Dear Diary,Army, Navy and Air Force ROTC units will hold a series of ceremonies Thursday and Friday (Nov. 10 and 11) to mark Veterans Day.
Tuskegee Airmen ─
U. S. Air Force Maj. Gen. Lucius Theus
Lt. Cols. Alexander Jefferson
Washington Ross ─
will speak at 3 p.m. Friday in the Hesburgh Library’s Carey Auditorium.
The name Tuskegee Airmen refers to those involved in the so-called “Tuskegee Experiment,” the Army Air Corps World War II program to train African-Americans to fly and man combat aircraft. The airmen overcame segregation and prejudice to become one of the most highly respected fighter groups of World War II. They never lost a bomber to enemy fighters while serving as an escort fighter wing during the war and their achievements paved the way for full integration of the U.S. military.
Theus was on active military duty for more than 36 years and moved through the ranks from a private in the Army Air Corps to become the commanding general of the Air Force Accounting and Finance Center. He was the first African-American to be promoted to general and currently is the principal director and chief operating officer of the Wellness Group.
Jefferson flew in both France and Italy during World War II, completing 18 long-range escort missions for B-17 and B-24 bombers, before being shot down three days before the invasion of France. He spent nine months in German POW camps before being liberated by American forces. Following the war, he became an elementary school teacher in Detroit and retired from education as an assistant principal.
Ross flew 63 sorties and missions during the war and served in the U. S. Air Force Reserves for 25 years. In his civilian life, he was a teacher and department head with the Detroit Board of Education for 25 years. http://newsinfo.nd.edu/content.cfm?topicid=14442
For more information:
http://www.wpafb.af.mil/museum/history/prewwii/ta.htm
http://tuskegeeairmen.org/pages/16/index.htm
http://www.nps.gov/tuai/
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