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380th Bomb
Group Association |
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380th Bomb
Group Association |
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380TH PLAQUE DEDICATION
HILL AIR FORCE BASE - OGDEN, UTAH
August 15, 2006
The 380th Bomb Group Memorial Plaque was the first of many to be installed in the 5th Air Force Memorial Garden being installed in front of the Memorial Chapel at the Hill Air Force Museum at Hill Air Force Base, Ogden, Utah.
CWO4 James M. Chastain, Jr. (USAF Retired), Custodian and Guide of the Memorial Chapel and the 5th Air Force Memorial Garden, along with Col. Nathan Mazer (USAF Retired) of the Aerospace Heritage Foundation of Utah, Mr. Robert E. Lindquist, President of Lindquist Mortuaries, who made the plaque, and Mr. Scott Wirz, Director of the Museum, have developed the planning for the 5th Air Force Memorial. Mr. Chastain has installed the plaque in the garden as noted in the following pictures and decorated it for Memorial Day.
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Here are the photographs of the Memorial Garden and our plaque. Museum staff decorated the Memorial Garden for Memorial Day; therefore, the photos with the flags are from that celebration.
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DEDICATION CEREMONY
The Dedication of the 380
th Plaque at the developing 5th Air Force Memorial Garden in front of the Chapel at the Hill Air Force Base Museum, Hill Air Force Base, Ogden, Utah, occurred at 11:00 AM, Tuesday, August 15th.
Welcome and Origin of the Plaque Invocation and Dedication (Chaplain Maj. Carl Wright) Moment of Silence Unveiling of the Plaque (Mrs. Rader, Mrs. McPherson) Taps Benediction (Chaplain Maj. Carl Wright) Retiring of Colors |
Prior to the Unveiling |
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| Posting the Colors | |
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 Unveiling the Plaque |
 The Plaque |
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| Chaplain Carl Wright: Invocation, Dedication, Benediction | |
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| Left to Right: Tom Hill, Marvin Gardner, John Rader, Curt Chamberlain, Tom Hunt, Ted Williams (reading address), Chaplain Major Carl Wright, Betty Rader, Elizabeth Williams McPherson |
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 TAPS |
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| Chaplain Wright greeting 380th Members | Chaplain Wright greeting Dedication Guests |
 Curt Chamberlain, Tom Hunt, Ted Williams, Marvin Gardner |
 Chaplain Wright, Jim Chastain, Ted Williams |
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 Retiring the Colors |
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| 380th Plaque | Chapel and Memorial Garden |
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| Luncheon after Dedication | |
| Curt Chamberlain, Ted Williams, Marvin Gardner, Jim Chastain | Marvin Gardner, Jim Chastain |
ORIGIN OF THE MEMORIAL (Welcome by Ted Williams)
On September 20, 2002, we had our Memorial Service for our Salt Lake City Reunion here at this Chapel. We also visited their museum to specifically see their partially renovated B-24 Liberator.
Last year on September 2nd I again had business in Salt Lake City, and on that trip visited here to check up on progress on the Liberator. Unfortunately, there was none and the pessimism of the staff was very high.
I then visited the Chapel and met Jim Chastain and noted that since our last visit here the Chapel had been taken over by our 8th Air Force compatriots, as you can see when you visit it today.
Jim and I had a long talk about the 8th Air Force taking over and what we might do for the 5th. He stated he had a goal of establishing a 5th Air Force Memorial Grove in front of the Chapel and wanted to have memorials placed there from all of the 5th Air Force units. I promised that if he decided to do this the 380th would purchase the first spot.
Later last fall he called to say that they had decided to pursue this and wanted to know if we were still interested. I said we were and proposed the plaque before you as our contribution. We contracted with Mr. Robert Lindquist's Foundry to make it and it was delivered in March, installed by Jim and his associates in April and, as you know from THE FLYING CIRCUS quarterly, brightly decorated for Memorial Day by Jim.
I want to personally thank Mr. Curt Chamberlain and Mr. Thomas M. Hunt of the 380th Association for their generous donation of funds for this. I had previously intended to use some of our organizational funds for it, but their donations made this unnecessary. I want to thank Mr. Chastain and his associates most sincerely for their organization of the 5th Air Force Circle as it is now called and for taking care of our plaque installation. I also want to thank Mr. Lindquist for his workmanship on the memorial and all of our associates for being with us today.
Thank you all very much. Ted Williams
Below is the design for our plaque to be placed in the Fifth Air Force Memorial Garden on the lawn of the Memorial Chapel at Hill Air Force Base Museum. Members who attended the Salt Lake City Reunion will remember that we visited that Museum and had our Memorial Service at that Chapel.
You will also recall that we discussed this memorial marker for the 380th Bomb Group at the Business Meeting during our San Diego Reunion.
The line on this figure is a defect in their copying machine, not a defect in the design.
Two points should be called to your attention. A dedication date of September 1988 is already on the plaque. This is the Wright Patterson Memorial Garden date. Since our plaque is copied from the former because Ted Williams asked them to use that wording and since our dedication date was not yet set at the time it was poured, we decided to use that date, since the inscription otherwise is the same.
Originally we had wanted the plaque on an axis from the Chapel to the Museum. However, they wanted to align it with the sun dial itself, i.e., North-South, and we agreed. This latter would be more symbolic than the former request.
This plaque is somewhat larger than the Wright Field one, being 14" x 14" on a 19" x 19" granite slab. Wright Patterson's is 11" x 12" on a 15" x 15" slab.
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Last updated: 08/24/2010 11:18 AM
