. . John Bone John R. Bone of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania wanted to join the Navy and serve in World War II, but his flat feet kept him out of the water — until they carried him to the sky, as a member of the Army Air Corps. Flying throughout the
. . Windell Boggess There are a lot of things Windell Boggess will talk about. He’s a friendly, good natured fellow. Likes to chat, especially around the VFW Post where he’s the handyman—and life member since 1954. Perhaps Windell’s amiableness comes from his rural upbringing in Ripley, West Virginia. Think
. . Karen Bogdan Karen Bogdan of Tarentum, Pennsylvania joined the Pennsylvania Air National Guard more than 25 years ago to help pay for college. Around the time of the first Gulf War, she amusingly recalls, it was the only branch of service her mother approved of, mostly because of
. . Clem Blazewick Clem Blazewick was drafted in June 1965 and departed San Francisco for Southeast Asia on Christmas day, right before the big build up of forces in Vietnam. Narrowly escaping duty as a medic with the Marines near the De-Militarized Zone (DMZ), he was assigned to be
. . Bob Blair Bob Blair served in the 134th Navy Construction Battalion in Guam. Upon arriving there, he remembers, “everything was totally destroyed.” Bob worked in the Commanding Officer’s office, typing records and making copies on a mimeograph machine. Surrounded by officers, Bob was aware of how much better
. . Harold Betters Harold J. Betters of Connellsville, Pennsylvania was drafted for two years into the Army during the Korean War. As a formally trained and experienced musician he wanted to play with the 308th Army Band, but his commander wasn’t agreeable. Although military segregation had been officially over
