Tag: Barbara Anderson

War Bonds

War Bonds Hero Dies on Memorial Day Weekend

Cindy Hval

War Bonds Louie Anderson

On Sunday, May 27, Louie Anderson slipped the bonds of Earth and flew to be with his beloved Barb.

He and Barbara enjoyed 71 years of marriage and because they lived close to my home, I got to spend quite a bit of time with them.

The photo below watched over me from my filing cabinet as I wrote War Bonds: Love Stories from the Greatest Generation.

Louis and flight crew 1944 low res

It shows Louie and his flight crew looking impossibly young and irrepressibly confident. Their 22-year-old leader, first pilot Louis Anderson sits on his haunches in the front row, far left. The photo was snapped as the 10 young men prepared to depart for Chelveston, England. It was May 1944 and the crew of the G-model Flying Fortress eagerly anticipated getting their licks in against the enemy.

Thirty-five missions later, Louis returned home, having lost only one of his original crew. Amazing because he said, “There was only one mission that we didn’t get shot at.”

Below is an excerpt from their chapter, “Keeping Time.”

“A ship in our left wing got hit,” Louis said. He and his men watched in dismay as the ball turret gunner fell from his turret and hung suspended by his foot. Many B-17 crew members considered the ball turret the worst position on the aircraft. The gunner was confined in a sphere fastened to the underside of the plane.

Louis cleared his throat. “I had to explain to the fellows that he was no longer with us.” After 45 seconds the gunner fell from the aircraft.

“We had quite a bit of difficulty talking the crew into getting back in the plane to fly a mission the next day,” he continued. “We had to have several conferences with the chaplain to explain that the gunner hadn’t been hanging there, suffering.”

When Barbara died in November, Louie’s already declining health, worsened.

He just wanted to be with her.

And he got his wish, but not before he was awarded a special Quilt of Valor made by the quilting group at Fairwood Retirement Community. Barbara was an avid quilter and she would be delighted to know of Louie’s gift.
He received the quilt, Saturday. He passed away Sunday.

And on Memorial Day I will be thinking of them both.

War Bonds with the Andersons at Fairwood

 

 

War Bonds

Every Time We Say Goodbye

Cindy Hval

72.

That’s how many individuals made the final cut of War Bonds: Love Stories from the Greatest Generation.

24.

That’s how many people died before the book went to print.

19.

That’s how many goodbyes I’ve had to say since War Bonds 2015 publication.

In the past month, Barbara Anderson and Dale Eastburg passed away.

Barbara’s loss hit me especially hard. The Anderson’s story is featured in chapter 28 “Keeping Time.” They  met in 1945 when Louis came into her father’s jewelry store to get his watch repaired. When War Bonds was published, he still wore the watch and it still kept time.

The Love Lesson Barbara shared at the end of the chapter resonates.

“You can’t take back bad words. We’ve never said one thing we’ve had to take back.”

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This photo was taken 11/16/16, the last time I saw Barbara. She wanted more signed copies of the book to send to a family that was grieving the loss of a wife/mom/grandma.

She always thought of others. When I left she insisted I on giving me a water glass from Air Force One. Her late grandson had served as pilot for President Obama.

She also always asked if I needed to use the restroom before I left!

Her spirit and generosity are simply irreplaceable and I worry how Louie will do without his bride.

Dale and Eva Eastburg had been married for 75 years when he died earlier this month. When last I spoke with them, they were still going to the gym regularly!

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The title of their chapter seems especially poignant today. It’s titled “Hard to Say Goodbye.”

And it is. It really is.

War Bonds

Thankful for 70 years of devotion

Cindy Hval

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I got a call last week from Barbara Anderson. She wanted to let me know that her husband of 70 years had suffered a stroke and that they were now in an assisted living facility. She also told me that her grandson-in-law, Col. David Banholzer had passed away on November 4 at age 47. She wanted to send some copies of War Bonds to his family.

Banholzer was the commander of Air Force One until cancer forced his early retirement. He and Louis loved to talk about flying. As told in chapter 28 of War Bonds, Louis was a B-17 pilot during WWll.

 

.War Bonds Louie AndersonI was so happy to visit with this dear couple. Louis’ speech has been somewhat affected by the stroke and his vision is poor. But he knew me and gave me his characteristic grin. His blue eyes still sparkle and he kept my hand firmly tucked in his.

As I prepared to leave, Barbara insisted on giving me some mementos from Banholzer’s time on Air Force One.

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But for me the true gift was more time and one more visit with these shining examples from the Greatest Generation.

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War Bonds

Still Things She’d Like to Know

Cindy Hval

War Bonds at Fairwood 1

Had a wonderful reading/signing event Saturday, at a local retirement center. The crowd was enthusiastic and engaged and asked wonderful questions. But the best thing was that three very special people live at Fairwood.

War Bonds with Melba and the Andersons  War Bonds Louie Anderson

Melba Barton (left) is featured in chapter 16, “The Farmer’s Wife,” and Barbara and Louis Anderson’s story is told in chapter 28, “Keeping Time.” As you can tell from the photo above, Louie is still just as dapper and handsome now as he was in 1943 when he served as a B-17 pilot during WWll.

I was very moved during the Q&A Barbara said she’d learned more about Louie’s war experiences during the interviews for War Bonds, than she’d learned in 69 years of marriage. She added, “But there are still things I’d like to know– still questions he hasn’t answered.”

And Louie smiled and looked away.

A special thank you to all who’ve purchased, read or reviewed War Bonds: Love Stories From the Greatest Generation. Because of you, these stories live on.