This ain't Hell, but you can see it from here

Category: Blue Skies

  • “Unbroken” Louis Zamperini passes

    “Unbroken” Louis Zamperini passes

    zamperini

    zamperini

    Louis Zamperini, an American Olympian, a bomber crew member, a POW of the Japanese passed at the age of 97 yesterday according to the New York Times. Mr. Zamperini competed at the Berlin Olympics in 1936, joined the Army Air Corps after the war started. In mid-1944, his bomber went down in the Pacific and his family was told that he died. In reality he floated in a rubber raft for 47 days until he was rescued and then imprisoned by the Japanese;

    “For one thing, you have to learn self-discipline if you are going to succeed as an athlete,” he said. “For another thing, you have to have confidence in yourself and believe that no matter what you’re faced with, you can deal with it — that you just can’t give up. And then there’s the aspect of staying in shape. And humor helped a lot, even in the gravest times.”

    In 1945, at the war’s end, Mr. Zamperini was liberated along with hundreds of other prisoners of war at the Naoetsu camp, northwest of Tokyo. “Though he was still sick, wasted and weak, he glowed with euphoria such as he had never experienced,” [his biographer, Laura Hillenbrand] wrote.

    His biography, “Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience, and Redemption” is being made into movie scheduled for release in December.

    The Zamperini family released this statement, according to Fox News;

    “He recently faced the greatest challenge of his life with a life-threatening case of pneumonia. After a 40-day long battle for his life, he peacefully passed away in the presence of his entire family, leaving behind a legacy that has touched so many lives. His indomitable courage and fighting spirit were never more apparent than in these days,” the statement said.

    Thanks to John for the link.

  • RIP, Stephanie Kwolek

    Stephanie Kwolek died last week. She was 90.

    Her passing was not widely highlighted in the press.  Unless you saw one of the relatively small number of stories in the media, you probably didn’t hear she’d died.

    Yet the lady is responsible for literally thousands of persons being alive today who would doubtless be dead otherwise. And many if not most of those are military personnel.

    Why? One word: Kevlar. Kwolek invented it as a DuPont researcher in 1965.

    Rest in peace, dear lady. You did your part for humanity.

    Thousands thank you every day.

     

    Hat tip to one of our readers for alerting us to Ms. Kwolek’s passing.

  • RIP SGT Shaina B. Schmigel

    RIP SGT Shaina B. Schmigel

    Shaina B. Schmigel

    ROS sent us a link to the Stars & Stripes which reports that SGT Shaina B. Schmigel, a paratrooper with the 82d Airborne Division became the second casualty of that unit with the T-11 parachute since it’s introduction in 2009.

    Armywide, parachuting injuries are the sixth leading cause of hospitalizations among active-duty soldiers, officials said.

    But injury rates have improved over the decades.

    During World War II, there were 21 to 27 injuries per 1,000 jumps, according to officials. The 82nd Airborne’s historical injury rate is 11 per 1,000 jumps.

    The most common injuries on Fort Bragg over the 31/2 year study were concussions, ankle sprains and lower back sprains, with concussions making up more than a third of all injuries.

    Fractured or broken bones accounted for about 13percent of all injuries.

    The T-11 was developed over several years in response to a need for Army parachutes to carry heavier loads.

  • Korean War MIA To Be Buried In Arlington Tomorrow

    A previous article announced the identification of PFC James R. Holmes remains. He was lost in Korea in December 1950, and was identified in January of this year.

    PFC Holmes will be buried tomorrow in Arlington National Cemetery. If you’re in the DC area and have some free time, I can certainly think of worse ways to spend an hour or two than welcoming home a MIA from Korea.

    Rest in peace, PFC Holmes.

  • GI Joe’s Creator Passes

    The creator of GI Joe has died.

    Donald Levine, former executive at Hasbro, died early last Thursday.  He was 86.

    In 1964, Levine was Hasbro’s chief of R&D.  He and a team of designers came up with what would become GI Joe.  It was introduced in time for the 1964 Christmas season.

    The choice of clothing and accessories was indeed intentional.  Levine was an Army veteran of the Korean War.  Many of the personnel working at Hasbro at the time were also military veterans.

    Levine’s funeral was scheduled for this morning.  He is survived by his wife of nearly 60 years, Nan; 3 children; and 4 grandchildren.

    RIP, Mr. Levine.  And thanks for bringing about a bit of Americana.

  • CSM Martin Barreras, 2/5 Inf., killed in Afghanistan

    CSM-Martin-R-Barreras

    The Army Times reports that the command sergeant major of 2nd Battalion 5th Infantry, CSM Martin Barreras died from his wounds in Afghanistan while he was being treated at San Antonio Military Medical Center;

    Barreras became the top enlisted soldier for 2nd Battalion in March 2013. The unit is part of 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 1st Armored Division at Fort Bliss, Texas.

    […]

    Following his time with the Ranger Regiment, Barreras was the command sergeant major of the U.S. Army Marksmanship Unit.

    His awards include the Legion of Merit, Bronze Star Medal with V device, Bronze Star with three oak leaf clusters, Purple Heart with one oak leaf cluster, Meritorious Service Medal with two oak leaf clusters, Joint Service Commendation Medal with one oak leaf cluster, Iraqi Campaign Medal with three stars, Afghanistan Campaign Medal with four stars, Combat Infantryman Badge with one star, Expert Infantryman Badge, Ranger Tab, Master Parachutist Badge with bronze star, Military Freefall Badge and Pathfinder Badge.

    CSM Barreras leaves behind a wife two daughters and his son. See, none of my sergeant majors would have been near any place where they would be in danger, so I know Barreras was a good leader compared to the sergeant majors I’ve known.

  • Efrem Zimbalist Jr. Passes

    Efrem Zimbalist Jr., star of 77 Sunset Strip and The FBI, has died.  He was 95.

    Zimbalist was the son of famous musical parents, and initially studied music.  However, he later turned to theater, films, and television, becoming most famous for the latter.

    Zimbalist served as an infantryman in World War II.  He was a recipient of the Purple Heart.

    Fox News has a good obit on the man.  It’s worth reading.

    Rest in peace, Mr. Zimbalist.  Thanks for doing your duty when your country called – and for the memories.

  • “My dad went to go dance with mom.”

    This past Tuesday, a World War II Navy vet – Donald Buska, of Billings, MT – passed away.  He was 86.

    Buska died suddenly, but his end was not completely unexpected.  Besides his age, he’d been in hospice care since mid February.

    This normally would not be noteworthy.   We’re rapidly losing the few remaining vets of World War II due to age.

    However, Buska’s passing was indeed noteworthy.  And it was noteworthy for more than simply the fact that he was a veteran of World War II.

    Buska knew he was not long for this earth.  But he had one remaining dream:  he wanted to visit Washington and see the World War II Monument before he passed.

    On Sunday and Monday, he did so.  He did so as a guest of Big Sky Honor Flight of Montana.  His son Jeff accompanied him.

    Buska and his son visited DC for two days.  Mail call was held on arrival – where he and other participants received many letters of support from friends and acquaintances, coordinated by the Honor Flight program.  He indeed saw the Monument – as well as the Changing of the Guard at Arlington.  He reconnected with an old poker buddy.  On return, he and the other vets received the proverbial hero’s welcome.

    He stayed up until around midnight Monday night, reading the mail call letters with his family.  He’d had a thoroughly wonderful trip.

    And at 4:15AM on Tuesday morning, he died.

    The Billings Gazette has an excellent story on Mr. Buska’s trip that gives more details.  It’s worthwhile reading.   But if you choose to read it, maybe have a tissue ready.

    And in case anyone’s wondering:  the title of this article is a remark made by his son Jeff after his father’s passing (Buska’s wife had predeceased him).  IMO, the young man got it exactly right.

    . . .

    When our time comes, may each of us be so lucky as to have that kind of exit from this earth.  Kudos to Big Sky Honor Flight of Montana for making it so for Mr. Buska.

    Rest in peace, my elder brother-in-arms. Take some time to look up old buddies, and catch up on things.  Enjoy seeing those old friends.

    And enjoy dancing with your wife once again, too.