HomeMy WebLinkAboutJ.B. "Dick" Hervey, Brazos Valley Heroes ;.
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On the afternoon of December 7, 1941, J.B. "Dick" Hervey was subsequently assigned to the Pacific
Hervey, then a senior at Texas A &M University was Division Air Command headquartered in Hawaii.
taking advantage of the free movie offered by the "One day, we landed on Marcus Island and had to °.
Campus Theater. Suddenly the film went off and a spend the night. I was to sleep in a tent with two other
voice came over the speaker system informing them guys. I notice one slept • with a .45 pistol. During the
of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor and ordering night a shot rang out scaring me half to death. I ..
all students to return to their dorms until further assurhed we were under attack. Then I saw this huge
orders. rat he shot. I slept the remainder of the night with my ;!,
"We didn't know what was going to happen but we pistol too." I
were sure it was going to involve us. Those in the "I flew over Hiroshima several days after it was
class of '42 were not allowed holidays and our whole bombed and after the war had ended. The devasta
semester was escalated. We graduated and were tion was complete but those bombs literally saved
commissioned on May 16, 1942 thousands of lives. Our intelligence had indicated the
"1 reported to duty on May 17, 1942 in the Army Air Japanese would not only fight to the death but they
Corp at Ellington Field in Houston. We never went had trained their women and children to do likewise
home after graduation." After the war, Hervey worked for the Former
Hervey began his service with bombers and was Students Association at Texas A &M as the director
sent to Boise, Idaho with the 29'" Bomber Group, until 1964 when he became the President of
which was to become part of the 8' Air Force. It was Community Savings and Loan, retiring in 1982. He ','
there that he served with the movie star, James also served as the Mayor of-College Station from : .
"Jimmy" Stewart. 1970 to 1974.
"Back then, the Hollywood stars and athletes went Dick Hervey's name can be found on the Veterans +'.
to war along with everyone else. Jimmy was an Park Memorial. If you would like to make a contribu `
instructor pilot. Whenever he walked down the streets tion or know of some veteran whose story should be
of Boise, the women would surround him asking for published please contact the Brazos Valley Veterans 4_
autographs and pulling his ribbons off his uniform for Memorial at www.veterans- memorial.org or Bill
souvenirs. I walked the streets all the time and never Youngkin at 260 -7030 �Q.
had women trying to tear my ribbons off."
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