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.
Of course Jeff, I thank the warrior for his service.
Glass is tipped, he was a good man. One of my uncles was a waist gunner on 24's, wonder if they crossed paths? Had to bail once over France, got home in one piece anyway.
I no longer "tip a glass",
but I can say condolences to the family and Thank You to Harry.
May he rest in Valhalla.....
As per General Patton. . . . " We should not sorrow that such men have died. Rather, we should rejoice that they lived"
RIP. Thank you for your service doing a job most can't fathom.
My condolences to you and your family.
God Bless the Great Warrior.
A humble man indeed of the greatest generation. Cheers warrior!
Sorry for your loss. He sounds like good man, May he Rest In Peace.
May he rest in peace. I have a huge book that is about Nose Art, mostly Second World War. I wonder if any of his work is in it? I’ll have to look.
As per General Patton. . . . " We should not sorrow that such men have died. Rather, we should rejoice that they lived"
DITTO !!!!
This world will not again see a generation of men of his caliber. Thank God they were there to answer the call.
May he find the peace he so bravely earned.
This world will not again see a generation of men of his caliber. Thank God they were there to answer the call.
May he find the peace he so bravely earned.
Amen!!!
Sorry for your loss. My Uncle Jack was flight engineer in a C-47 flying the "hump" from India into Nepal and back. In the Korean War, he was flight engineer on a B-29 flying missions over North Korea...I think he flew over 60 missions. He wrote a book about his experiences and I had a copy until I "loaned" it to some relative at a family reunion. His stories about hiding from Zeroes in WWII and being attacked by Migs during Korea. He was never in a plane that was shot down, but he ran one out of gas flying back to Japan after bombing the Norks. They made it back over the sea but had to land on a small strip from which they couldn't take off. Said he caught tons of crap over that.
They were indeed the Greatest Generation and we are diminished by the loss of everyone of them.
Sorry about your loss.Indeed he was one of the Great Generation.RIP Aviator.
Glass tipped, condolences
Thanks for the kind replies guys. Harry told me on one occasion he missed a mission due to sickness. His plane he was assigned to went down on that mission. No one to this day knows what happened. No one saw it go down. There were no claims from the Geramans or Italians of knocking it down, it just flat out disappeared. He said they figure it somehow got seperated from it's formation and took a direct hit in the bombay or was shot down but not claimed No trace of the plane was ever found.
Gotta admire a life like that.
Lived well.
Sorry for your families loss.
Jeff, sorry for your loss
RIP Mr Gerrish 🇺🇸
Thank You for your service🇺🇸
Sounds like a great American!!!
glass tipped in appreciation
Done. My condolences to all.
Condolences and prayers for the family's peace.
Will tip a glass a little later in his honor.
The country is lessened by his absence. RIP, sir.
God bless him and comfort his loved ones and friends.
I might’ve missed it but how old was Harry? He had to have been pushing a 100 if not more. What a life he led...
We are better off for his service, I am personally grateful, rest now!
Awesome man gone on, and heaven is richer for it. May those he left behind be comforted by the memories of his life. And I hope you receive something of his that will be a pleasant reminder of your time with him. Such things matter.
I got a vintage ad poster for the Remington Model 8 that I had loved since I was a little child when my grandfather died last week, and also a drop leaf antique table and chairs that we always ate holiday dinners at. I smile every time my wife and I sit down to a meal at that table, and that framed poster hangs in our living room. I remember eating my breakfast as a little boy while staring at that poster. It hung on the wall of my grandparents’ cafe that was only open for goose season, to serve hunters that flocked to the area. I remember seeing hunters lined up outside in the snow at 5 in the morning, waiting to get in. Every now and then, I meet one of those hunters who remembers the place and my grandparents. Those things carry so many pleasant memories, and are the closest I can get to having my grandparents here with me. It focuses thoughts of them on good times and wonderful memories.
Thanks for telling your/his story. Kind of lets us see a small part of him. RIP🇱🇷
R.I.P. Sir........ Another member of the Greatest Generation leaves us. I miss them all. My dad, most of my uncles, scout leaders, teachers, bosses, and a lot of others that influenced me growing up.
Thanks for the kind comments guys. Harry and his wife were both in the VA. She's a dimentia patient. I can't imagine if she has any understanding fo what's transpired today that she'll hang on much longer.
Peace, Strength and the Grace of God to you and yours in this time of sorrow,
Dale
Condolences to your wife's family for their loss.. and Harry for his service to our nation..
sad that a man who has been thru what he has, that in the end, this China virus takes him down...
too bad we can't shoot a missile into China, that they would never figure where it came from...