On this
the 71st anniversary of the attack on Pearl Harbor, I salute the men
and women of our armed forces. And especially those who’ve been wounded in service,
and of course those who gave their lives for their country.
I also
would like to take this time to salute a member of my own family who I never
knew, my mother’s cousin Joseph Gordon of Brooklyn New York. My mother spoke
fondly of Joe, who was her age and like a brother to her and her sisters. I
knew from family pictures that as a teenager, Joe was a sharp dresser in his
Zoot Suit and loved to lindy hop.
When WWII broke out, Joe, like many of my mom’s friends, enlisted in the air force. They were eager to fly, and wanted to be Tuskegee Airmen, which was the black division of the U.S. Air Force. After graduating from flight training at Tuskegee Army Airfield in Alabama, he was deployed to Italy with the 99th Fighter Squadron, part of the 332nd Fighter Group. I recall vividly seeing pictures of him in his goggles in the cockpit of a plane, proudly displayed on my Grandmother’s bureau.
When WWII broke out, Joe, like many of my mom’s friends, enlisted in the air force. They were eager to fly, and wanted to be Tuskegee Airmen, which was the black division of the U.S. Air Force. After graduating from flight training at Tuskegee Army Airfield in Alabama, he was deployed to Italy with the 99th Fighter Squadron, part of the 332nd Fighter Group. I recall vividly seeing pictures of him in his goggles in the cockpit of a plane, proudly displayed on my Grandmother’s bureau.
Unfortunately, 2nd Lt. Joseph E. Gordon was the only one of my mother’s circle of friends who did not come home. He was one of the 66 Tuskegee Airmen who gave the ultimate sacrifice for their country. According to a news article, on August 12, 1944 his plane was shot down over France, after escorting bombers to Toulon, France, to destroy radar stations. Fighters from the 332nd Fighter Group began to draw ground fire. P-51 Mustangs flown by 2nd Lt. Gordon and 1st Lt. Langdon E. Johnson were hit; both pilots were killed.
They are buried at Epinal American Cemetery and
Memorial in France. According to a government database, Joseph Gordon
was awarded a Purple Heart. He
was his parents’ only child, and was loved very much by my mother and her three
sisters. My said since she never attended a funeral for Joe, she found it hard
to believe he was truly gone, and used to search for his face on crowded
streets.
I am
very proud to honor our veterans, and grateful for their service to our
country. The holiday season is a time for giving. I’m asking for at least 30
comments on my blog, and I’ll be donating $30.00 to the charity WoundedWarriorProject.org at
the end of the blog hop. So please help by showing your support for an excellent
cause, and saying thanks to our wounded military men and women. As a thank you,
I’m giving away two copies of my holiday short story, My Holiday House Guest,
which is on sale on Amazon. Please leave your email address with your comment
to be contacted if you win. It’s a great way to start the holiday season.
Thanks for stopping by.
To return to the Secret Cravings blog hop page to read more blog posts http://secretcravingspublishing.blogspot.com/
To return to the Secret Cravings blog hop page to read more blog posts http://secretcravingspublishing.blogspot.com/
If you would like to make a donation yourself to WoundedWarriorProject.org here is the link https://support.woundedwarriorproject.org/Default.aspx?tsid=66
Update - I just made my donation to Wounded Warrior Project!
Dear Carolyn Gibbs,
We want to thank you for your generous donation to Wounded Warrior Project®. Your gift enables us to provide comfort and aid to injured service members and their families.
Please help us spread the word about injured warriors’ needs and encourage your friends to learn more about Wounded Warrior Project by sending an email or posting on Facebook and Twitter.
Thank you again for your gift. This is a summary of the information that you provided.
