I was searching for B-17 Nose art (Perry's Pirates) for his ship and stumbled on this article

http://www.blueridgenow.com/ar...1/news/606053771/HT/
realizing this guy was older than my dad and it was written in 2003, I asked myself, Is he still alive?

Well, I gots to know, so I called the paper , they said the reporter is long gone suggested I call the historical society. Nada.
I searched for his wife's name: Willie Willams-Perry and found he lives in Kayti Texas and a phone # (Still the NC Area Code.) But what did I have to lose, I called it. A frail sounding man answered and I asked for Lt Harry Perry. He seemed confused so I said 8th Army Air Corp 34th bomb Group? He said oh yes!
I told him he doesn't know me but he knows my dad, John. There was a hesitation and then an explosive "WE"VE BEEN LOOKING FOR JOHN FOR 40 Years!"

I told him I was going to visit him the next day and can I call him so they could speak? He was exploding with the thought. So I printed this article and Gave my Dad a Fathers Day card and the article to read. after he read it he said that was all true. I told him I have a present for Fathers Day for him. He couldn't eat it smoke or Drink it in fact he couldn't even hold it. I secretly call Lt and there was NO ANSWER!!!!!
15 minutes later my phone rang and he asked for John, I said hold on and handed the phone to him. (he's looking at me to ask WHOS this?) I pointed to the article and said it's Lt Harry Perry!
They talked for 40 minutes and the smile never left his face! 73 years ago they were teamates on 30 bombing missions over Nazi Germany and they parted ways to go on with their lives. At Ages 92 and 96 they reunited.
Happy Fathers Day!

This message has been edited. Last edited by: downtownv,

Well done sir. Well done!

WOW! what a great story!

Absolutely Fantastic!!

Nice!!!

Good on you.

RMD

Boy, are you lucky!

That is so amazing, glad they got back together. We are losing those guys way to fast and the world is worse off for it.

My father was a radio/gunner on a B-17 out of England as well. Those guys went through Hell and back over and over again. He didn't talk about it much, he just wanted to forget about it all. He did mention that every time they climbed into the planes at dawn for a new mission, they never expected to come back and a lot of his buddies didn't.

You did a great thing bringing those 2 warriors in contact with each other again.

Jim

Get another reporter to document them meeting.

Love these stories....

That's awesome. My grandfather flew 32 missions over Germany as a ball turret gunner. One of very few crews that did more than 30 in the early part of the war (plane and crew survived all).

Grandpa was in the 8th Air Force (Dolittle), 3rd Air Division (Lemay), 93rd Combat Bomb Wing, 385th Bomb Group. He was on the "Funk Crew" flying out of Great Ashfield, England.

Sadly he passed 12 years ago, but I have most of his collection of remembrances. Some of the stuff is absolutely amazing including crew photos, mission photos, and notes he took during the flight. The flight notes were verboten, but grandpa wrote them on small pieces of paper and rolled them up and placed them in an old toothpaste tube (he was sure the Jerrys would never look there ).

Furtunately my grandfather was able to keep in touch with his crew while he was alive and was even able to reunite with a large part of the group in 1985 (in think) at the old airfield in Great Ashfield.

He was one of the greatest men I ever knew or will know.

YOU did a great thing for your father. Kudos!

hOW
Freakin cool!

you just made my day

Happy Fathers Day to All

Cheers`

That's great!

That is excellent!

Awesome job!!!

That.was.awesome.

That is a really cool story.
Nice work.

The 8th Air Force Historical Society will be holding their reunion at the end of September in New Orleans - do you think you might be able to make it?

http://www.8thafhs.org/new/

My father and I plan to attend - he flew on B-24's out of Wendling, which is about 40 miles north of where your father flew from Mendlesham!

quote:

Originally posted by SigSAC:
The 8th Air Force Historical Society will be holding their reunion at the end of September in New Orleans - do you think you might be able to make it?

The Cocky one without the hat... Wonder where I got that same attitude?
http://www.8thafhs.org/new/



My father and I plan to attend - he flew on B-24's out of Wendling, which is about 40 miles north of where your father flew from Mendlesham!

I wanted to take him to Savannah (8th AAC museum, San Antonio for the B-17 Flight.... He said he's forgotten about it and didn't want to relive it. But in the past 2 years he's shared his experiences with me. Something he never did in my previous 62 years. Funny how in the twilight of your life, you open up and share those things. Lt Perry wanted him to come to Savannah to see the pics of my dad in the museum. But even though they talked, I know he will never go, kinda sad....
18 YO smiling ready to go on another mission

Get him talking to Lt. Perry again - maybe he can convince him!

We'd love to have you join us. The reunion in 2013 was in Savannah.

My father didn't talk much about it in earlier years - once he retired from the Air Force in 1968, he moved on to another career. It was just a year or so before Mom passed away (this weekend is the 5 year anniversary of that happening) that she got him talking, and got him to promise to go to one. We've been every year since then.