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Wall of Honor Level:
Air and Space Friend

Honored by:

George registered for the draft on his 18th birthday in June 1942. He enlisted in the Army Air Corps in March 1943. Following basic training, he went to gunnery school at Fort Meyers, Florida, and armament school at Lowery Field, Colorado. He went home on two weeks leave and married his sweetheart, Lucille, after which he was sent to MacDill Field, Florida for B-17 training.
He was assigned to the 388th Bomb Group in March 1944. After a few missions over Germany, his plane was shot down in March 1944. His pilot flew the plane to a successful crash landing with the entire crew surviving. They were captured by the enemy and sent to Stalag Luft IV. After a number of months of cold, hunger and miserable conditions as the war neared the end, there camp was evacuated. Hundreds of prisoners were marched out to evade Allied forces. They were on the march in the dead of winter, and were allowed to take only what they could carry. They covered hundreds of miles on foot, constantly changing direction, to keep from being liberated by friendly troops. Some of them made it — some of them did not. Finally British soldiers caught up with them, and set them free. They were sent back to the American lines, and then to a camp where they awaited transportation home. He landed in New York City on June 1945 on his 21st birthday.
Tech. Sgt. Hoover remained in the Air Force and retired in 1964. After a lengthy stay in the V. A. Hospital, American Lakes Division, Lakewood, Washington, he died on 31 January 2000.