My father died in 2002, at the age of 81. I suspect that of all of the 142 Student Officers of Bombardier Class 43-11, few, if any, are still with us. Many may have lost their lives during the war. But of those who like my father survived the war to return home and live a full life, many would have been in their later 20's or older when the war ended in 1945.
Had he lived, dad would have been 91 this year. Others in his class probably were older than he. This Greatest Generation, as Tom Brokaw aptly calls them, had endured the Great Depression and WWII. A few may even have fought in the Korean War. So, if any in dad's class is still alive, I would be surprised. The one piece of information that is lacking in the booklet is the age of each individual Student Officer, where and when each was born.
As tough as it is to imagine any of these young, smiling faces killed in action, it's even tougher to imagine any of them as old men on their death beds, as I saw my father toward the end.
His doctor had told my sister Ann and me that there was nothing from the top of his head to the tips of his toes that was not failing or had already failed. Nothing could be done to keep him alive. We also discovered that he had signed a living will that requested no extraordinary means be used to keep him alive. So we then had the staff remove the breathing apparatus.
He continued to breathe on his own for a few more days, though never returning to consciousness. I had to return to Colorado after that weekend, but I had done what was needed. I had agreed, along with the family, to accede to his wishes and let him die honorably rather than be artificially kept alive. I also could not return for his funeral or burial. But those rituals are more for the living than the dead.
All these years later, I have this testament not only to my father but to the many other men who trained, and served, along with him so many decades ago, six years before I was born.
Had he not survived the war, I would not have been born.
I would not have served in, nor been discharged from, the Air Force all those years ago for being gay. Nor would I have written the ten Rainbow Arc of Fire novels.
Now that DADT is going away and we can serve openly, I may very well take up President Obama on his offer to return. Perhaps the President didn't imagine a 61-year-old veteran taking him up on his offer to serve again; but if I can, I will return. The repeal is a vindication of how I felt 31 years ago. I will make the most of any second chance if I am able.
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