HomeMy WebLinkAboutRay Criswell, Brazos Valley Heroes
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One in a series of tributes to memberS of "The Greatest
Generation" who served our country during World War II
For those who may have entered Shipley Donuts on
Villa Maria in Bryan between the hours of 7:00 and 10:00
a.m., you probably noticed a collection of older men
gathered in the comer with their own coffae pot. Those
are members of the CAS club, which is an acronym for
Nean't Remember Stuff."lf you want to know everything
about anything, you can learn about it there. You Will
find out quickly that you don't need to go to MM for
an education, just hang out with these guys. But it is
also a close-knit group that observes the passing of its
membership, now totaling 24 CRS memorials, according
to its unoffjcial treasurer, Ray Criswell,
When asked for his Wdrld War II story, Criswell
remarked what a shame it is that we weren't able to record
the stories of some of the members now deceased, such
as Alton Bowen, Reagan BrOwn and Charles Hart. just
to name a few. But you still can hear a few stories from
those who remain. Here is Ray Criswell's.
"I was born in 1921 and grew up in Marlin, Texas,
graduating from Marlin High in 1938.1 had saved enough
money to attend MM, beginning in the fall of 1939, but
the money ran out and I had to leave after my freshman
year,
"After MM, I went to work in the shipyards in Orange
and Houston. On December 7, 1941, I was driving my
brother to Houston to fly to Panama. where he was to go
to work on the Panama Canal. Over the radio we heard
about the attack on Pearl Harbor. We both knew we
would be involved and soon.
"I volunteered for the Navy Air Corps in May 1942
and the first place they sent me was to Alpine, Texas,
for pilot training - about as far from the ocean as I had
ever been."
Training took Criswell to Athens, Georgia, to Dallas
and finally to Pensacola, Florida, where he received his
wings in August 1943.
"Flight training, particularly at the beginning of the
war, was dangerous. I have been told that we lost more
pilots in training than in combat and t believe it. On night
instrument flights over the Gulf, we had guys that never
came back. I was assigned and was trained as a dive
bomber and was ready to be shipped out when the Navy
decided they needed more instructors. I was selected,
so I went from being a trainee to a trainer, overnight.
"I became an instruments instructor and aerobatics
instructor. Some of my fellow instructors were Ted
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Williams, probably the greatest hitter in Major League
Baseball history, and Bob Kennedy, an outfielder with the
Chicago White Sox. Ted Williams was big fisherman, and
every time we had some time off, he went fishing.
"My scariest moments in the air and the closest
I came to serious injury or death was as an instructor.
With a cadet in the back seat, you never knew what was
going to happen. .
"The worst incident was with a 'Umey,' a British
airman, who, upon take-off, turned us into the ground,
barely missing a row of planes and cartwheeling over a
hangar. I turned off all the switches as quick as I could
so we wouldn't catch fire. When we stopped, the wings
were gone, the tail was gone and we had gasoline all over
us. Whereupon the Limey said in his best British accent,
'Christ Lord, we like to have done it!' I responded, 'Yeah
-we did.'"
Because of his instrument abilities, Criswell was sent
to California to help fly cargo planes across the Pacific
Ocean and throughout the Pacific Theatre.
"We flew supplies in and took the wounded home to
Hawaii or California. It is never fun flying over that much
water. We had four engines but I've had as many as two
go out before we could reach land. You always tried to
figure out which direction you would need to swim if we .
had to ditch the plane.
"On one trip to the Philippines, we carried a load of all
the invasion maps that were to be used for the invasion
of Japan. I didn't know that until the war was over."
After the war, Criswell returned to MM in 1946,
graduating in 1949. "My first day of class was also the
first day I started my business, Criswell Distributing
Company, still in existence on South College Avenue In
Bryan.
"The training I got in the military trains you for life. I
learned how to deal with and get along with all types
of people. I enjoyed my time in the service and have
cherished the friends I made from that time."
Ray Criswell's name can be found on the Brazos Valley
Veterans Memorial. If you know of a World War II veteran
whose story needs to be told, contact Bill Youngkin at
(979) 260-7030. If you would like to add someone's name
to the Brazos Valley Veterans Memorial, names must be
submitted by AuQust 15, 2006, in order to be engraved on
the rnemoria1 by this year's Veterans Day observance.
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