more care. Later, as we figured out the trail of the piece of flak that hit Syverson, we determined that if his heavy rubber boot hadn't been on my shoulder at that precise moment, I would have been hit in the neck or chin by that same piece of flak. Every mission was an adventure, and none were ever easy. Some just tougher than others. Sherrill D. Lowder In the Army Air Corps, as a second lieutenant, Sherrill served as a pilot instructor in AT-6 aircraft, teaching both American aviation cadets and Chinese officers brought over from China. Jack F. Luddington - KIA and Lloyd F. Luddington - KIA Lloyd F. Luddington Jack F. luddington It would be impossible to adequately express the horrors brought upon families and individuals when war takes the life of a loved one. When war takes two in the same family, the pain becomes incomprehensible. The loss inflicts immeasurable pain forever. You can't describe it. You can't quantify it. You can only know by experiencing it. Its ugly presence surfaces without warning and lingers for varying periods of time. You can't say 'Go away, I've endured enough.' You just have to deal with it in your own way. It causes shock and uncontrollable sobbing when the notification is delivered by a Western Union telegram delivery man with the following typed words: 'We regret to inform you...' The second time, one year later, seems to inflict a level of sorrow and pain that cannot be endured, but you do. Such was the experience of the Luddington family on January 21, 1943 and April 16, 1944 during World War II. Submitted by Dean Luddington, brother LLOYD LUDDINGTON After completing his P-18 training, Lloyd Luddington was sent to Ireland for advanced training. He then went to North Africa for combat duty. His squadron was engaged with some seasoned German pilots and was shot down off the Mediterranean Sea. Some of his copilots came to visit his Mom and Dad after the war and told them that Lloyd turned back to help another P-38 pilot that the Germans were engaging in a fire fight. Neither Lloyd nor the other pilot returned to their home base. They were both listed as 'Missing in Action' for a period of time. Later the Luddingtons received word he was 'presumed' Killed in Action after an intensive investigation. He never returned. JACK LUDDINGTON After completing his P-38 pilot training, Jack Luddington was sent to the South Pacific. We think he went to the New Guinea area. He wrote many letters home about the hot climate, the animals and birds. He loved to be able to pick bananas from the trees. No one was allowed to say much about where they were for security reasons. He was returning from a combat mission when the weather turned very bad. Many planes couldn't land at their home base and were told to go to another base that the radio operator said had better weather. Several planes from their squadron never reached the base as the weather was much worse than they had been told. Jack was one of the unlucky ones that never showed at the base. Because of the heavy loss of planes and pilots, this mission has gone down in history as 'Black Sunday.' A very good article was published in Airman's Magazine, concerning all the details and losses of that mission. 42 Forever Twenty-One By Andrea Luddington With the downing of a plane, Or a snipers gun, How many of our boys Are forever twenty-one? How many young lives Were cut down in their prime, Like a watch crushed under foot, Frozen in time? How many young men Greet their families each day, From a frame on the mantle With nothing to say? With sorrow we think Of how much they will miss Their own home, their own family, Their own baby's sweet kiss. But we must also consider How much they've been spared, For life's often uncertain, And filled with despair. When they left this world, They were just twenty-one, But the soul is eternal, Their journey's only begun. Right now they're far older And wiser than we, And wouldn't trade heaven For mortality. They have knowledge and vision They understand it all, They died for their country But now serve a greater call. Call them angels or spirits Or heavenly friends, I know they watch over us And will 'till the end. And when we've left This earth ever more, They'll be there to greet us They're now servants of the Lord. *This poem dedicated to Jack and Lloyd Luddington. Karl O. Macfarlane Karl served in the Army Air Corps as a technical sergeant from August 1942-October 1945. He received two Bronze Stars in the Asiatic-Pacific Theater, a Good Conduct Medal, Air Medal, and a Distinguished Flying Cross. He served in the India, China and Burma Theater, flying B-24s. H. Wayne Macfarlane - KIA H. Wayne Macfarlane, brother of Karl Macfarlane, attended Weber College. Wayne was reported missing in action on February 2, 1943, after being hit by a torpedo near Greenland. Truman L. Manning - POW Truman served as a B-17 pilot, flying bombing missions over Germany. On a mission very close to the end of his tour of duty, that would have rotated him out of his bomber, he was shot down by German antiaircraft. He and most of the crew successfully parachuted into the German countryside. For a time, he was hidden by a German family. He was later captured and became a prisoner of war for two years. During that period, he suffered many hardships with the others including one famous "death march" as he and his fellow prisoners were forced to march to another camp. Many died on the march and most others suffered frozen feet. Truman noted that his feet were small enough he was able to get a second pair of boots on over his shoes which probably saved his feet. He returned to Ogden, and then moved to Idaho where he was an executive with the old Utah Idaho Sugar Company which initially had a plant west of Ogden. 43