Raymond Carl L'Amoreaux

Raymond Carl L'Amoreaux
November 11th, 1918 - May 13th, 2011

*photo taken in Kauai in June 2010
A Note From His Daughters
Our Dad passed away peacefully and surrounded in love. He was active and of vibrant mind until
one week before he passed. He taught us to live a life you love. He lead by example and treated our mother with love, respect and tender loving care. Our dad loved his children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren dearly. Through his death he taught us how precious life is and to see the beauty and joy present during sad and difficult times. We love him so much. We are forever grateful to have had such a loving and inspirational father. We will miss him every day.

We thank all of you for your kindness, support and love for our father.

Obituary of Raymond Carl L’Amoreaux
November 11, 1918 – May 13, 2011

Ray was born on November 11, 1918 in Hillsdale, Michigan. On that day, the first Armistice was celebrated, ending World War I. The peace treaty was signed in France at 11 a.m. (6 a.m. EST) and Ray was born 20 minutes later. Ray’s mother told the story of Ray’s birth many times during her long life. She said that the doctor came to their home on Sunday night to deliver Ray. He came up to the house on the walk, smoking his cigar. He placed it on the porch railing and went inside to check on her. He decided that she wasn’t ready to deliver her first child, so he decided to stay all night-sleeping on the davenport. Then, at 6:20 Monday morning, he delivered an eight-pound boy!

Ray graduated from Berea (Ohio) high school, class of ’36. He went one year to Baldwin Wallace College – also in Berea. His family moved to Ypsilanti in July 1937.

Ray enlisted in the Army Air Corps on March 28, 1941 in Detroit. He graduated from the Aviation Mechanics’ School at Scott Field. He was assigned to Gunter Field at Montgomery, Alabama, where he was a crew chief on a Vultee BT-13. From Gunter Field he was assigned to Maxwell Field – still in Montgomery, to the Aviation Cadet program. He went through bombardier training at Victorville. Ray received his bombardier wings, and his 2^nd Lt. Commission, on October 31, 1942.

He went on to fly 50 combat missions in B-17’s with the 2^ndBomb Group – part of General Jimmy Doolittle’s Twelfth Air Force, in North Africa. Ray was assigned to the Fifth Air Force and served in the Southeast Asian campaign, flying B-25’s. Later, in 1998, Ray was presented with the Distinguished Flying Cross (DFC) at Travis Air Force Base, California, for his acts of extraordinary achievement.

After serving in World War II Ray returned to college under the G.I. Bill. He spent one year at the University of Michigan, in Ann Arbor, and then transferred to Cal – Berkeley. He graduated with a B.S. degree in February 1949.

Ray’s first job, after college, was as an industrial engineer with U.S. Steel in Pittsburg. In the spring of 1951 he was recalled to active duty by the Air Force and served during the Korean War. He was stationed at Mather Field, Sacramento, and piloted Convair T-29’s used to train B-47 pilots in radar bombardiering and radar navigation.

He returned to Columbia Steel, after his separation from the Air Force, in 1953. In 1958C. Brewer hired him as Olokele Sugar Company’s first industrial engineer. Marie and Ray, and three daughters, left San Francisco for Honolulu, on January 15, 1958, on a United Airlines DC-6.

Their Hawaii experience was interesting - historically. They arrived when the islands were still a Territory of the U.S. A year later, it became our 50^th State! Two of their five daughters, Joan and Sue, were born in the Waimea hospital on Kauai. The family moved back to the mainland in September 1962, finally settling in Vallejo.

Ray started work as a Methods Engineer for California & Hawaiian Sugar Company, in Crockett. In 1969, he was promoted to work in the San Francisco corporate office. He retired as the Manager of Internal Auditing in 1983, after having worked in the sugar industry for 25 years.

During his working years, Ray was very active in the organizations of his professions. He was president of both the San Francisco-Oakland Chapters of the Institute of Industrial Engineers, and of the Institute of Industrial Engineers, and of the Institute of Internal Auditors. He was certified in both disciplines, and was licensed by the State of California as a professional Industrial Engineer.

Ray had many interests during his lengthy retirement. Marie and Ray traveled extensively – visiting nearly every state, enjoying visiting the Presidents’ Homes and Libraries, and other points of interest. Their travels also involved six trips to Europe. In his 90’s, Ray made several travel trips. In 2009 he traveled to San Diego for his oldest granddaughter’s wedding and then on a bus tour across the United States to see Mt. Rushmore. In June 2010, Ray traveled to Kauai, Hawaii with his daughters and in October 2010 he rode the train to New Orleans.

Ray enjoyed learning new things and audited classes on “Successful Aging” at Cal-Berkeley for many years. He also attended numerous baseball games as a season ticket holder for the Oakland Athletics.

He enjoyed the new experiences of volunteer work and served on many Boards and Committees during his retirement: Solano Ombudsman, Board of Directors; St Dominic’s Church, Finance Committee; Napa/Solano Area Agency on Aging, Advisory Council; City of Vallejo Citizens Budget Advisory Committee; Commission on Aging; Executive Board, Vallejo Senior Citizens’ Council; Solano County Grand Jury.

In 2008 Ray and his wife Marie moved from Vallejo to Paradise Valley Estates in Fairfield to be closer to their family and last year Ray moved to the Veteran’s Home in Yountville.

The family mourns their great loss – his wife of 66 years Marie; daughters Anne Maher, Mary (Greg) Torres, Beth (Jack) Abercrombie, Joan (Manny) Morais, and Susan (Tom) Chilson, grandchildren Doug Maher, Brad (Kristin) Maher, Daniel & Jason Torres, Jessica Nguyen, Jaclyn Abercrombie, Melissa Morais Parr, Michelle & Brittney Morais, Kaitlyn Chilson, and seven great-grandchildren; Jobey Maher, Bailey Maher, Dakota Maher, Colton Maher and Trenton Maher.

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Ray's Legacy

Ray was a loving husband, father, grandfather, and friend. He enjoyed life very much, because of his love of people and his relationship to them.

He was thoughtful of others and unselfish. He would send cards, small gifts, and newspaper clippings to many of his family, friends, and acquaintances. He once said that he never read an article, whether it be in a magazine, or a newspaper, in which he didn't recall a person related to an interest in that subject matter. He usually would then clip- or copy, the article and send it to that person.

Ray had a great sense of humor- thanks to his mother and her Irish background. He was also quick-tempered, which he blamed on his French ancestry. While he was aware of these faults, and worked at overcoming them, he did not succeed.

Ray's dad worked for the New York Central Railroad for over 40 years. Ray followed in his dad's footsteps, and rode the trains for thousands of miles- usually on his dad's NYC Pass.

Consequently, Ray had always liked trains, and their many sounds. When he heard the train's diesel horn, coming from the Crockett and Martinez area, he had the urge to ride on the train once again. Ray caught the night train on May 13th, 2011 at the great age of 92.

Ray was ready to die. He crowded a lot of different activities in his 92 years and was very thankful for all those years of life.

After death he wanted a celebration of his life- with a party- rather than dwell on a morbid funeral.

He liked music very much- especially that of the 30's and 40's. Ray's dad was a musician- playing both the violin and E-flat alto horn (a tone similar to a French horn). Ray played this same instrument (his dad's) in his Berea high school band.

"As you live each day you are "writing" the story of your life!" RCL 2/3/06

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RAY’S EULOGY

Delivered by his daughter, Mary Torres, at Ray's Funeral Mass.

Thank you all for being here today to honor my dad. As many of you know my dad was a planner and always wanted to be prepared for any situation. So it is no surprise that he prepared his last days and death by putting everything in writing-including his own eulogy-in a manual titled "Ray's Final Exit". Being my father's daughter I have also added my "two cents" into this final tribute.

My dad was one of a kind. When God made him He forgot the blueprint. Dad's Irish and French heritage was quite a combination-which he attributed to his humor, occasional display of a temper, and stubborn streak.

Dad tried to do his best, and he urged each of his daughters to do the same. He was inquisitive and always interested in others life stories. Dad walked the walk of “treating others as you would want to be treated”.

He was a collector & saver -from empty boxes to photos, and newspaper and magazine articles - a result of being a young boy growing up during the 1930’s and the Great Depression.

Dad was thoughtful of others – usually remembering birthdays (he got this from my Grandma L’Amoreaux), and anniversaries – get well and sympathy cards – or even “I’m Thinking of You” cards.

He also was known for sending Wall Street Journal articles, to people that he knew who shared the interest of the clipping.

Dad enjoyed his family very much and cherished the time spent together on our many get-togethers. Whether it was a picnic at Sonoma’s City Park, an A’s game, camping trips, Christmas Eve’s (he played a good Santa Claus too), Thanksgivings, and family birthday gatherings. Dad was also a regular attendee at the grandkids various sporting events and school functions.

He and my mom liked to travel and when he retired they hit the road. Dad filled many photo albums with pictures, post cards and other memorabilla from all of their many trips - including visiting Europe six times!

Dad was an avid sports fan. He used to play golf and bowl and even took up bocce ball when he moved to Fairfield. He was also a sports spectator attending many baseball games as a season ticket holder for the Oakland Athletics.

Dad taught us so much about how to live. He was a student of life – always wanting to learn something new, including attending classes at Cal-Berkeley, during his retirement years and graduating from the UC Davis Mini Medical School at the age of 90.

He was a traveler, writer, and a nature lover. On his trip in 2009 to Wyoming, Montana, Utah, Nebraska and some of the National Parks he wrote:

"I was in such awe of the quiet, peaceful, and natural beauty of this great land of ours! In the big scheme of things, I felt so humble and insignificant. The scenery was most inspirational. How can one view such splendor and not comprehend a Supreme Being?"

Dad’s favorite poet, Edgar Guest, was also a native Michigan Wolverine. The following is one of Edgar’s poems, which he especially liked and asked to be read at his memorial service.

"I'd like to think when life is done that I had filled a needed post;

That here and there I'd paid my fare with more than idle talk and boast;

That I had taken gifts divine, the breath of life and manhood fine; and tried to use

them now and then in service for my fellow man."

I know that dad is watching over us. He is busy with the new tasks at hand and reviewing the policies & procedures manual that was given to him at the pearly gates. We will miss him, and are better human beings for having known him. Farewell dad! You will live in our hearts forever.

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Galoshes

GALOSHES, OR OVERSHOES.
Today, I am in the mood to blog. What motivates me is Barry Newman’s excellent column in today’s (Thursday, March 3, 2011) Wall Street Journal - “The Time May be Right For Galoshes To Make A Splash Again.”
His write-up brought back many memories of my experience with galoshes/overshoes, over 80 years ago. Putting them on, and taking them off, were not a problem. We took them for granted - they were part of our outdoor- winter “uniform”.
Barry did a good job describing this necessity of the past winters of long ago. I will only quibble with the article’s photographs. Those foot coverings aren’t galoshes - they are rubbers. Galoshes came half way up the calf, and fancier. They were easy to put on (unless they weren’t the right size - too small.). At the time, I was young enough to still wear knickers. But the older kids and men, would tuck their trouser cuffs inside the overshoe before they would fasten them up. The fasteners were very functional. There were four or five snap-over buckles, which were easy to close with cold hands. They not only kept my feet warm. But also dry. The ‘shoes’ were also thinly lined, which made them warmer.
We didn’t have a car back in those days, so my Mom and Dad did a lot of walking. They always wore the foot covering when going outside in the winter. They didn’t care about “looks”. Comfort always trumped style, We had lots of them, sitting on the floor, in the small room inside the back door, where our family of six stored all of our outside clothing. It is a wonder that we could tell them apart.
Today, you can’t get people to abandon their cars - even in winter - when driving on snow and ice is a real challenge and a hazard. So, I question whether the galosh/overshoe foot covering in winter will make a comeback. I am sure if you tried them for the first time you would be sold on the footwear!
Congratulations, Barry, on your interesting and informative column.
RCL - 3/3/11.

From Peaceful to Violent Streets

From Peaceful to Violent Streets.
I was fortunate to have been stationed in North Africa for about seven months in 1943.
Our 2nd Bomb Group was en-route to join the 8th air Force in England during March of 1943, as replacement crews. We flew our new B-17 over to North Africa, using the South-Atlantic route - West Palm Beach, Trinidad, Belem, Natal, Ascension Island, Dakar, and then up to Marrakech, Morocco. While in Marrakech, Field Marshall Rommel (who headed up the German Afrika Corps) broke through General Montgomery’s Eighth Army’s position and forced them to retreat at Kasserine Pass. The “powers that be” changed our orders, and assigned us to the African front. We were part of General Jimmy Doolittle’s Twelfth Air Force. The Group remained in Africa until after the invasion of Italy in September 1943.
During this time, when we weren’t flying missions, we had leisure time to “swim” in the Mediterranean sea, or visit the very interesting cities in Morocco, Algeria and Tunisia. I also got to spend a week on R & R in Cairo. While playing “tourist”, I was very observant of the large crowds in the bazaars and waking peacefully on the streets of Tunis. The people in Tunis, either spoke Arabic or French, which was very interesting to me. The French influence came in 1881 when France became their protectorate. Tunisia became an independent state in 1956. The British invaded Egypt in 1882, and they became an independent country in 1922.
This experience has motivated me to follow foreign affairs in the Middle East - primarily on the Lehrer/PBS News Hour and the Wall Street Journal. Based on my experiences nearly 70 years ago, I was very surprised, and saddened, by the recent news of the violent protests in the streets of Tunis and Cairo. This didn’t reflect my pleasant experiences of the time when I walked those very same streets and felt safe and secure.
In Tunis, Ray Bernier - our navigator; a fellow bombardier - “Red Bird”, and Bob Wolfcale, a navigator, would jump in a jeep and travel about 20 miles to Tunis. While there, we would usually go to mass at the St. Vincent de Paul Cathedral. We also visited the Cathedral in nearby Carthage, after a swim.
We visited the Red Cross Club for servicemen, where we could get doughnuts and ice cream. Near the Cathedral in Tunis, was a very nice hotel with a huge porch, I think it was the Hotel Tunis. We would sit in the large wicker - rocking chairs, sipping our cool drinks, and “people watch.” (I suppose that a new hotel sits on the spot today.)
The “powers that be” thought a few us were getting “flak happy” from flying so many combat missions. Our Flight Surgeon suggested that we be given an R&R leave to Cairo. I was fortunate to be one of the chosen group. They let us use a “stripped down” B-17, and we flew from Tunis to Cairo and back - an 8-9 hour flight each way.
We stayed at a B & B in Heliopolis - a suburb of Cairo. The city of Cairo is known for it’s large crowds, and beautiful architecture. I can attest to that! I particularly enjoyed visiting the Bazaar, and even went inside a very beautiful mosque. I bought a few souvenirs in the Bazaar. The merchants liked to bargain, and haggle over the final price. I must have disappointed them, because I didn’t have this skill, and consequently, probably paid more than full price.

We visited the Shepeard Hotel near the American Embassy. It was a five star at the time.

Back to today. It saddens me when I compare my pleasant experiences, nearly 70 years ago, in Tunis and Cairo, with the turmoil in the streets there today - justified or not.

RCL - 1/31/11.

ORIENTATION at CALIFORNIA VETERANS HOME.

VETS HOME ORIENTATION.
I have been a resident here six weeks now. I have completed my Orientation already, even though I was told that it could take two to three months. During one of my early sessions, I met Jim Scheers. He has been here a couple of weeks longer. I am glad that our paths crossed. He is very friendly and outgoing. We have something in common! We are nonagenarians. Jim is 95, and I am trailing him by three years.
During our conversations, I learned that he was an author. He has written 25 books - some in collaboration with other authors. His writing career spans about 50 years, and he is currently writing another book! I mentioned Jim to our daughter, Joan. She was familiar with his books, and said that she has two of them.
This morning we ate breakfast together. He happened to mention that if he were eating alone, he would be “writing” in his head. I asked him if he would remember it, and he said “yes”. He would transcribe his thoughts after he got back to his room.
Jim has an interesting philosophy of life. He told me about a guy, after learning that Jim was 95, asked him if he enjoyed being 95 Jim said, “Oh yes”. The guy said, “but you are closer to dying!” Jim replied, “Everyone is going to die, and I am ready. The guy asked “why?” Jim said “Because I am planning on going to heaven. I have led a good life, geared towards this goal. Jim’s mantra is John 3:3. While I consider myself being spiritual, I was not sure of John3:3, so I Googled it, with the following results:
John 3:3 (King James version.) “Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily. verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.”
The the new International version, is similar. “Jesus replied, Very truly I tell you, no one can see the kingdom of God unless they are born again.”
Footnote:
The Greek for “again” also means “from above”.
Jim’s faith is very interesting and convincing. 12/27/10.

P.S. Mary and Greg invited me over for lunch on Sunday - the day after Christmas. Mary read the quote on the label of her Honest Ade drink. "Do not regret growing old. It is a privilege denied to many." - Author Unknown.
I think it fits in perfectly here!
RCL 12/28/10.






RCL - 12/27/10.






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PEARL HARBOR

Pearl Harbor Remembrance.
Today, is the 69th anniversary of the “infamous” Sunday, December 7th, 1941, when the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor, in Honolulu. This sad day marked our active participation in World War II.
Today is also the birthday of our youngest daughter Susan, who was born in the Wilcox hospital at Waimea, Kauai. Also, my good friend Jim Leslie is celebrating his “double-eight” birthday back in Ypsilanti.
I recently moved here to the California Veterans Home, in Yountville. A large group of us are having breakfast. The subject of conversation at the nearby tables is, of course, Pearl Harbor. I wonder how many men, and women, in this large dining room, were there, in Honolulu, on that day?
My memory of the day is still vivid - like it was only yesterday!
The human brain is quite a remarkable organ to be able to store data, and release it upon demand, 69 years later!
I had enlisted in the Army Air Corps on March 26, 1941 - in Detroit. On this day, I was stationed at Gunter Field in Montgomery, Alabama. I was a Crew Chief of a Vultee Basic Trainer 13. Our mission was to train English lads to fly.
Being a Sunday, four of my friends and I decided to drive to Birmingham (about 100 miles) to spend the day. I was sandwiched in the middle of the back seat - no seat belts back then. I can’t remember the type of car, and who owned it. We had the car radio “on”. All of a sudden an “Alert” was broadcast “All military personnel report to your bases immediately.” One of us said, “Turn off the radio”, and we decided to keep going. So, we sped along as if nothing had happened!
After spending the day sight-seeing in Birmingham, we returned to Gunter Field. I was immediately assigned to “Guard Duty”. I was given an Enfield rifle (WW I vintage,) but no ammunition. I don’t remember having any rifle training in “Boot Camp”. I can still remember walking around the buildings on that cool, spooky December night.
RCL - 12/9/10.

THE TENTH INNING

THE TENTH INNING.
I had anticipated seeing Ken Burn’s documentary on baseball for quite a while. This week I finally got to see the two episodes. I never thought that I would get tired of seeing the “home run swing”. But, during the two showings, I got “homered” out. The fact that HGS provided the “oomph” for a lot of them, didn’t help. I think the traditional- role model athlete is a thing of the past. The millionaire prima donnas, of today’s sport world, are a poor substitute for my old heroes!
Pete Rose has been denied entrance into the Baseball Hall of Fame, because of a character flaw. The same reasoning should be used to exclude the baseball players who are guilty of using performance -enhancing drugs.
This documentary wasn’t a total loss, for it had many redeeming features. It covered many stadiums and players that I had either seen in the ball parks, or on many of the old TV shots that were used in this documentary. Having lived near three American League cities (Detroit, Cleveland and Oakland), I was naturally an American League fan - for as long as I can remember. My memory is still clear, even though it covers about 82 years since I saw my first major league baseball game. We were living in Hillsdale Michigan during the 1920’s. When I was about 8, my Dad took me to Detroit( 100 miles), to see the Tigers play, at Navin Field on Michigan Avenue. This was an all- day outing - on a Sunday. I said that my memory is good, yet, I can’t remember who the Tigers played on that day. (strange!).
We started out early in the morning. My Grandpa Flood, my Mom’s dad, was also along. I don’t even remember having a flat tire, to or from the game. My grandpa owned the 1927 Chevrolet touring car, but he didn’t drive. My Dad drove, but he didn’t own a car. So it was a great reciprocal combination. I do remember one harrowing experience on our way to Detroit. We were “speeding” (probably at 35 mph) in the Irish Hills (on highway 112), when a strap - holding the fabric top to the header of the windshield - broke. The top went swooshing back. Thinking back, it is a wonder that my Dad controlled the car. I don’t remember how he fixed it, but soon we were off again to Detroit. An aside. The touring car had curtains, with eisen glass little windows. In nice weather, the curtains were stored under the rear seat - with the air pump and tube repair kit. So, if it started to rain, my Dad would stop the car, and my Mom and grandmother would have to get out, so that my Dad could remove the curtains. The gas tank was beneath the front seat. So, before a trip my Dad would take a flat -wooden stick, which was calibrated to read out in “gallons”. He would dip the stick into the tank to see how much gas remained. When we got gas, everyone had to leave the front seat, in order to access the neck of the tank.
Back to Detroit and baseball. While I don’t remember much about the game that Sunday, so long ago, I do remember my Dad keeping score as the game progressed. He showed me his technique, including all of the symbols for “strikeouts”, “base on balls”, “errors” etc. I tried his system, for a few games, after I started going to the games alone. It certainly forces you to pay attention to what is going on down on the field. My problem was that I would lose my concentration, and start watching the fans and vendors instead of scoring. So, finally I had to forget keeping track of every play, and let my attention wander as it pleased.
Viewing the documentary was quite interesting and fascinating, because I had seen so many of the players mentioned, actually playing. I go back to having actually seen the following players play - Babe Ruth, Lou Gehrig, Ted Williams, Lefty Grove, and Bob Feller, who was the best right-handed pitcher that I ever saw. Feller was born 8 days before I was. I saw him pitch as a rookie in 1936, in League Park in Cleveland. He was only 17! (In his first big league game before this, he struck out 17 batters - at 17 years of age!). I saw many other old-time stars, also.
Of course, I have seen many of the modern baseball stars. I enjoyed having a Week-day Season Ticket to the Oakland Athletics games in Oakland, for about 15 years. I saw the following players (may of whom were mentioned in the documentary) at the Oakland Coliseum, or at Candlestick/Pac Bell Parks - Reggie Jackson, Mark McGwire, Jose Canseco, Billy Martin, Willie Mays, Barry Bonds, Vida Blue, Jason Giambi, Alex Rodriquez, Derek Jeter, Nolan Ryan and Roger Clemons. While I never saw Ty Cobb run the bases, I have seen Rickey Henderson steal many bases. He was by far the best base stealer that I ever saw.
A couple of baseball highlights of mine were that I got to see two World Series games. The first was the Detroit Tigers playing the Cincinnati Reds, in the fall of 1940, at Briggs Stadium in Detroit. I was living in Ypsilanti, and “sweating out” being drafted, prior to World war II. The next - and last World Series game that I saw - was in 1972, 1973 or 1974, when Oakland was the American League Champion all three years. I was working for California and Hawaiian Sugar Company at their corporate office in San Francisco. While I remember my boss, Ken Black, inviting me to accompany him, I don’t remember which National League team Oakland played.
An aside: While living in Berea, in 1936, my Dad took me to an exhibition football game in the new Cleveland Municipal Stadium on the waterfront. What an ideal and pretty setting - right on the shore of Lake Erie. I was really impressed with the huge size of the facility. It held 78,000 people for baseball games and 81,000 for football! Today, that would seem small compared to the University of Michigan stadium in Ann Arbor, which seats 110,000. The Chicago Bears were playing the Cleveland Browns. Red Grange was the star of the Bears. He was a great runner - the best that I have ever seen - even at the tail end of his pro career. I only wish that I had seen him play when he was a student at the University of Illinois, where he ran wild against other teams in the Big Ten.

After viewing the Ken Burn’s Special on TV, I had a bad taste in my mouth. I was really disappointed that professional athletes would abuse their bodies with performance enhancing drugs, to promote their fame and fortune. To make matters worse, some denied using steroids - even under oath! Reinforcing my view was the disgraceful acceptance of such an ugly culture by the Commissioner of Baseball, and the powerful players’ Union. Our Society, in general, and Sports in particular, took one in the gut - motivated by vanity and greed - by thoughtless egomaniacs. A black day for America indeed!
RCL - 10/1/10
10/2/10
10/3/10.

ISCHIA

ISCHIA
I received my September copy of Traveler today. I was surprised to see “Ischia’ listed on the cover. This is a small island in the Tyrrhenian Sea, 20 miles west of Naples. I hadn’t thought of this island for over 67 years - ever since I used to fly in between this island and the Isle of Capri during our bomb run on Naples. I was a bombardier on a B-17 Flying Fortress. We were part of the 2nd Bomb Group, which was part of General Jimmy Doolittle’s Twelfth Air Force. I could spot the Island, down to the left, from my perch in the nose of the plane. We usually were about five miles high and indicating about 150 mph, on an easterly- inbound course, over the Bay of Naples. What I remember most about the view were the red-tiled roofs on the buildings. The little island looked very peaceful.
I was on four missions to Naples - two of the targets were shipping in the harbor area. One was the rail- marshalling yards and the other was the Capodichino airdrome. The Naples area was our roughest target area. We had our largest losses of crews and planes. The German 88 guns were very accurate. Sometimes, the black smoke from their bursting anti-aircraft shells was so thick, it looked like I could walk on it. These guns were not only shore batteries, but some 88’s were mounted on barges moored in the harbor. Besides all the flak, we had to contend with the German Me-109’s and FW- 190 fighter planes which attacked our formation. We were unescorted, because Naples (from North Africa) was beyond the range of our P-38’s.
I always hoped that I could return and view this beautiful country close-up - from ground level. My wish was realized in 1985 - 43 years later. I had been retired from C & H Sugar Co. for two years, when Marie and I went to Italy. We visited Rome; Florence; Venice; Naples and the Isle of Capri. I enjoyed flying on the Alitalia air line.
RCL - 8/9/10.