Willard Edward Moore
Militaryfrom collection of daughter, Pamela Moore
Crashed into North Sea on 15 Apr 44 in P-38 #42-68148, Prisoner of War (POW).
Willard E. Moore, DDS entered this world on March 12, 1921 and took his final flight on May 14, 2015. Born in Normantown, WV to William and Hallie Moore, he was the youngest of their three sons.
He left WV in 1942 to enter the US Army Corp of Engineers, with a subsequent posting to flight school. After earning his wings, he was sent to England as a P-38 fighter pilot with the 384 Fighter Squadron of the 364th Fighter Group. Shot down over the North Sea in April of 1944, he survived his 13 months of captivity in Luft Stalag 3 and remained on active duty flying fighters following the war.
Pharmacy school soon called (graduating from George Washington University in 1952) where he met the love of his life, Yvonne Bardin, whom he married in January of 1952. They just celebrated their 63rd anniversary.
Following a stint in Richmond with Merck Pharmaceuticals, he opened Moore's Pharmacy in Arlington Village, which he operated until 1965 when he graduated from Georgetown University School of Dentistry. He practiced Dentistry in Arlington, VA until his retirement. He was also a Clinical Instructor at the dental school from his graduation until its closing.
In his later years, Will was very active at the T.J. Community Fitness Center - winning numerous gold medals in Pickleball at the Arlington County Senior Olympics and making many friends. He and Vonnie enjoyed travel, visiting Europe, Turkey, Egypt, Peru and all 50 of the states.
Survivors include his wife Vonnie of Arlington, VA, son Greg (Susan) Moore DDS of Colorado Springs, CO, daughter Pam (Bryant) Moore-Willick of Willow Springs, NC, 4 granddaughters: Brittany Lindgren of Willow Springs, NC, Lindsey (Greg) Burke of Raleigh, NC, Jennifer (James) Sims of Santa Clarita, CA, and Savannah Willick of Willow Springs, NC, 2 grandsons: Tim Lindgren of Mesa, AZ and Austin Willick of Willow Springs, NC; a great-grandson, Hugo Sims of Santa Clarita, CA; as well as 6 nieces and nephews and many cousins.
He was predeceased by a grandson, Christopher Bardin Moore and a great-granddaughter, Angel Belle Sims.
A Celebration of Life was held in Falls Church, Virginia. Internment will be at Arlington National Cemetery later this year.
In lieu of flowers, contributions in the name of Willard Moore, DDS are requested to be made to "Toys for Tots."
Connections
See how this entry relates to other items in the archive by exploring the connections below.
Units served with
- Unit Hierarchy: Group
- Air Force: Eighth Air Force
- Type Category: Fighter
- Unit Hierarchy: Squadron
- Air Force: Eighth Air Force
- Type Category: Fighter
Aircraft
- Aircraft Type: P-38 Lightning
- Unit: 364th Fighter Group 384th Fighter Squadron
Missions
- Date: 15 April 1944
Places
- Site type: Airfield
- Known as: RAF Honington
- Site type: Prisoner of war camp
- Known as: Stalag Luft III, Sagan, Germany
Events
Event | Location | Date | Description |
---|---|---|---|
Born |
12 March 1921 | ||
Other Prisoner of War (POW) |
15 April 1944 - 29 April 1945 | Stalag Luft 3 Sagan-Silesia Bavaria (Moved to Nuremberg-Langwasser) 49-11 | |
Died Prisoner of War (POW) |
14 May 2015 | ||
Buried |
Plot: East Niche Wall M-23-1 |
Revisions
Copied the "Summary biography" from a Duplicate person as part of a merge operation of dup people so the dup person can be deleted.
Added Buried event per Find-a-grave Memorial ID 159595395.
SOURCE: https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/159595395/willard-edward-moore
Added POW Camp info to the POW event from WW2 POW records at the National Archives (NARA).
Added an association to Stalag Luft 3 per WW2 POW records at the National Archives (NARA).
Added a "-" to the A/C tail # in the "Summary biography" to aid clarity & consistency.
Drawn from the records of the National Museum of the Mighty Eighth Air Force, Savannah, Georgia / MACR 3894 / Paul Andrews, Project Bits and Pieces, 8th Air Force Roll of Honor database / Ted Damick, VIII Fighter Command pilots list