Lt. Col. Richard E. Cole

Lt. Richard Cole front right, Lt. Col. James Doolittle front left.

  Richard E. (Dick) Cole was born September 7th, 1915 to Fred and Mable Cole of Dayton, Ohio. The fifth of six children, Dick graduated from Steele High School and completed two years of study at Ohio University. He studied aviation at Whittenberg College, earning his pilot's license before enlisting in the Army in 1940. In July 1941, he was commissioned as a Second Lieutenant in the Army Air Corps and assigned to the 34th Bombardment Squadron, 17th  Bombardment Group where, in February 1942, he volunteered for a combat mission just two months after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. On April 18, 1942 the 16 B-25 bombers

known as the “Doolittle Raiders” took off from the deck of the USS Hornet and bombed Tokyo in response to Japan's attack.

Following the Tokyo raid, Lt. Cole remained in southeast Asia flying bombing and supply missions over “The Hump” (Himalayan mountains), from 1942 to 1943. It was a dangerous assignment in which over 600 aircraft and crews were lost. In late 1943 he volunteered for the 1^st Air Commando Group and participated in the aerial invasion of Burma from 1943 to 1944.

In 1943, Dick met Martha Harrell at the airport in Tulsa, Oklahoma. “We got married two weeks later.”

Together they had three boys and two girls. He continued his military service, eventually retiring as a Lieutenant Colonel in 1967.

After retiring, Dick and Martha moved to Alamo, Texas and started their own business growing oranges and citrus fruits. In 2003, Martha died after a lengthy battle with Parkinson's disease. Today, Lt. Col. Dick Cole is an active member of the Doolittle Tokyo Raiders Association and is one of the last two surviving Raiders. He continues to travel the nation raising money for the General James H. Doolittle Scholarship Fund and representing the Doolittle Raiders at airshows, museums and other events.

Tell me about the Tokyo Raid.

I was flying B-25's with the 17^th Bombardment Group out of Columbia, South Carolina and they needed volunteers for a mission, so I volunteered, our whole group volunteered. The mission called for 16 airplanes, so it took a whole squadron of the 17^th Group. They sent us down to Eglin Field in Florida for some training and a Navy Lieutenant taught us how to take off in less than 500 feet; a loaded B-25 normally needs about 3,000 feet to take off.

So did that tip you off as to the mission?

We thought we were going to the south Pacific, but we didn't know any details. They kept us confined to base and we were told not to talk to anyone about our training. After about a month of training, we flew to Alameda Naval Air Station in California where they loaded our planes (16) onto the USS Hornet and we started sailing west. After a few days sailing, we met up with the USS Enterprise and her task force. That's when they told us we were going to Tokyo. On the morning of the 18^th (April, 1942) we spotted a Japanese patrol boat; one of the ships opened-fire on it and sunk it, but they had already sent a radio warning, so they decided to launch us immediately.

How far out were you?

The Navy had said they would try to take us in to 400 miles, but we were about 650 miles when we were intercepted.

Did you know you wouldn't have enough fuel to reach your final destination?

No, we didn't know if we would, but we hoped we would. They added 10, five-gallon cans of fuel when we had to launch early.

Tell me about the takeoff and flight?

The carrier was doing about 20 to 30 knots into the wind, plus a wind of another 20 to 30 knots, so the take off wasn't a problem. I was in the Number 1 Bomber with Col. Doolittle. We took off and flew the whole mission low to avoid detection. We tried to maintain 200' above sea level, and 168mph. We didn't fly in formation, we didn't have enough fuel for that. We only saw one other plane the whole time, the Number 2. After about four hours we shored in north of Tokyo. I remember seeing people on the beach, but they didn't seem to care. I think they thought we were one of their airplanes. We turned south and headed toward Tokyo.

What was your target and your bomb load?

Our target was northwest Tokyo. We had incendiary bombs and we were to light up Tokyo. After dropping the bombs, we dropped back down on the deck and headed southwest toward China. The plan was to land and refuel at Chuchow (Zhuzhou) and continue to western China, but several hours past Tokyo, the navigator told us we weren't going to have enough fuel. Fortunately, we caught a tailwind and that helped us.

What happened?

We were at about 9,000 feet at night when we ran out of fuel. It was raining; we bailed out, one at a time. I landed in a pine tree and spent the night there. The next morning I climbed down and started walking West.

So you're alone, behind enemy lines; what's going through your mind?

Trying to keep away from the Japanese. It was occupied territory. If you walk East, you're going to walk right into their hands. The only thing to do was walk west and stay the hell away from everything. So I elected to take the high ground and go up and down the hills and mountains rather than look for a road or look for somebody for help. I walked all day and only saw a woodcutter and two students. I didn't see anybody else. It wasn't really scary. As long as you didn't see anybody, what is there to be afraid of? We were in a pretty isolated area. We didn't ever go to the place we were supposed to go to because we drifted over another range of mountains.

So how did you get out?

The next day, I made contact with some Chinese guerillas. They took me to an outpost where Col. Doolittle was. The rest of our crew made it there within a few days. From there, we traveled by foot, horse, bus and seating chair until we arrived at a large river where we were smuggled aboard a river boat and eventually made it to a gathering place at Heng Yang which was a place where the Flying Tigers had a flight of P-40s. From there a C-47 flew us to the capitol of Chungking (Chongqing).

What about the rest of the crews?

All of the planes made it to China, except one that was low on fuel; they landed in Vladivostok, Russia and were held for 13 months. The other crews bailed out or crash-landed. Three died, eight were taken prisoner by the Japanese; three of those were executed. The rest eventually made it to Heng Yang, thanks to the Chinese. We wouldn't have made it without their help. They say the Japanese killed over 250,000 Chinese for helping us escape.

They say that the Doolittle Raids led to the Japanese's decision to attack Midway which was the turning point of the war.

That's what they say.

So you guys changed history.

I don't know about that. I think he changed it (Doolittle); I didn't change it. We were just part of the big picture.

Did you ever have any close calls?

If I did, I didn't know about it. Never took any hits; never even shot a gun.

Did you ever have to bail out again?

Nope.

That was your only jump?

Yep.

Did you like it?

I didn't particularly like it.... but it was necessary at the time.

As a Lieutenant Colonel, what have you learned about leadership?

That's one thing we all learned from Col. Doolittle. He was the individual that really brought out the importance of being a team. Everybody was a team member; he was a team member. He would take any question or help you out in any way. There was no rank separation. Everybody was on equal footing. The only exception was if you didn't do something right, then you were messing up the team-ship, and that's when he would talk to you or discipline you. Fortunately he didn't have to do that due to the way he handled people. We couldn't have done this (the Tokyo raid) alone. The pilots, the crews, the mechanics, the Navy, Lt. Miller teaching us how to take off from a carrier, the Chinese, it took all of us to pull it off. You couldn't have done that by yourself. The team only succeeds when everyone is working together and pulling for the same goal. That's why we succeeded. I tried to take those same principles to my teams.

You have a lot of respect for him.

Hell yeah.

Tell me about your wife.

I met my wife at the airport in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Her name was Martha Harrell. I was about to take a B-25 up to about 30,000 feet to test out a new radar system. She pulled up on a bicycle and said she'd been taking flying lessons and wanted to go up in big plane. I told her she couldn't go up in this one, and she left, or so I thought. So we took off and at about 12,000 feet, she stuck her head in the cockpit! Well, I had to scrub the mission right there, but I didn't want to say anything because I didn't want to get her fired. The other pilot was a little older than me and handed her a book of matches and asked for her phone number. Well, she wrote down her phone number on the book of matches, but she gave it back to me! (laughing). It took me about a week to get up the nerve to call her....and we got married two weeks later! That was on October 11,1943.

And was it a good marriage?

I guess so. We were in our 60^th year when she passed away in 2003. She had Parkinson's disease.

What's the secret?

Like I said, it's teamwork. The two of you are in this together. You can't make it work all on your own; it takes both of you. You have to love and respect each other and be able to count on each other. Otherwise you'll never succeed.

So leadership principles work in marriage too.

Absolutely! They work everywhere.

Do you have any regrets?

Regret's a pretty big word. Now if you were to ask me if I'd any mistakes...! (laughing)

Did you make any mistakes?

There were a lot of missed opportunities (still laughing), but there's none that I would do anything drastic about.

Is there anything you would have done differently? Actually I would like to have gone and tried to finish college. I only had two years. There's nothing that would have had a major effect on my being satisfied with life.

What's the biggest lesson you learned in life?

I don't know, maybe I haven't learned it yet! (laughing)

There's a lot of lessons in life.... just like flying. You've got to have a lot of lessons or else you'll end up in the ground. The biggest thing for me is to take things as they come and do the best you can, and don't worry about the rest.

What the toughest thing you've been through in your life?

The loss of Martha and the loss Christina, (daughter) and the loss of Andrew?? (son).

How did you get through that?

Just like I said, you take everything as it comes and you do the best you can. But don't let it effect your outlook on life. Sometimes things happen that you can't do anything about, and you just have to learn to deal with it. In the case of someone's death, they wouldn't want you to be remorseful for the rest of your life. You've got to carry on. It takes you some time though.

Do you ever get over it?

No, you don't get over it.....you learn to live with it.

What matters most in life?

Life itself is a gift, okay? And you should treat it as such. It's your responsibility to appreciate and to take that gift and do the best you can with it. That would include all the facets of living....you could write a book almost, on all the requirements. I just think you accept the work and the fun and the responsibilities of life and enjoy it.

At the time of this interview, only two of the Doolittle Raiders remain, Lt. Col. Dick Cole and Staff Sgt. David Thatcher.

For his bravery and service, Col. Cole was awarded three Distinguished Flying Crosses with 2 Oak Leaf Clusters, the Air Medal with 1 Oak Leaf Cluster, the Bronze Star, the Air Force Commendation Medal, and Chinese Army-Navy-Air Corps Medal, Class A, 1^st Grade, the Presidential Unit Citation and the Congressional Gold Medal which was awarded to all the Doolittle Raiders. “But,” he states,“all they do is collect dust!”

A simple online search produces dozens of articles, interviews and videos of Dick Cole and the Doolittle Raiders. I have included a few links below that are definitely worth viewing.

Thank you for your service Col. Cole, and thank you for the wisdom. You truly are one of “The Greatest Generation.”

The Number 1 Bomber taking off from the USS Hornet

https://youtu.be/-yXzYxUC93A

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Doolittle_Raid

www.doolittleraider.com

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Hump

https://youtu.be/sAmbQaC4a7c 

The author & Lt. Col. Dick Cole

 

Visit our FaceBook Page at  https://www.facebook.com/WisdomResearchGroup

Richard Arvine Overton was born on May 11, 1906 to  Gentry and Elizabeth Overton on a small farm in rural Bastrop County, Texas. As a child, Richard attended school through the eleventh grade and worked the farm with his ten brothers and sisters to help feed the family. “We picked cotton for a white fellow. I did all kinds of work: cotton picking, raised cattle and sheep, pulling corn, shucking hay....I did all that.”  At age 18 Richard married Novella Prince, but separated after eight years.  His second wife, Wilma died of cancer after 49 years of marriage. He never had any children. In 1942, Richard joined the army serving as a Sargent with the all black 1887th Engineer Aviation Battalion throughout the South Pacific including Peal Harbor, Palau, Iwo Jima, Okinawa and Guam. “I saw plenty of people get shot, but I never got a scratch.” After leaving the military in 1945, Richard worked for the Texas Department of Treasury until retiring. As the oldest surviving World War II veteran, he has met and been honored by Texas Governors Rick Perry and Greg Abbott, U.S. Senators John Cornyn and Ted Cruz, and President Barack Obama. “Who ever thought I'd be that important?”
 

Tell me about your time in the Army.

I was in the 1887th Aviation Engineer Battalion and did base security. I went to Pearl Harbor; when I got there the ships were still smoking from the Japanese attack. Then when I left Pearl Harbor, I went from island to island. I went to Iwo Jima, Okinawa, Guam, Palau.... shoot yeah, I saw action. You and I might be sitting here talking like this and a bullet's liable to hit right here in between us, and under you and over there..... and two men would've been killed standing right over there (motioning with his hand). All my friends, a bunch of 'em got killed, and I didn't get a scratch on me. Yeah, I saw some bad stuff.

Like them trees over there (pointing across the street), you couldn't go into them trees at all because there's liable to be 10 Japs in that tree line. So we had three airplanes fly over and drop bombs. If that didn't do it we'd get three more, and open that whole space up, 300 yards so you could see everything. Then we would go through it. That's when you'd have hell 'cause some of 'em are laying in holes. But you've got to take that tree line. You've got to go through there shootin' and you don't know where they're at. You might see some over yonder and you look, and some 'em might be behind you. Sometimes we'd throw a grenade and kill one or two. Sometimes they might throw it back at you and you don't have time to shoot 'em, you ain't even got time to turn around; just throw it back at them. That's where the danger's at, but it was a lot of fun looking back.... a lot of fun. 

 

Were you ever scared?

What does it matter? If it was my time to go, I'm going. If it ain't your time, God ain't gonna let you go. When I was in the army and people were shootin' at me, and bullets were flying all over the place.... it wasn't my time! That's the reason I didn't get hit! I went through all that and I didn't get a scratch on me. If it ain't your time to go.....

So you believe in God?

I got to! I've always believed in God. That's the One that brought you here. God's taken care of me my whole life. Man wasn't takin' care of me....God was! Man ain't helping you, that's God helping you.

So you think God helped you through all of that.

Man didn't..... he was the one that sent me out there! (laughs) Man was the one shootin' at me! Yeah, I believe in God, He's taken care of me for 109 years. He ain't let me down yet!

Having gone through the war and being 109 years old, do you ever think about dying?

I don't think about dying.....there's nothing you can do about it. When you go to bed at night, you never know whether you're gonna get up or not. It don't matter; just go on and go to sleep. I'll die when my time comes, and I'll be happy as a field lark (laughs). I'm not worried about it. I ain't scared. You don't know when your gonna die, and you won't know it when it happens anyway. That's the reason I say don't worry about it. You're crazy if you worry about it.

What do you think happens to us after we die?

I don't know, I ain't made it that far yet. (laughing)

Do you have any regrets?

There's a lot of things in my mind but I never let 'em worry me. Lots of times I'd say “Oh I should've done this or I should've done that,” but I don't let that worry me. It don't matter anyway. Just think of something else and get on with your life. I don't worry about nothing. Nothing ever hurts me. I'm happy every time I get up in the morning and I'm happy when I go to bed.

What's the key to happiness?

I never let nothing worry me. If you let things worry you, you'll never get no where. When worry comes on you again and again, that the devil workin' on you....tryin' to get you. You've got to watch the devil. God's got to change you. Get on your knees and ask God “Can you turn me around?”

Were you ever mistreated because of the color of your skin?

You know, some people will hate you, but you don't hate everybody. Some people used to hate blacks....some of 'em still that way. That's foolish, but I don't care. That don't bother me. I ain't scared of 'em. I ain't worried about 'em. That's their business. They don't want to treat you good, that's their bad luck. Treat 'em good anyway. I had people that wouldn't speak to me, some won't speak to you now! But that ain't your troubles, that's them. They don't want to accept it, that's their problem.
Always treat people right. Sometimes they won't treat you right back.....treat 'em right anyway. That's the Golden Rule. I don't care who it is, treat 'em all good.

How do you want to be remembered?

I'm gonna leave it to them. Let 'em make up their own minds. After you're dead and gone you ain't worried about it, you're going where ever you're going, hell or heaven or where ever you're supposed to go. I ain't worried about it. I ain't even worried about what people think of me now!

What is the most important thing in life?

Just keep a livin'. That's the best thing you can do, keep a livin'. Life is a good thing. It's a good thing to do. It's good. You can't find nothing any better than life. Tell me what you can find better than life? I haven't found it. You ain't gonna find it! Just keep livin'. Let God kill you. He brought you here, let Him take you away. You didn't know when you was comin', you ain't gonna know when you're goin'. I can't do nothing about it. Just keep goin'; that's life. God's the One that put you here. Some people say, “I wish I could live that long.” Well, ask God. He might give it to you but you might have to ask Him. You have to ask things of Him, He's your friend. You ask God, will He take care of you; He's already doing it! He's taken care of me! I've had a good life. It's just as sweet as it can be. You've got to have a happy life. 

 At age 109, at the time of this interview, Mr. Overton is still in good health and lives in his own home that he bought when he returned from the war in 1945.  He still does his own yard work, drives and is known for helping out people in need.  As the oldest surviving World War II veteran, he's become somewhat of a celebrity with several videos posted online and his own Wikipedia page.  You can learn more about him at the links below.  I am honored to have known him.  Thank you, Mr. Overton, for your wisdom and your service.

 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_Arvine_Overton
https://youtu.be/aW4V6V-qnrY
https://youtu.be/ubrvCLL9X2E

 

Greta Cottrell was born on December 16, 1905. The last of five children, she was the youngest by 11 years, “I was quite a surprise”. After high school, she attended one year of college earning her teaching certificate and taught in a one room school house for one year before quitting at age 19 to marry Herb Woodson. After divorcing Herb three years later, she began singing with a 12-piece orchestra and was soon discovered by the recording industry. Greta recorded six albums during the roaring 20’s. She traveled the U.S. by train, singing in speak easy's and nightclubs during prohibition and in a touring variety show for RKO records. Greta was married a total of five times, outliving all her husbands but the first. All totaled, she was married for 68 years. She never had children.

 

You were married for 68 years, how did you make it work?

Well, I've had five husbands. I was married to Herbert for three years before we divorced, then Ernie....it was love at first sight with Ernie as far as I was concerned. We only knew each other six weeks but we were married for 33 years. When Ernie died I married Harry, he had a heart attack and died in his sleep 20 months after we got married. We went to a football game one day and the next morning he was gone. It was just awful. I was a widow again for two years and then I married Frank and we were married for almost five years before he died of cancer. Then I was a widow again for two years I guess, then I married Dale Heslet. We were married when we were 70 years old and we had 25 years together.

The secret to a good long marriage is trust. It requires some give and take and being able to communicate. And love.....lots of love. I don't have any children, I had two step-sons. We thought we were going to adopt twins but by the time we heard about them, they had been adopted by another family. It would have been nice to have had children; right now I wish I did, but I don't regret it. I was just so busy all my life.

You've outlived four husbands, how do you deal with losing a spouse?

Actually the worst thing that ever happened to me was losing my mother. I didn't lose her 'til after I lost Ernie. It's difficult losing a spouse, it makes you feel absolutely abandoned. When Ernie died I had friends that really took care of me. You just have to make up your mind to get through it. I developed the ability to put it behind me and look forward instead of mourning forever. I've known people that set the table for their departed husbands like he was going to be there for supper. That is just feeding on misery and doesn't do any good. That doesn't mean that I forget them, but I quit mourning and think about the wonderful times we had together instead. You have to look at it like it's a page in a book and you've turned that page.... a page in the book of life. I miss them and I pray for them every night....all of them. It's given me a completely different view of dying to where I have no fear of it anymore.

Do you ever think about dying?

Sure, I think about dying...I wish I would. I don't want to live forever. I'd just like to go before I run out of money (laughing). I don't want to outlive my finances and I don't want to live so long that I lose my mind. I see that here at the nursing home. I see these people in wheel chairs that don't know where they are, they don't know what they've eaten, they don't know anything. They're just kept alive by medication, and I don't want that. I just want to go. I'd rather go in my sleep if I had my druthers....just go to sleep and never wake up. I don't fear dying. I just feel like I'm going on to a better place. I believe what the Bible says, that we'll have eternal life.

So you believe in the Bible?

Oh yes, God is my best friend. I have conversations with Him. I don't get many answers from Him but I pray that He leads me in doing what He wants me to do. I believe that He has steered and guided my life, and I've had a wonderful life. I've had sorrow too, but that's just part of life. I think God had His hand in the middle of it all. I think He pulled me through all the sorrow.

What has 100 years of life taught you?

Life has taught me patience more than anything. Patience is a virtue. Everything will happen in it's own time. Learn to be patient and learn to forgive. Don't hold grudges. Be quick to say “I'm sorry” and quick to forgive....whether they apologize or not. And forgiveness in a marriage is especially important. You know, they always said if you're married, don't go to bed mad; make up before you go to bed. Well, I think that's true.

So, being a cancer survivor yourself, what advice do you have for someone battling cancer?

I've had cancer; I've had a breast removed, but I was lucky they got it all. They took 16 lymph nodes and they got it in time. It didn't spread anywhere else, but I never had to take chemo or radiation. Some people aren't so lucky.

When they told me I had cancer, I thought that was the end, and I was scared. There's nothing you can do but face it and accept it.....and fight. I'd tell them to pray a lot. Fight and pray....that's the only thing you can do. I just told myself, if that's what I've got, then that's what I've got. What will be, will be. There's nothing else you can do about it. Fight and pray, that's what I did....and I'm still here! The Lord's been with me through it all and He kept me here for some reason. It's all up to the Lord.

If you had just one piece of advice to give someone, what would you say?Be true to yourself. By that I mean be yourself... love yourself. Believe in what you're doing and live while you've got the chance, I mean really live. Believe me, 100 years goes by fast! I wish I was 80 again. I was dancing and having a good time. I wouldn't do a thing different than I did. I enjoyed life to the hilt. I played golf; I went to church, and I danced and sang. I just loved life. Life is meant to be lived. Live it well.

Greta Heslet certainly lived life well. In the 1920's, Greta sang with famed jazz conductor Jean Goldkette and his orchestra. She was also a part of two popular female singing trios, Three Shades of Blue, and Wynken Blynken and Nod. She recorded six record albums, starred in the widely seen short film “Wildflowers” and was named one of the top female jazz singers of all time. At age 102, she was believed to be the oldest recording artist alive, has had a play written about her life, and her music is still available on Amazon.com.

At the end of our interview as Greta was walking me out, old man was playing the piano in the nursing home lobby. Greta's face lit up and she asked me to dance with her. Of course I accepted; How could I refuse such a lady? While we danced and laughed, other residents sat in wheelchairs, smiling, laughing and clapping. Though they were no longer able to dance, their faces were filled with the joy and memories of days gone by. It was a beautiful sight. That's what Greta did; she filled people with joy. Thank you for the dance Greta, it was my pleasure.

You can hear Greta sing on several of her albums at the links below. I promise it will bring a smile to your face.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NHRmLfxkQnY

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mALOu_NdOZM

http://youtu.be/XRDuluuk5uo

Life is meant to be lived. Live it well.

Greta Heslet, 102