204482 Sergeant Everett Wayne Stanley USAAF 613th Bomb Squadron 401st Bomb Group from:West Virginia My grandfather was the ball turret gunner on a B-17G. On April 29, 1944, his aircraft was shot down over Holland after bombing the railway yards in Berlin. All of the crew made it safely out of the aircraft. All of the crew were captured by German forces with the exception of one man.
This man, Sgt. Watkins, was able to evade capture with the help of members of the Dutch Resistance and made it back to England.
The rest of the crew were taken to Dulag Luft for interrogation. All of the enlisted crew members were sent to Stalag Luft 4. My grandfather however was sent to Stalag Luft 3 with all of the officers. They arrived a little more than a month after "The Great Escape".
All of the crew members survived thier ordeal in the german prison camps and were later reunited after they were liberated by Gen. George Patton's 3rd Army.
Sadly, my grandfather passed away from cancer. He never spoke of his experiences during the war. After much research, I now understand why. God bless all that served and let us never forget thier sacrifice.
|