(sent to me by Eugene Rossel today. Posting here for those interested.)
Final Farewell to Nimrod/Commando LtCol Thomas Lawrence Wickstrom
I attended LtCol Thomas L Wickstrom Memorial Service and burial on 5 & 6 March 2010 at Huntington Beach, CA which is just south of Los Angeles. The memorial Service was one to remember and a Commando experience. He was laying at rest in the Dilday Brothers Mortuary which was just across from the Good Shepherd Catholic Cemetery on Beach Blvd. The room he was in was like a small chapel with church seats. As you entered there was a table with Tom’s picture, his old Plexiglas commander sign some small pamphlet about his life including the following which had this in it:
“Here’s to me in my sober mood when I ramble , sit and think.
Here’s to me in my drunken mood when I gamble, sin and drink.
When my flying days are over and from this earth I pass
I hope they bury me upside down so the world can kiss my ass.”
This is an old AF song but I was left to believe that Tom wanted it expressed this way in his simple tribute. At the front of the he lay in his casket in the sanctuary. He was dressed in his best, as we will always remember him, his black party suit he always wore at the ACA reunion. One of his children said he had it forever. On his left his military uniform hung with all his decorations and next to it was his flying helmet and front of this was the podium and microphone we all got to celebrate his life with. On the right side of the casket was a beautiful arrangement of his career highlights showing his advancement of rank from A3C to Lt Col. There was also a large portrait probably taken at retirement. Above the casket there was a screen which a LCD projector which projected his life in pictures, words and poems along with his favorite music playing in the background – you can see it at
http://www.dildaybrothers.com/obituarie ... m-87980428 . You couldn’t ask for a greater applause and show for his final flight.
People were called on to comment on his celebration of his life. His family and grandchildren, Nimrod comrade at arms, and of course some old Air commandos all contributed to the celebration. Tom was well liked by everyone who came in contact with him from Huntington Beach to Ft Walton Beach. Many of the speeches were very emotional about losing a friend. I learned a lot about Tom from his family and his grandchildren who showed great love and fondness for their father and grandpa. From all the speakers, plus myself, I learned that he was a tremendous organizer from making money for him and friends to keeping the Nimrods together. He was an Avid reader though I remember him as my best authority on the b-26 and A-26. He flew the B-26 in Germany for about 4 years probing the East Germany air defense.
The memorial was a great Air commando and Nimrod success. Air commandos who attended were myself, Benny Blancett, Jay Norton, Dr Rick Surreto, Floyd Arbames, Scott Thompson and Bill Vandyke.
The burial took place at Good Shepherd Cemetery across the street from the Mortuary where his family and one son, who was killed in a car accident, are buried. He was placed next to his son. The weather was cold for California with intermittent rain. The cemetery was large and had been around for some time because the graves were placed close together and you had to walk across them to get to Tom’s burial site. The entire grave markers were laid horizontal on the ground. We all remembered as youngster that we weren’t supposed to walk over a grave as it was a sign of disrespect. It made me feel a little uneasy to be walking over the graves. There were about 100 people attending the burial and Benny Blancett, Tom’s best friend, start organizing things when Jane Wickstrom, Tom’s widow arrived. As she arrived the rain stopped and the sun came out and everyone thought that this was a good omen. The gravesite had a rather large movable covering which most of us could stay out of the rain. Tom’s parish priest was officiating. Before the officiating started the AF had a burial detail and a real bugler on hand from the total force at March AFB. I talked to the AF detail about the bugle and when they mentioned they came from the Total Force at March AFB I asked them what that meant and they said it consisted of both AF reservists and active duty personnel. That is the first time I heard this term and its meaning. The AF detail team put on an excellent farewell show from positioning the casket over the grave which had US symbols stamped on the sides of the casket. I asked if the VA was providing caskets and none of the veterans knew. The team reverently folded the flag in a very snappy way-I guess it has been a very long time since I attended a military funeral but I was very impressed in the professionally and military way Old Glory was folded. It was then followed by a 9 gun salute and with a real bugle for taps. There was supposed to be a flyby, no one knew who, but the weather and clouds prevented this. After this the flag was lovingly presented to Tom’s widow with the presenter knelling on the ground before her and repeating the often heard; “From the President of the US” and that was all I heard of the formal presentation. The AF burial detail from the Total Force did an excellent job. The Priest officiating did a nice job and at the end had the mixed crowd praying the “Our Father” together. They then gave us a chance to put either flowers or dirt on the casket. After this was finished they asked us to stand back as they brought in the heavy equipment which ran over the graves and horizontal burial markers without causing any damage to either. The family and those who choose watched as they lowered Tom’s casket in the ground and covered the grave with dirt. The following Nimrods and Air commandos were there for the burial; Benny Blancett, myself, Scott Thompson, Jay Norton, Bill Vandyke, Jim Hoover (TLCB), AF Flt Surgeon Rick Surreto, Andy Jessups and Floyd Abrames.
About 12 we went to Jane Wickstrom’s house for her favorite gravy and biscuits as well as a lot of other tasty breakfast foods to comfort us from the cold and rain at the cemetery. This completed our final farewell to an old comrade at arms -- Lt Col Thomas Lawrence Wickstrom. May his soul rest in peace.
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