was the scene of the first major battle in the Central Pacific Area. More than 4,000 U.S. Marines were lost on the island over the course of the war. Japan lost 6,000 troops there. The plane Bill was assigned to was damaged so badly that the crew was given the choice of bailing out or going down with the plane. Bill chose to stay with the plane. It was a short airfield on the island; the pilot made an error in judgment, so the B-25 crashed.
With many injuries, including a broken back, Bill was sent to a hospital where he had back surgery. He ended up at the Fitzimmons General Hospital in Denver for one year. And this is where Bill’s life took another turn, this time for the better.
The wounded photographer took an interest in a Women’s Army Corps technician at the hospital named Lola. She apparently returned the interest during the four years he lived in Denver receiving treatment for his injury. A romance ensued and the happy turn of events resulted in a long-term marriage, more than 58 years so far. Bill and Lola are the proud parents of four daughters.
Bill left the military service in 1945. During his four years in the service he received four Branze Stars, but should have received the Purple Heart for the serious and long-lasting injury he sustained on his last mission.
Since Bill Scavo had worked for the Union Pacific Railroad before he went in service, his injured back made it impossible for him to return to the job. It was necessary for him to be treated as an outpatient for his war injury for the next ten years, and to this date in 2004, he still pays the price for his war injury with chronic back trouble.
In civilian life, Bill scraped up enough money to attend restaurant management school in Los Angeles, and later bought the first of many restaurants throughout his career. He describes himself as a restaurateur.
Bill currently serves as a Docent at the Whittier Museum, among his many other community activities. The Whittier Historical Society honored Bill last year for his dedication in fund-raising and his idea for creating the Veterans Honor Wall at the Whittier Museum. He formed a committee to organize the project and made personal and professional contacts to raise the money for it. As a result of his devotion to this project, the Historical Society named the Military Room after him. It is now the Bill Scavo Military Corridor, a fitting tribute to Bill and all the other survivors of World War II.
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Mark E. Schieve39 views
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36 views
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