My dad worked hard when we were little and when he would get paid he would bring his money home in cash, we would all sit around the kitchen table and decide together where we could spend the money. Theere would be a pole for rent, one for food, one for the lights etc, he always paid tithing and would try to have enough left to take us down to Snelgroves for and ice cream cone. Life was so good back then, we grew together, and for the most part were happy and content.
December 7th, 1941, the news said Japan had just bombed Pear Harbor. I was four years old and I remember very well the next day the FBI came and took aways our beloved landlords, the Bargeer's. We were told that they were taken to a concentration camp in Utah's west desert. They were only allowed to take a suitcase and thier clothes they had on. We cried of course but they took them anyway, we never heard from them again.
My father was a pilot and had helped to set up the first Civil Air Patrol in the State of Utah. they were know as the CAP and were called to active duty soon after the start of World War ll. Daddys job with others, was to fly and patrol the borders of the United States and watch for any enemy that may attack our borders. He was stationed to fly the coastline in the Gulf of Mexico. They did not have big sofisticated planes back then and most of the ones in his patrol were small aircraft, usually double wingers and open cockpit.They would have planes in the air 24 hours a day, seven days per week. someone was always up there. Many times he would fly over the gulf at 100' above the water, looking for enemy submarines that could be under the water in the gulf. On one early morning pass they spotted a sure enough submarine. They had no radio contact back then with other pilots nor the land. so they did what they knew they must do and dropped a bomb on the submarine destroying it at once. They were credited with saving the coast that day for he had bombed a japanese sub.. We were so blessed to have him be able to come home safely much later.
Mom, was grandpa actually in the military or did he act as a civilian air patrol for the whole war? If he was military at any time can you let me know? Was he awarded for sinking the sub? It would be interesting to try to trace what happened to the Bargeers. That is very sad.
ReplyDeleteAnn we tried to trace Bargeer's but there were few records kept of the people intered at those camps and we found nothing. Grandpa was a civilian flying with the CAP during the War, he did become a 2nd Leutinant in the Air Force after the War and I believe he was awarded a medal for his bravery. however who knows where it went. I do not have it nor did Jim or Richard.
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