Good morning,
Veterans Day is an official United States public holiday, observed annually on November 11, that honors military veterans; that is, persons who served in the United States Armed Forces. It coincides with other holidays, including Armistice Day and Remembrance Day, celebrated in other countries that mark the anniversary of the end of World War I; major hostilities of World War I were formally ended at the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month of 1918, when the Armistice with Germany went into effect. The United States previously observed Armistice Day. The U.S. holiday was renamed Veterans Day in 1954.
This week I will tell you about some of those veterans.
Vietnam Era Veteran Roger Ross, now 79 years old living in St. Louis, enjoys the VA benefits he earned as an Air Force cook and recalls fond memories serving his country. “I enlisted when I was 18. I wanted a better life for myself, to learn and get experience for a better job after service. I got to travel, see places that I’d never been. Overall, I have lots of good memories. I met good friends and served under exceptional sergeants and officers. I wouldn’t trade it for anything,” says Ross. Though he and a friend enlisted together in May 1961, they never saw each other after bootcamp at Lackland Air Force Base in Texas. He earned a Small Arms Expert Marksmanship Ribbon yet says the only time he ever shot a gun was during basic training. “I had good eye and a steady hand.”
Ross left active duty in 1965 and remained in the Air Force Reserves from 1966-67. He returned to St. Louis, married and had two children, Rozlyn Elaine and Gary. After working several jobs including at department store Famous Barr, he had a longtime career and retired from the City of St. Louis. His wife Curlie B. Ross passed away January 21, 1999.
Ross did travel as he intended and lived on many bases including Walker AFB, formerly Roswell Army Airfield, in New Mexico known for the Roswell UFO incident, an event that occurred long before he was there. He was also stationed at Travis AFB in California where he was released from active duty. Once, Ross was even part of an airman’s vocal group that won a base talent show, singing, two songs made popular by the Turbans, “When You Dance” and “Let Me Show You Around My Heart.” Alas, the group didn’t advance at the next competition but Ross had fun nonetheless.
There were also sad, tense and challenging times. He recalls around the Cuban Missile Crisis in Fall 1961. The crisis in Cuba centered on conflict between the United States, led by John F. Kennedy, and the Soviet Union, led by Nikita Khrushchev, and Soviet ally Cuba, led by Fidel Castro. The Soviets were arming Cuba with missiles equipped with nuclear warheads ready to fire on the United States. In retaliation, Kennedy ordered a blockade of Soviet ships bound for Cuba. Roger Ross and his fellow air force cooks worked 12-hour days from 6:00 p.m. to 6:00 a.m. to support airman and their many flying missions. “We did what we had to do to serve pilots, ground crews and guys guarding planes working all hours of the night coming into the mess hall,” says Ross. Most of Ross’s active duty was at Andersen Air Force Base in Guam where he cooked with other airman and some local Filipino civilians who were hired to work in the mess hall. He was there November 22, 1963 when President Kennedy was shot and killed. “All the guys were really sad, black and white guys alike. Kennedy was a popular president especially among blacks who saw Kennedy furthering civil rights.
Serving as an Air Force cook earned Ross the Air Force Good Conduct Medal and VA benefits.
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Tom Stearns, WASI Chaplain, 907 715-4001 chaplain@alaskaseniors.com
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