Notizen zu dieser Person
George Oelkers was a farmer and aircraft mechanic. He was born andraised in Avoca, Nebraska. He was the first in his family to graduatefrom high school. After graduation, he worked on his father's farmfor a few years. Later, sometime during the great depression, hestruck out on his own for a few years. He worked in the Civilian Conservation Corps and on publics worksprojects such as the Grand Cooley Dam. He attended a Caterpillarschool in Chicago for diesel mechanics. In 1939 he joined the ArmyAir Corps. He was at Wheeler Army Air Field on Dec 7, 1941, when theJapanese bombed Pearl Harbor. He escaped injury, but most of hisunit's aircraft were destroyed. Later his unit was sent to CantonIsland in the South Pacific. He had risen to the rank of TechnicalSergeant when, in 1943, he was selected to attend Office CandidateSchool in Miami Beach, FL. During his OCS training it was discoveredthat he suffered from stomach ulcers. This led to his discharge fromthe military for medical reasons. He collected a small disabilitycheck each month thereafter. After his discharge, he went home to Nebraska and began working forthe Glenn Martin Aircraft Company in Omaha. It was there that he methis future wife, RaDora Smith. George worked for the Martin Companyuntil the war ended, then he went to work for the Air Force at OffuttAFB as an aircraft mechanic. He quit there in 1946 and moved his wifeand young son Richard out to the Tri-Cities area of Washington State. RaDora's uncle, Howard Laird, was living there and jobs were plentifulin the area because of the Hanford Nuclear Reservation. George workedthere as a guard at the Hanford works. The family stayed there until1948. George's mother had died in 1947 and someone needed to takecare of the farm and care for Louis, George's father. So, George went back to farming. He was a successful farmer. Heattended night classes offered by the Agriculture Department, learnedsoil conservation practices, and was one of the first in his area tocontour his fields to reduce erosion. He grew mostly white corn. Life on the 160 acre farm was difficult. Louis died in 1948 andGeorge had to share the yearly profits with his two brothers, Alfredand Harold. This left only a small income to support his family.
Roger
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