D-Day + 70

Claude Friddle - 1924-2011

During the past few weeks, I have been taking the opportunity to watch the many D-Day documentaries that have been on TV.  Some of them are a few years old, but several have been made in the past year.  I can't help thinking how great it is that some of these stories from these veterans are being recorded.  The youngest of these veterans is either 90 or close to 90.   I think that I read that there are only about one million of these World War II veterans still alive.

While neither of my grandfathers fought in World War II because they were farmers.  Someone had to stay home and grow food.  I had three great uncles on my Dad's side of the family and two great uncles on my Mom's side of the family who also fought.  All but one of them fought in the South Pacific.  Only Claude fought in Europe...I really never heard him talk that much about World War II and his experiences.  I assume that it wasn't a topic he liked to talk about especially with his young great niece.  I heard him tell a few stories through the years and I think the thing that might have bothered him most was seeing all of his buddies flying on bombing runs to Germany...and the sad fact that so many never came back.

I have to wonder what he was thinking on the eve of D-Day 70 years ago.  I imagine he really didn't have an idea what he was going to face.  I think that this was his first major battle and there is something to be said about not knowing what he was about to face.  Claude was a 20 year old man.  He had graduated in 1942 from Lewiston High School in Lewiston, ID.  He signed up in 1943 and was worried enough about how his mother would react that he asked his father to tell her.  Claude was a member of the Tank Destroyers in the 1st Army.  I think his division later became part of the 9th Army and fought under General Patton through the Battle of the Bulge. But on that long ago day, Claude was waiting just like so many other soldiers.  His division was on the second wave at Omaha Beach  From what I have read, the biggest difference between the first and second wave was sheer numbers  By the time the second wave came along, they still hadn't put out the guns on the cliffs above Normandy

It isn't like I have heard a lot of direct information from my great uncle...and since he passed in 2011, there is no further opportunity.  I can't help it that when I am watching these documentaries about D-Day - I still wonder if I will ever see a glimpse of Uncle Claude's face in any of those films.  I doubt it.  This is a significant anniversary - I wonder how many more years we will have where we will have living veterans from D-Day. So, today I will spend some time thinking about as my mother called him - her Uncle Buddy...and marvel at what he and all those other young men faced and accomplished 70 years ago on Omaha beach on the Normandy coast!

Our Gage Veterans - Highlighting Orland & Bernard

Every young man who went off to fight for his country has a unique story and family.  Neither one of my grandfathers served in World War II – one because of health reasons and I’m sure the other one was too valuable as a farmer and logger.  Each one of my grandmothers had two brothers who went off to war – I’ve told the story about Jack & Claude…now it’s time for Orland and Bernard!

Orland is the oldest of the 10 children (and six sons) to be born to Ora and Florence Shawver Gage.  Much of his youth was spent working with his father and grandfather farming and doing whatever needed to be done – whether it was building the family cabin with his father and brothers or cutting wood to help bring extra income for his family.  

Orland & Bernard on leave - 1945

Orland volunteered for the Army in the fall of 1943 and was inducted in late December of 1943.  He left at home his wife and newborn son.  Orland was part of the 38^th Bomb Group and fought in the 823^rd Squadron.  He was a tail gunner in B-25. I still find it difficult to believe that my tall uncle fit himself in that tiny spot.  I had watched the movie Memphis Belle and remember watching Henry Connick, Jr.’s character fit himself in that tiny area – Orland told me that he had considerably more room.  Orland went overseas on Easter Sunday of 1945 and flew 18 missions until the end of the war.  He wasn’t able to come home until February 1946...in the interim he showed the skills that made him successful in life.  Orland was sent to Fukuoka, Japan as acting First Sgt with orders to strip a manufacturing plant and build quarters for the Bomb Group that was expected in November. According to Orland, he complained to the Colonel when the mill they were using wasn’t getting lumber to them quickly enough and told them that he knew a little something about mills.  Before they knew it, Orland had that mill running and producing more than enough lumber to get the job done plus a few other important projects like a 32-hole latrine.  After he returned home, Orland began working for Potlatch Corporation.  He joined the Idaho National Guard unit in Lewiston, ID and was in Company A of the 200^th Tank Battalion as First Sergeant. By the time, he was called back up to active duty in 1951, Orland was a 2^nd Lieutenant and the Tank Battalion was now the 148^th Field Artillery Battalion.  He served in Korea as well and continued to serve in the Idaho National Guard until 1979.  

Orland writes “I have always taken pride in the way my brothers all were members of the military. Bernard spent 8 years in the Marines and flew F4U Corsairs as an enlisted pilot and returned home from China as a 2nd Lt. Don served three years as a Marine and was in Korea as a member of the 1^st Marine Division. He returned as a Sergeant from Korea. Byron was a member of the 148^th Field Artillery Battalion when it was recalled for the Korean War. He went to Korea and was assigned to the 196^th Field Battalion Communications section. He became a Tech/Sgt in charge of the section before coming home. He left the Washington National Guard as 1st Lt. My brother Duane was a member of the 148^th Field Artillery Battalion after the war and left the guard as a Tech/Sgt. He was a good soldier in peace time and would have been good at anything he tried in the service. We boys purchased a brick for Dad and each of his sons that will be placed at the “I AM AN AMERICAN” monument that stands in front of the Veteran’s Home on 8^th Street in Lewiston.”

Gage Men - Left to Right - Ora, Orland, Bernard, Don, Byron & Duane

Orland has been a proud Veteran who has worked hard to preserve the history of his bomb group from WW II.  He has worked diligently to maintain contact with the other members, scanned thousands of documents and pictures and worked to get a unit history published for his bomb group.  If you are interested - please check out www.sunsetters38bg.com.

Bernard flying over Emeraru in Corsair

Orland’s little brother, John Bernard Gage, was a pretty unique character himself.  When he passed away a few years ago – our family experienced a military funeral that was especially emotional for most of us.  Most of us knew that Bernard or Uncle Bun as he was called by the family served in WW II and we all knew he was a pilot – but I don’t think we ever really knew the whole story.  One of the cool things in our family is that Orland, Grandma Marian, and Bernard all graduated the same year from high school in 1939.  (Sickness and stubbornness were probably the true causes of Orland and Marian not graduating on time)  Bernard joined up with the Marines in early 1940 – lying about his age by a few months.  He was flying in China before World War II started for most Americans.  He flew a F4U1 – Corsair for over 400 missions from China to the South Pacific.  Part of his job was to photograph missions from up above on some of the bombing missions of the B-25’s below.  He and Orland figured out one time that they were actually flying the same mission at the same time – just in different planes.  The most unique thing was that Bernard flew all those missions and what was probably one of the hottest planes of the war as a Sergeant.  This was almost unheard of – Bernard refused to become an officer if his buddies weren’t being offered the same opportunity.  When he found out that officers were being released early – Bernard became an officer and was soon on his way home. When he arrived home in 1946, he came home with a wife and a new son and settled to farm up on Hatter Creek.  There isn’t one person who knew him well who didn’t marvel at his mechanical knowledge and sharp mind.  During his later years, it became a bit difficult to talk to Bernard because he couldn’t hear.  He had spent too many years working on engines to have much hearing left.

To my knowledge, the Gage and Shawver families have served in World War I, World War II, Korea, Vietnam, and the Iraq War and have served their countries in times of peace and of war through both the National Guard and regular military.  I know the hardships that my great grandmother faced when her two oldest sons and her son-in-law were over fighting the war in World War II as well as her three sons in Korea.  She also saw her grandson go off to fight in Vietnam.  It is pretty remarkable that they all returned home safe.  God bless all of those veterans who have served and all of the family who waited and prayed for them to return to them safely.

(Orland took the time to write his life story a few years ago and I have taken some of the detail from that story – he has truly lived a remarkable life and continues to be active to this day)

Claude & Jack - WW II - Veterans

Claude & Jack Friddle - abt 1945

In the fall of 1941, my mother’s family were living in pretty good times.  My mother was born in October of 1941 – ironically while her father was off hunting.  Claude (Capitola’s younger brother) drove his sister to the hospital to have my mother.  He used to tell my mother that he had helped bring her into the world.  Grandma Cappy decided after that experience that if her husband, Richard, couldn’t be there for the birth…then she wasn’t going to have any more children.  They were happy with their two daughters – their lumber lot was doing well, the ranch out in Tammany was also doing well.  Mom & Pop Friddle lived next door (David Carl Friddle & Sophia Dollar Friddle) and Capitola’s younger brother was involved in the waning years of high school and her older brother, Jack was off living in Baker City, OR with his wife Hilda and also working.  However, when Pearl Harbor was bombed, they like everyone else were glued to the radio listening to Roosevelt grimly relating what had happened.  Everything they knew about their life was about to change – as it did for so many families across the United States. Young men joined up and started leaving for faraway places for training and eventually to the battlefield.  Amongst those young men was my great uncle Jack. 

At 34 years old, he wasn’t quite as young as most of those signing up.  He had had some military experience in the army in the early 1930’s.  I’ve never had a specific date – but I have a photo of him in his uniform.  Jack enlisted on 25 Feb 1943 and he became a paratrooper and ended up as a captain.  Jack spent some time training down in North Carolina and got the chance to see some of his mother’s family.  Several of his mother’s siblings made the trip to see him.  Eventually Jack ended heading for the Pacific theater.  As I never heard a lot of specifics, I know that he spent a lot of time like most paratroopers jumping from one island to another.  Not only did you have the danger of the parachute jump, I don’t think they ever knew what they would face when they landed.  When I was around Jack, he didn’t’ talk about his experiences probably because I was little girl and he had much more fun teasing me.  However, he and his brother, Claude used to spend a lot of time telling each other stories.  I do know that he survived several close calls including having an unexploded bomb come down literally right next to him.  Jack also arrived home with a Japanese rifle that was complete with a bayonet.  Jack gave that rifle to my father years ago and my Dad gave the rifle to my brother a few years ago. 

Claude signed up in 1943, just after high school graduation.  He went to his father first to tell him – because he wanted help telling his mother.  He knew that Mom Friddle would be beyond upset that he had signed up.  Her older son was already serving in the war and she didn’t want to chance losing her second son.  Nevertheless, Claude headed off for training and then to the European theater.  He spent a lot of time in England making friends with the other servicemen and then watching a lot of fly off on bombing missions to Germany – knowing the whole time that many of them would never come back.  I only heard him talk about World War II a few times, but that was something that deeply affected him.  Claude was part of the 1^st Army – Tank Division.  His first experience in battle came on D-day as the second wave at Omaha Beach.  Claude spent the next several months battling through the hedgerows and inching towards Germany.  He was in the Battle of the Bulge fighting under Gen. George Patton.  During his time there, he had 5 tanks shot out from under him.  During the Battle of the Bulge, Claude’s legs were severely frozen and during the last years of his life – diabetes and damage from the war made it so that he had little feeling in his legs.

By the late summer of 1945, Jack and Claude were both heading home from war.  My mother remembered them coming home.  As she was quite young, this was a momentous occasion.  Jack and Claude nicknamed their two nieces the “Geisha Girl” (Aunt Joan) and the “Blonde Bomber” (Betty, my mother).  When they entered the house, they were surprised to find a map on the wall with push pins dotting its surface.  Through news reports and Jack & Claude’s letters, Mom Friddle and Grandma Cappy had traced their progress through the war.  Much to Jack & Claude’s surprise, this map was remarkably accurate.

Like so many other servicemen, Jack and Claude came home and took up the business of living a civilian life.  Jack went back to managing a retail store and eventually owned a few stores along the way.  He died in 1987 at the age of 78.  Claude worked several jobs and eventually ended up the irrigation department in Lewiston, ID.  He was married for over 60 years and had three daughters.  Claude recently passed away at the age of 87.  Jack and Claude were always tied together as brothers – I think that their war experiences tied them even more closely together.  They had a shared experience that only another veteran would understand.