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On St. Patrick's Day at the Soldier's Memorial in St. Louis, a famous World War II hero, Lt. Commander Edward H. Butch” O’Hare, W.M.A. '32, was honored in a special ceremony attended by many noted military and civic -dignitaries.Those present included O'Hare's sister, Mrs. R. E. Platt, Mayor Cervantes of St. Louis, James Sanders, jpjesident of the Board of Police Commissioners, and ranking military commanders, Army Maj. Gen. John Norton, Air Force Gen. H. M. Estes, Jr., Coast Guard Rear Adm. Russell R. Waesche, Jr., Navy Capt. B. G. Preston, and Marine Lt. Col. Henry J. Conlin.gg ins, sen ofF ron-Col. R. B. Jackson of Western and others, including six cadets in full W.M.A. uniforms, attended the ceremony. Music was furnished by the Military Airlift Band.SHOT DOWN 6 JAP PLANES!Lt. Commander “Butch” O'Hare ismadeone of the greatest national heroes and one of Western's most distinguished graduates. O'Hare Airport in Chicago is named after him, but he was a native of St. Louis.ilk on a lie f his-w the )f the ertain ie deciding t men: it.esting irbara he oil ocean stroy-ocean, ;ausedDuring World War II, he was a fighter pilot aboard the carrier Lexington, and in 1942 he shot down five Jap planes alone and was credited with saving his ship. In 1944 he lost his life pioneering night flying from the deck of a ship near Tarawa. He was awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor before his death and was welcomed by a parade in St. Louis which was as elaborate as the one which honored Charles Lindbergh after his flight across the Atlantic. The W.M.A. cadet corps took part in that parade.MUCH PUBLICITYit the .e told forcediyear.eitherii per-peech, wishititled e dis-sasons 3 and today.Television programs gave a full report of “Butch” O'Hare's life and mentioned that he graduated from Western. He went on to finish his training at the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis. His former room there bears a plaque in his memory.After O'Hare's visit to St. Louis and later his hero's death, his motheri lt;»came to visit the late Col. R. L.Jackson at Western. A St. Louis■T.V. station recently said, “Chicago has O’Hare Airport, but St. Louis can claim O’Hare.”L.His sister stated on a T.V. program that her brother liked to fish and hunt. He said that he used hunting techniques in shooting down the Japanese bombers. He said that he sprayed them with machine gun
Newspaper Details
Alton Western Military Academy Shrapnel
Alton, Illinois, US
Thu, Mar 27, 1969
Page 3
Full Page
Clipped by
Charles J.
IL, 12 Jan 2023
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