Local WWII veteran takes Honor Flight to D.C.

October 7, 2009

By Brenda Rader Mross

The Wellington

 

At 81, Don Edgar was among the youngest of the 110 World War II veterans on the second Honor Flight Wyoming.

But then the Cheyenne, Wyo., native was only 17 years old and required parental permission when he enlisted in the U.S. Navy in 1945. He was in boot camp in San Diego the day the war ended.

At no cost to them, Edgar and his fellow vets were flown from Casper, Wyo., to Washington, D.C., Sept. 22 to tour the national WWII Memorial. Over the last four years, the Honor Flight Network has flown thousands of veterans from across the country to see their memorial in the nation’s capitol.

“I have never been treated so well,” exclaimed Edgar, whose exuberance belies his age. “It was surprising. They went all out. I didn’t expect them to do that.”

The fanfare began the moment Don and Virginia, his wife of 50 years come Dec. 28, arrived at the airport. After Wyoming governor Dave Freudenthal spoke, the veterans marched beneath an archway of raised swords presented by local ROTC members.

“It was the sendoff to end all sendoffs,” Edgar said. “So much gratitude and honor, from little kids to politicians. I never shook so many hands.”

Edgar said they received a good reception upon arrival and that similar displays of appreciation and admiration were replayed throughout the two-day whirlwind trip.

On the return flight each veteran received “mail call.” Edgar’s was a large envelope brimming with thank-you notes from sixth-graders at Cheyenne’s Fairview Elementary School, a class taught by his son-in-law, Jim Hayden.

“Dear Mr. Edgar,” a note representative of the whole began. “Thank you for serving our country. You will always remind us that our country will never fall…”

It was the outpouring of sincerity from “people we never even knew” that affected Edgar the most, as well as the magnitude of the WWII Memorial.

“It was startling; fantastic,” he said of the 7.4-acre “Jewel of the Mall” that joins the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial. “I had no idea of the scale of the thing.”

Edgar and his peers were overcome with emotion at the Wall of 4,000 Stars, where every star commemorates 100 Americans who died in WWII. The group carried with them a flag in honor of a recently deceased veteran, which they presented in front of the Wyoming column, one of 56 representing the contribution of each state and U.S. territory toward the war effort.

“Many had tears in their eyes,” he recalled. “The oldest of us was 97. There was one man about three years older than me in his original Army uniform. I could never fit in mine, but there was a lot of pride all around. It felt wonderful.”

In 1993, President Bill Clinton authorized creation of a national memorial to honor WWII veterans, which was constructed between 2001 and 2004. Sen. Bob Dole, a second lieutenant in the U.S. Army whose right arm was paralyzed in WWII combat, spearheaded the $197 million fundraising campaign, of which just $16 million came from the federal government.

“We don’t build memorials to war,” said Dole at the 2004 dedication. “We build memorials to those who fight wars, to the millions who wear their country’s uniform, to the even greater numbers on the home front who support them with their labor and their love, and to the freedom we fight to preserve.”

Edgar echoed Dole’s sentiments by crediting women for their heroic work efforts during the war.

Prior to enlisting as a teen, Edgar was already hard at work as a “call boy” for Union Pacific Railroad in Cheyenne. Essentially, he was a “telephone” who ran up and down the length of the train relaying messages. It was when troop trains came through that Edgar would get the urge to join the Navy and follow in his two older brothers’ footsteps. Both deceased, Jack and Gale were similarly inspired by their father, Ernest, a World War I Marine Corps veteran.

Edgar was stationed in the Mojave Desert for a year. He then served onboard the USS Des Moines CA-134 as a qualified electrician responsible for maintaining the ship’s three telephones.

The petty officer second class accompanied the Des Moines on its peacekeeping deployments to the Mediterranean Sea from her home ports in Boston, Mass.; Newport, R.I.; and Norfolk, Va. His scariest missions involved minesweeping in seldom-visited Yugoslavia.

After two tours of duty over five and one-half years, Edgar had had enough of the military life, and he was needed back home as his younger brother had contracted polio.

Edgar said his one claim to fame was being the projectionist who showed a film aboard ship to then-Princess Elizabeth, now Queen Elizabeth II of Great Britain. He also met Gen. Dwight Eisenhower.

After the military, Edgar returned to the railroad, and later became an instructor at Warren Air Force Base. He retired after 33 years of government service.

He met his future wife square dancing on the streets of Cheyenne during Frontier Days.

The couple moved to Battlement Mesa after retirement but relocated to Wellington (Colorado) three years ago to be closer to family. They have six children, 10 grandchildren, and are expecting their first great-grandchild. They have one grandson carrying on the family’s military tradition in the Wyoming Air Guard.

Edgar is an avid reader of westerns. He likes to listen to country music and hook rugs, while Virginia Edgar embroiders, plays the organ and writes. They both enjoy computer games.

Edgar says if he were to do it all over again he’d join the Coast Guard, because he would’ve been stateside more often and “they provide a great service even if they get overlooked.”

The approximately $1,100 per person Honor Flight cost is funded entirely by private donations. “Guardians,” who are responsible for the care and assistance of three veterans, pay their own way. Paid staffers accompany each flight and include several qualified health-care professionals.

To contribute to Honor Flight, become a guardian or download a flight application, visit www.HonorFlightWyoming.org.