Great Uncle Leo survided Pearl KIA 1942 (they found his plane photos at link)

[Omaha Steve]

I always knew my cousin Leo was named after our great uncle in WWII. I didn't know he was on a B-17 that was trying to land (unarmed) during the attack on Pearl Harbor. He plane (B-17E "Bessie The Jap Basher" Serial Number 41-2420 ) was shot down and he was presumed dead in 1942. At uncle Eddy's funeral tonight, Leo told me about this web page and how they found his plane.


http://www.pacificwrecks.com/aircraft/b-17/41-2420.html





http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=104203723


Snip: Leo enlisted enlisted in the Air Corps as an Aviation Cadet in the Regular Army on December 31,1940 at Santa Fe, NM: Education: 4 years college. Occupation: Actors & Actresses. Single. Height: 68". Weight: 135 pounds. Subsequently, Leo was a navigator on a flying fortress, and was one of the fliers that landed a plane at Pearl Harbor during the Japanese attack on Dec 7, 1941. Although he survived Pearl Harbor, he went missing in action in the southwest Pacific on September 24, 1942, and was later listed as dead. At the time of his death, Leo M. Eminger was a 1st Lt in the US Army Air Forces. The U.S. Veterans Gravesites, ca. 1775-2006 indicate that Leo is buried in Floyd Cemetery in Floyd, New Mexico 88118. However, the U.S. Rosters of World War II Dead, 1939-1945 state "unrecoverable".

OS

[life long demo]

1. Amazing. You must be so proud of your Great Uncle Leo.

Just amazing. Thank you for posting this. Sorry about your Uncle Eddy. RIP

[Omaha Steve]

2. It seems I let the cat out of the bag at the viewing

I gave my earlier post of this to my cousin's at the viewing Wednesday night: Uncle Eddy died last night, this is his story from WWII

It seems none of them ever knew about grandma telling this story. So they didn't know anything about this. We all came to the conclusion she didn't want to upset them. Below is exactly what they read. Then Leo told my about the finding of great uncle Leo's (he was named after him) and the info on the web. then Leo told me Eddy was a gunners mate FIRST CLASS.

All the times I watched Tora!Tora! Tora! I never knew he was in that flight of unarmed B-17's trying to land during the Pearl Harbor attack.



The late 50's and early 60's of my childhood were filled with magic. Our house was located on the corner of the block. The house to the West was Aunt Edie and my cousin Butch. The first house to the South was Uncle Eddy, Aunt Julie, and my cousins Nancy and Leo. The next house to the South was my maternal grandparents. We knew all the non-family neighbors by name. Many were close family friends. Aunt Gracie was about 10 blocks away. My mom's adopted sister Aunt Lori, Uncle Charlie, and my cousin Richard were about a mile away.

Our family all attended the same school and church for many years. Church socials were more of a family get together than church function. We cousins were all very close in age. We had the run of the back yards to play in. The massive tree house in Grandpa's back yard. If we scrapped a knee while riding a bike, grandma would sing "blow the man down' to make us laugh while she applied the germ killer that stung so much. Her dinning room, living room, and kitchen would squeeze us all in for Thanksgiving, Christmas, etc. When your a kid, you think it will always be just like this forever.

Then Uncle Eddy moved away for a larger home when my cousin Danny was on the way. Not far enough to keep Leo (and later Danny) from getting together on summer vacation. It was a bit distant for winter cold.

Aunt Edie and Butch were the next to move farther away. The mountain started to crack. It would never be the same again.

While Eddy was growing up, grandma wanted him to be a minister. My mom was learning Japanese and planned on being a missionary in Japan. She could still sing "Jesus Loves the Little Children" in Japanese when she died. Pearl Harbor kept mom from going.

Uncle Eddy was a Navy Veteran of WWII. He was in Tokyo Bay for the signing of the surrender of Japan. I think he was on the Gasganade. The same name is on the local Corp of Engineers work boat on the Missouri River.

It was an experience Eddy had during the war that forever kept him from becoming a minister. I heard grandma repeat the story over and over in my childhood. It was nighttime in the South Pacific. Eddy awoke to the sound of an explosion. Next was the order "ALL HANDS MAN YOUR BATTLE STATIONS". Grabbing his helmet and life jacket he reported to his assigned gun. He was a gunners mate. I don't remember what class. After exchanges of shells one rocked Eddi's gun platform. Eddy bent down to apply first aid to his best friend. An officer yelled out "Eminger fire on the enemy" He left his friend to bleed to death. He remembered the commandment "Thou shalt not kill". He turned his back on the lord and fired with the intent to kill. It was that moment that took the calling out of Eddy. Grandma's version rarely changed by even a few words.

As we lose thousands of WWII vets nowadays, I thought I'd share his story. Eddy had a hard time talking about his time in the service, just like my dad.

I'll be kind of quiet for a few days. Please understand if IOU an email etc.

Omaha Steve over and out.

[okaawhatever]

3. Awesome. K & R nt