Bio

My father, TSgt Bertil Arvid Munson, was a Crew Chief for the 493rd in England, Belgium, and France in WWII. He received the Bronze Star for 100 consecutive combat missions without a mechanical mission abort. Born in 1914, Dad passed away in 2014 at the age of 99. I was privileged to have accompanied him and my late Mother Elsa to several 493rd Squadron reunions, where I met Jake Cooper, George Pullis, Bill Wells, Loy Gallop, Jim Rice, Ray McWiliams, Lloyd White, John Chlopick, Bob Van Etten, Don Clarke, John Lord, Al Long, Leonard St, Onge, Pat Purfico, Hugh Rice, Frank Pecott, Ed Wytrwal, Isidore Freundlich, Jim Kranich, Merle "Moose" Mason, Marvin DuBose, Clifford Patt, Parks Lafferty, Al Lopez, Bob McLuckie, Roy Renfro, Al Long, and Jesse Jamieson, among many other 493rd veterans. Some had stayed in the service, not many, and all had gone on to careers in business, law, education, sales, construction, medicine... After helping to secure freedom for the Allies, they came home to build America and their new lives. To a man, each said that their collective successes were "due to the other guys," and that "any screwups were mine." Humble, engaging, and now peaceful men, I am honored to have met them and that my own father was among them.