THE GREATEST GENERATION
They called it the “Greatest Generation,” the time when all
America pulled together to preserve our way life and to protect our
Allies. The men and women of the 1940’s
gave their all. The men lined up at the
recruiting centers to enlist, the women took off their aprons and went to work
at the factories and businesses that were left without the manpower that
formerly kept things running. Victory
gardens replaced front lawns, as the army was sending canned goods to the
troops and families had to grow and preserve foods to replace those things.
Children took their wagons to the streets to collect tinfoil, metal, and other
things that could be used in the war effort. Food, gasoline and other products
were rationed.
My grandmother, Lena RIVARD WICKENHIESER sent three sons to
war, along with the orphaned nephews she
had raised. Ever faithful she prayed her boys home, and
they all returned safely. There were many mothers who could not say the same,
and many homes had gold stars in their windows.
Her eldest son, Lawrence WICKENHEISER was a Navy pilot. Not only did he fly in WWII but stayed in the
service and ran reconnaissance missions along the Korean coastline during that
conflict. His first wife, Teresa SOLEAU WICKENHEISER, also a pilot, flew out of
Willow Run Airport, transporting goods and Army personnel to other bases. Her final flight was on her 100th
birthday. She was still a licensed pilot
until her death at 103 years old!
The next eldest son, Earl WICKENHEISER was unable to join
the Army. He had very poor vision and
was the only support for his widowed mother and younger siblings. He joined the National Guard and did his part
here in the States.
The third son, Cletus
WICKENHEISER also was a pilot, and he flew missions as an Army Air Corp pilot,
as well as his younger brother Herman WICKENHEISER.
The “boys” were regular correspondence with their “Ma” and
younger sisters. My mother, Clara
WICKENHEISER JOBLINSKI had a stack of letters from them, especially Herman who
decorated his missives with cute drawing for her. She did her service as well. My mom was a “ROSIE” working at Willow Run
Bomber Plant. She was very shy, and
didn’t like all the rough humor and attention at the plant. But she did her part in the war despite her
desire to stay home. That turned out
well in the end, because she met my dad, Allie JOBLINSKI, when co-workers urged
her to go to a party one day after work.
While she wasn’t immediately impressed, he fell like a ton
of bricks, and soon convinced her to feel the same. A pilot himself, he had tried to enlist several times, but a
youthful accident had left him with a serious limp, and he was denied because
of that. He regretted not being able to
serve the rest of his life.
American men and women put their country before them selves
and served the greater good. There was
not a plethora of draft dodgers or protestors.
War bonds were sold all across the county, with many movie stars and
famous people traveling from state to state to convince people to buy the bonds
for the war effort. I grew up in the
Vietnam era. That was a very different
time, and right or wrong, patriotism took a beating. Our country didn’t come together again until
after 9/11. This Veteran’s Day, I hope
we all pause and remember the sacrifices that were made and remember the men
and women of the “Greatest Generation.”
Lawrence Wickenheiser
Earl Wickenheiser 
Cletus Wickenheiser 
Herman Wickenheiser 
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