THE FINAL CHAPTER
I received an invitation to a private ceremony in Washington DC to honor the 807th 70th anniversary of their crash and freedom walk, along with celebrating Cate Lineberry’s book “The Secret Rescue.” This event was being hosted by Craig Lebo and Gayle Yost (son and daughter of Richard Lebo). With great delight I sent in our RSVP and waited for the date, November 8, 2013 to arrive.
I think what excited me about this event was that members of the 807 MAES had tried one time (possibly one other) for a reunion. In a conversation with Agnes Jensen Mangerich and Elna Schwant Krum, they shared that they had heard of my father’s passing. They thought “we need a reunion before any more leave us.”
With the help of Harold and Betty Hayes, the 807 MAES had gathered for a reunion in Ohio back in the summer of 1983. About 20 people attended. I thought this private celebration in 2013 would be a great way for those of us who are the children of 807 MAES members to gather around our one surviving friend, Harold Hayes and pay tribute to the group and to those involved in the rescue.
On Friday, November 8th, Cate Lineberry shared a reading from her new book, “The Secret Rescue” held at the National Archives and open to the public. On Saturday, November 9th at the Women’s Memorial in Arlington, VA, 135+ people gathered to pay tribute to the 807th MAES and to celebrate the publishing of “The Secret Rescue.”
It was great to see so many people coming from all over the U.S. as well as some traveling from Albania, to pay homage to those that endured so much in the effort of defending the basic freedoms we enjoy.
Gayle Yost and Craig Lebo hosted the event, with Craig Lebo serving as the M.C. Other speakers included Harold Hayes, the only surviving member of the 807th MAES; Brig. General Wilma Vaught and a few others.
Following the ceremony I had the pleasure to meet some of the other 807th MAES “kids” and I also the opportunity to meet Akil and Donika Gina, the son and daughter of Hassan Gina. Hassan was the first Albanian to meet the Americans upon their crash and initially guide them safely.
So, here we were in Washington DC, two sons of two men who met in such dire circumstances so many years ago, sharing and expressing thanks for one another. What a delight! We took a few pictures together and not long after, I was back in the car returning to my home in Michigan.
It’s now Veterans Day (Monday, November 11, 2013) and I look back at this very unique event that was so much of my father’s life – that is, so much of the “unspoken” part of my father’s life that for some reason has landed in my hands.
Going from hearing a little here and little there, to a research that led me to meeting a half dozen of the then 807th MAES survivors, to learning, locating and publishing a previously lost unpublished manuscript to a trip to Washington DC and meeting others who share the same story as well as meeting family members of those from Albania who rescued our parents.
Since I published my father’s book in 2010, Cate Lineberry and Tim Gay published works that will likely have broader coverage and attention. I suppose that last piece would be a movie but as of now that remains yet to be seen.
Again, I want to express a heartfelt thank you to that special group of people that my father was a part of – those of the 807th MAES. It’s pretty obvious that this story is one that has captured the hearts of so many and I hope will continue to serve as a reminder of the sacrifices that have been paid.