In Memory of JakeTews

[geoffav]

Jake (Richard Williams) was a lurker on previous C**** related sites. He probably had less than 100 posts on all the forums when he passed away in late 2010.

He loved cars and purchased a used Mk2 from somebody in FL as I recall. I've never seen that car but I will try to post a picture if I can find one.

The username had something to do with the nose art from one of Jakes planes. He was a WWII vet and flew many awesome airplanes for the Army and Air Force. I know he flew the P51, P47, P80, F86, F100, F105, and the F4.

Jake was nearly 40 years my senior but he seemed like a big brother. I met him at my flight school graduation (US Army), his son is my best friend. Our dads became great friends too and had much in common. My dad is also a WWII vet.

I think of Jake each time I push a throttle forward to go fly and whenever I work on my hot rod. He served his country during WWII, Korea, and also Vietnam. God Bless the "Greatest Generation".

http://accentartandframe.com/catalog/images/P51%20mustang3.jpg

[Shaun R]

Sorry you lost your friend Geoff. Not many of these guys left anymore.
Thank God for that generation.

[ChopperJustin]

I try hard to go out of my way to shake the hands of these vets and thank them. I remember meeting a D-Day marine at my local mall food court having lunch with his family. I stopped what I was doing, went over to him. I politely apologized for interrupting his lunch, but I went on to thank him for his service and sacrifice. The kids (probably grandkids/great-grandkids) at the table stopped chatting and just sat wide-eyed. I think they looked at their pop-pop a bit differently that day. We just can't thank these guys enough.

Thanks Geoff for sharing.

[geoffav]

I try hard to go out of my way to shake the hands of these vets and thank them. I remember meeting a D-Day marine at my local mall food court having lunch with his family. I stopped what I was doing, went over to him. I politely apologized for interrupting his lunch, but I went on to thank him for his service and sacrifice. The kids (probably grandkids/great-grandkids) at the table stopped chatting and just sat wide-eyed. I think they looked at their pop-pop a bit differently that day. We just can't thank these guys enough.

Thanks Geoff for sharing.

Wow, great story. Sorry I somehow missed this for so long. I sure do miss Jake, for the last 5 years or so I would fly with him as a flight instructor for a flight review to keep his insurance company happy. I was entering time in my electronic logbook and noticed that exactly one year ago was my last flight with Jake. Other than my standard endorsements, I wrote a personal remark in my logbook. "Awesome flight with a WWII Mustang pilot, skills sharp as ever but noteworthy for a 90 year old."

It's a great time to reflect on just how much we owe to the WWII vets and those who supported them. My late mother-in-law for example was a welder at the Norfolk Naval Shipyard during the war. We don't treat war like we did back then.