My wife's great uncle, Harry Gerrish passed away today. Harry was a fascinating man. He was a flight engineer on B-24's during WWII. An award winning archetect and accomplished artist, Harry did nose art on many of the planes in his unit, or at bases he was stationed at. Some of Harry's nose are is depiicted in the Smithsonian. Whenever we had a family gathering, I'd get Harry off to the side and get him talking about his wartime experiences.. He had several 3 ring binders full of photos of planes he crewed on, battle damaged Liberators, shot down Axis planes, and a huge variety of other wartime photos. Harry had a big black and white photo of a B-24 in flight hanging behind his drafting table. To me it just looked like on of the iconic bombers in flight. To Harry, every aspect of that photo told a story. He must have been a marvelous keeper of these birds. I know he was envolved in many groups that restored WWII warbirds. A very quiet unassuming man, Harry was about as nice a member of The Greatest Generation that you'd ever want to meet. He leaves behind his wife, two sons, several grandkids, and much extended family and friends. Sadly, he fell victim to the Covid virus.
If you'd care to, tip a glass for another old warrior gone on to serve the Lord in a far better place.
Rest in peace Harry. You will be missed.
