Closure

By Jim Koehler

Divorced investigative historian, Robert Jerzerski, PhD, reluctantly agrees to help his daughter determine what happened to a boyfriend’s granduncle who disappeared during World War II. His retired lawyer friend, Jack Booker, gets involved and they support the boyfriend’s family efforts to investigate the person. Meanwhile, another family in England is doing the same thing. Both stories unite when a plane crash emerges as the central focus of their efforts. Their investigation covers four states, two countries and a time period extending from World War II through the present. For most plane crash victims their story terminates with their demise. For others, the facts may have remained hidden for years. The following story relates what happened to one such victim and how interested descendants discovered the facts.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Books for Pleasure
• Release date: Sep 23, 2014
• ISBN: 9781553490883

Book preview

Chapter 1

Did they die when it crashed or did they burn alive in the fire?

That was all Ron Carter could wonder about as he watched the four-engine plane burn in front of him. Earlier, he was listening to the radio at home when he heard the plane pass overhead. He rushed outside in the rain to see the huge aircraft pass over the town at 100 to 150 feet altitude and disappear into the fog. It was headed towards the nearby mountain and he was not surprised when he heard a sound he felt might be a crash. Horrified, but fascinated, he rushed back inside and spoke to his wife.

That was a plane flying over and I think it crashed into the mountain. I’m going up there and look for it.

Incredulously, his wife answered. Are you sure? That sounds horrible. Shouldn’t we contact the police?

Good idea. Call and tell them what I’m up to. I think the plane must have crashed north of the power line that goes over the mountain. I’ll go to the trailhead on the road south of the power cut and hike in. It’ll be about two miles in if it’s where I think it is. Call Tom Barker. I’m sure he and his son would like to go there too. I’m leaving now, so tell them that. If it is a crash, there may be survivors and I want to get there as soon as possible to help out.

OK, honey, but please be careful.

I will, dear, Ron said as he donned a warm plaid mackintosh, boots and a rain hat. It was a winter day with temperatures near freezing and he well knew that exposure might be a problem. He was a volunteer fireman and had training in first aid. He also had the type of personality that made him want to head into the action to help out rather than to either panic or freeze in an emergency. He knew the Barkers thought the same way.

He was out the door and into his car. Fortunately, he didn’t have to drive very far and he had enough gas. Wartime gas rationing sometimes was a problem, but Ron was alright this day, having bought fuel earlier. The weather was raw, but the rain was not heavy. As he got to the trailhead further up on the mountain, the low clouds made visibility worse. However, he was familiar with the area and had no trouble getting on the trail. Ron was a local resident and had spent many happy hours hiking up the mountain as a boy. He was still in good physical condition and had no trouble making the climb. He soon reached the power cut where a high tension line passed over the mountain perpendicular to his path. He figured the crash probably would have occurred almost two miles further on. The climb over, Ron quickened his pace and within 40 minutes he began to smell smoke. A few minutes later, he began seeing flames and soon felt the heat from the crash. It had taken him about two hours to reach this point, and seeing the fire horrified him. A large portion of the surrounding woods had been flattened by the impact and pieces of the craft were everywhere. The fire had been burning for quite awhile and was still hot. He did not see how anyone in that area could have survived the event unless he had been thrown free or gotten out before the fire started. It was then that he wondered what might have happened to the plane’s occupants.

Ron began circling the crash site, hoping to find someone. As he proceeded around the perimeter, he saw two familiar figures entering the area. Happy for the company, he called to them.

Tom, Joe, I’m over here.

Tom and Joe Barker hiked over to him and Tom said, We heard the plane over the house too, and weren’t surprised when your wife called. It looks pretty bad. Any survivors?

I haven’t found any yet and I don’t hold out much hope. This fire’s been burning like this for quite awhile and I’m sure this thing hit pretty hard. If people were thrown clear, they might have survived, but I haven’t found anybody.

OK, let’s keep at it, Tom said. Turning to his 19-year old son, he asked, Are you alright, Joe? This might be a bit hard to take. Can you do it?

Joe was feeling a bit shaky, but he was also excited and wanted to be a part of this effort.

I’ll be OK, Dad. Let’s get going.

With that, they proceeded to search the area. They soon found the first of many badly burned bodies, all in military uniforms. They also found body parts over the area, many of which they wished they did not have to see. Seeing the aftermath of a plane wreck is not for the faint of heart, and even though these men had encountered some bad scenes as volunteer firemen, this exceeded anything they had ever experienced before. Ron remembered the words of an experienced ambulance driver who had been involved in another plane crash investigation. Think of your worst nightmare—it’s worse than that. Ron now understood what he meant.

By now, a policeman arrived on the scene and Ron and Tom briefed him on the situation. They then left the scene and returned home. During the next few days, the military authorities arrived, investigated the event, took affidavits and compiled a report. The plane was a four-engine military aircraft with twelve people aboard. They were returning to their home base, got lost, developed mechanical problems, encountered bad weather and crashed into a mountainside. This was during World War II and military plane crashes were all too common. This was often due to inexperienced air crew members, limited navigation aids, and pressure to fly under dangerous military training conditions. A large number of World War II crashes in North America were due to training because of the rush to train crews for the European and Pacific theaters. Consequently, many aviators died without experiencing war with the enemy. Of course, this was a bad situation for the military planners, but for others, the personal loss of loved ones was most meaningful. In this case, twelve men lost their lives on that mountain top and for every one of them there was a story. Unfortunately, for one of them, it took a long time to find out what that story entailed.

Chapter 2

It was mid-December, 2008, and final fall semester exams at the State University of Southern Arizona’s History department were over. By now, all the professors had compiled and sent in their final grades and were looking forward to the semester break. It would be almost a month until the spring semester began and that allowed them time to catch up with other activities as well as enjoy the Christmas and New Year holidays.

Unfortunately, Bob Jerzerski did not like the situation he was in. The typically disheveled history professor was on the phone in his office talking with his ex-wife. Over twenty years ago they had married, both of them faculty members at the City of Angels Community College in California. At the time, of course, they were young and in love. Within two years they had two daughters and things went well, but that only lasted for an all too short time. Bob was ambitious and never got into the realities and responsibilities of family life. He was devoted to his work and kept arranging his priorities around his job. At first, his wife accepted the situation, hoping he would change. However, she soon saw things were getting worse. He spent more and more time on his projects, especially his work collecting oral histories of World War II air crew members who trained in the United States. After awhile, he got together with others involved in aviation history and established a side business to help find and investigate plane crashes for clients. This might have been all right except that, more and more, he did so at the expense of spending time with the family. His wife was disturbed by this and confronted him.

Bob, the girls hardly know you anymore and I’m tired of making excuses for you not being around. Can’t you devote more time to them?

Flo, I’d like to, but I really don’t have the time right now. I will after I get done with this new project I’m working on.

Flo had heard this before and was not impressed. Exasperated, she said, Bob, that’s what you said the last three times you had another new project to work on. When is this going to stop?

Bob knew his wife was right. He did feel guilty about neglecting his family, but he felt an insatiable need to achieve something in his life as soon as possible. Besides that, he was impatient with the demands of child rearing. He could not understand the whining and what he felt were the petty demands of his two children. For that reason, he had taken the easy way out and retreated into his academic environment. There, he could control his classroom, his graduate students, and the pace of his life. He also loved his subject and had received peer recognition for his efforts. Things were not that easy when he came home to demands from his family that he had never been allowed to make in the home he grew up in.

Flo, you’re right. I’ll change.

He tried, but it did not last for more than two weeks after which he was back to his old habits. Finally, it became too much for his wife and they had another confrontation. The discussion was heated and they both said many things they wished they hadn’t. After that, things quickly deteriorated and they agreed to a divorce. Since then, there was limited contact with his family. His wife met another man and re-married, but Bob decided he wanted nothing to do with another marriage. He buried himself in his work and eventually achieved the recognition he wanted.

The years passed and now Monet, their youngest daughter, was eighteen years old and in college in Saratoga Springs, New York. Bob had not completely deserted the family. He helped support the girls financially and insisted on them having a quality education. On that note, both parents agreed completely and for that they were in contact many times. The children responded well to this interest, not surprisingly due to the academic background of both parents. They were both honor students and now Monet had received a partial scholarship to this prestigious eastern university. Ah yes, things were going well with the family Bob had largely neglected. He now felt he had acted in their best interest by leaving them. However, life is often more complicated. Bob sat at his desk listening in rising panic as his wife spoke to him.

Bob, Monet has met a boy she is very fond of. I think she’s quite serious.

Oh, how serious? Do you think she’s sleeping with him?

Flo responded with a slight chuckle, I don’t think so, but I suppose it’s possible. I certainly hope not. Unfortunately, things are looser now than when we were that age. Besides, this boy seems to come from a good family. In fact his father is an ordained minister from a church in northern New Jersey. Monet said that his mother invited her to their home for a few days after semester break. She’s going to do that first and then fly here until the next semester begins. They have a nuclear family and the fellow is evidently a good student studying History.

Upon hearing what the boy was studying, Bob perked up, but he was not relieved by hearing he was a minister’s son. Bob was obviously influenced by the old quip about children of clergy being the wild ones.

Well, Flo, I guess we can only hope for the best. What else is going on with her?

Bob immediately sensed a lift in Flo’s mood as she said, I’m so glad you asked. There’s something you can do for her that I’m sure she would really appreciate. In fact, she even asked me to talk with you about it.

Oh? said Bob apprehensively.

Bob, don’t be so worried. This is right up your alley.

OK, what is it?

It turns out that Monet’s boyfriend’s mother has become interested in genealogy and there is a family member that has drawn her attention. She thinks he left home to join World War II in England prior to America entering the war and somehow he got lost in history. They want to find out what happened to him. Monet remembers that you often get involved in looking for people like that. Do you think you could look into that for them?

Far away in Arizona, Bob rolled his eyes and said, Well, of course I do things like that in my side business. However, this sounds like something that would involve going outside the country. That could take a lot of time and money, and I’m very busy on several projects right now.

Bob could hear his wife’s exasperated sigh before she answered, Oh, Bob, you’ll never change. It’s always another project or some other excuse to keep you from doing something for your own children. You know, I actually thought you might take this opportunity to get closer to one of them. I guess I should have known better.

This comment annoyed Bob. After all, he was indeed busy and he had committed himself to several people. Right then, he didn’t want to get sidetracked by something that would take him from his efforts just to satisfy his daughter’s boyfriend. On top of that he was not sure of this young man’s intentions. Still, his wife had a point. He had taken the path of ignoring the needs of his family all his life and this effort might help make up for the past.

Flo, the biggest problem I can see is that I have never worked outside the United States and don’t have the contacts that can help me. I just don’t see it working out.

There was no mistaking his wife’s disgust as she answered, Bob, I know you. You have never let something like that get in your way. When you get started on something, nothing stops you. I know you can do something, and I think you know that too.

Then, in her indignation, she said something that she immediately wished she could take back. Don’t act like a dumb Polack, Bob. You’re not one and you know it.

Bob recoiled at the word and could scarcely hold his temper. Polack was a word he hated, and he now was angry. The racial expression brought back painful memories from his youth and references to it triggered a severe emotional reaction. He remembered being brought up in a family in which his father constantly told him and his sister about being discriminated against because of his Polish heritage. That had inspired Bob’s ambitions and had much to do with his obsession with achieving recognition and success. Flo knew this, realized her mistake and hastened to apologize.

Bob, I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have said that. It wasn’t fair.

Bob slowly calmed down, sighed, and said, I think we’d better end this conversation. I’ll think about what you said and maybe I’ll get back to you.

OK, I won’t say anything to Monet until I hear from you. Goodbye.

Bob hung up and sat back to gather his thoughts. He hated being put in this position. However, he knew much of it was his fault and he didn’t know how to handle it. Of course, anything he might do for his daughter would take time and money. However, he did feel he owed her something of himself. Would researching this fellow for her be the right thing to do? Could he do it? Maybe not. Maybe he was a dumb Polack after all. Right now, he had a trip to the east coast lined up. Before that, he had scheduled a stop in Albuquerque, New Mexico, before going east and maybe he could meet with and relax with his friends there. He had made arrangements to stay with one of them whose advice he valued. Maybe that would change his mood and he could discuss what to do. With that thought, he began preparations for his trip.

Chapter 3

Upon arrival at the Albuquerque Sunport, Bob picked up his rental car and headed out to I-25. He drove north to the intersection with I-40, and headed east. At Exit 167, Bob left the interstate highway and took the road south into the fashionable Four Hills housing area. After driving around for a few minutes, he pulled into the driveway of a modest, but very comfortable looking home. He got out, retrieved his luggage from the car’s trunk and walked to the front door.

After ringing the bell, the door opened and he was met by a white-haired man in his early 70’s. The man smiled, and said, Hi Bob. Come on in. How was your flight?

Stepping through the door, Bob answered his friend, Hi Jack. The flight was good. How are you?

Bob had met his genial host, Jack Booker, several years ago when they were introduced by a mutual friend and worked together on a project. That project had been quite successful and led to another with similar results. Jack had moved to Albuquerque with his wife after retiring from a Washington D.C. patent law firm. Unfortunately, Jack’s wife suddenly died shortly after the move and Jack was devastated. However, Jack immediately befriended Nan Barosa, the paramedic who last tended to his wife and the two of them became good friends. Nan had moved to Albuquerque from Los Angeles with her young daughter many years previously. Before that she had taken night History classes from Dr. Robert Jerzerski, then teaching at the City of Angels Community College in Los Angeles. Bob befriended Nan, and after her move, maintained a long distance relationship with occasional visits. Then, when Bob needed help with a project in New Mexico, Nan introduced him to Jack. The two men found each other to be very compatible and visited whenever either Bob had business in Albuquerque or Jack had reason to travel to the Phoenix area. Bob was now in town to confer with a colleague about an oral history program they were working to establish that would involve several western universities. After meeting with him for a day, Bob was to fly to Rutgers University to discuss their work with the people at the Rutgers Oral History Archives (ROHA) based in New Brunswick, New Jersey.

Jack offered Bob a beverage and they sat down to talk. After Bob laid out his schedule, he switched gears and asked, So Jack, how’s Nan?

Oh, Nancy’s doing fine. She sure keeps busy with her nursing classes. She has to study part-time, so she’s not finished yet, but I don’t think she has long to go. Meanwhile her work as a paramedic at Duke City Ambulance pays the bills.

Bob noticed that Jack still referred to his friend by her formal name, Nancy, rather than Nan, which he knew she preferred. For some reason, she did not object to Jack calling her that, although, with others, she usually insisted on her shorter name. In fact, Jack was the only person Bob knew who did call her that.

Bob continued, Do you think she’d be able to have dinner with us tonight?

Well, I’ll call her and ask. I’m not sure of her schedule, said Jack getting up to get the phone. He picked it up, activated the speed-dial and was soon talking with their friend.

Nancy, Bob’s here in town and is staying with me. We’re going out to dinner tonight and he was wondering if you’d like to join us. Of course, I’d like to see you too. Can you make it? Oh, good. Why don’t we meet at our favorite New Mexican food restaurant on Lomas? Great, we’ll see you at…, Jack turned to Bob and asked, 6:30 OK? Bob nodded, and Jack turned again to the phone to finish his conversation, …6:30 this evening. How does that sound to you? Great, see you then, Goodbye.

We’re all set for tonight, Bob, said Jack hanging up the phone. Nancy is on shift and gets off at four. She wants to go to her home in Tijeras to clean up and will pick me up afterwards. Then, we can meet you at the restaurant. She says she’ll be off for a few days but has some things planned and this will be the best time for us to get together. I guess we hit it just right.

Oh, too bad she can’t spend some more time with us before I leave.

Well, she is really busy. She also has been meeting with someone she talks with.

Oh, is she in therapy or something like that?

Not quite. She has just taken to meeting over bagels and coffee with a fellow who lost his wife at about the time Nancy was assaulted and almost raped. I guess they supply mutual support. I’m glad she’s found someone to talk with about that. I tried to do that with her, but talking with an old man isn’t the same as having someone her own age to discuss problems with.

Bob understood that all too well. In fact, he had met Nan after his divorce and she had helped him get over the worst of it. He was also very aware of the incident in which two thugs had attacked her in her isolated home, mistreated and tried to rape her. Fortunately, she was rescued by friends. However, Bob now felt some guilt. The last time he and Nan had spoke, it was clear she needed some support and he did not give it to her. Consequently, he felt some remorse about not being there for his friend. He also felt some jealousy that she was seeing another man. But, what’s wrong with that, he asked himself? After all, there was no romance between them, was there? She was free to do whatever she wished, wasn’t she? Why did all this bother him anyway?

OK then, Jack, that sounds like a good plan. I’ll drive us home after dinner and we’ll get a good night’s sleep. Actually, I’ll have time because my flight leaves for Newark in mid-afternoon. There’s something I want to talk to you about before I go anyway.

Jack was intrigued. OK, Bob, is it anything you want to discuss now?

"No.