MONROE - Harry Dickerson died Sept. 25, 2006, at the age of 88.
He was a husband, a father and a World War II veteran.
On Friday, he will be inducted in the "Hall of Heroes" display at the William S. Middleton Memorial Veterans Hospital in Madison.
His doctor, Matt Crowe, at the VA hospital nominated him for the honor. The hall is located at the hospital and recognizes veterans and their service to our country. His picture will be on permanent display at the hospital.
Crowe said he talked to Dickerson over the years and was impressed with him as a person and as a veteran.
"He was very unassuming," Crowe said. "I was fortunate to meet him. He was one of the nicest people you could meet."
Through their talks, Crowe learned Dickerson flew more than 85 missions, including two flights over the narrowest portion of the English Channel before D-Day in June 1944.
"That was the most fortified area on the continent," Crowe said. "It was a feint because the attack didn't even take place there."
Dickerson also flew missions over the landing areas during D-Day, Crowe said.
He knew he was nominated for the honor, Dickerson's daughter, Kelli, Monroe, said.
His wife, Carol, who died earlier this year, would have been proud, too, she said.
It will be a bittersweet event, Kelli said. Her mother learned late last year that Dickerson was going to be inducted but didn't live to see it.
The rest of the family will be there to remember and honor their father and his service to the country.
He enlisted in the United States Army-Air Corps in 1941 and served in England and France throughout the war as a tail gunner and bombardier. He achieved the rank of staff seargant by the end of the war.
He talked to his children about the war, his daughter, Kelli said.
"He flew on 85 missions. He did all those missions without a scratch," she said.
He told his children, Steven, Randy, Debra, LeRuth and Kelli about the men he served with. He was proud of them, too, Kelli said.
He was proud of his military career, she said.
Like other veterans, he returned home from the war and moved on with his life. In 1947, he married Carol and began raising a family.
He worked at the F.S. Company Feed Mill in Mendota, Ill., then at DeKalb Feeds in DeKalb, Ill., and finally at Vilas & Co. in Storm Lake, Iowa. He also was a member of the Veterans of Foreign Wars Post No. 2312 in Monroe.
He was a husband, a father and a World War II veteran.
On Friday, he will be inducted in the "Hall of Heroes" display at the William S. Middleton Memorial Veterans Hospital in Madison.
His doctor, Matt Crowe, at the VA hospital nominated him for the honor. The hall is located at the hospital and recognizes veterans and their service to our country. His picture will be on permanent display at the hospital.
Crowe said he talked to Dickerson over the years and was impressed with him as a person and as a veteran.
"He was very unassuming," Crowe said. "I was fortunate to meet him. He was one of the nicest people you could meet."
Through their talks, Crowe learned Dickerson flew more than 85 missions, including two flights over the narrowest portion of the English Channel before D-Day in June 1944.
"That was the most fortified area on the continent," Crowe said. "It was a feint because the attack didn't even take place there."
Dickerson also flew missions over the landing areas during D-Day, Crowe said.
He knew he was nominated for the honor, Dickerson's daughter, Kelli, Monroe, said.
His wife, Carol, who died earlier this year, would have been proud, too, she said.
It will be a bittersweet event, Kelli said. Her mother learned late last year that Dickerson was going to be inducted but didn't live to see it.
The rest of the family will be there to remember and honor their father and his service to the country.
He enlisted in the United States Army-Air Corps in 1941 and served in England and France throughout the war as a tail gunner and bombardier. He achieved the rank of staff seargant by the end of the war.
He talked to his children about the war, his daughter, Kelli said.
"He flew on 85 missions. He did all those missions without a scratch," she said.
He told his children, Steven, Randy, Debra, LeRuth and Kelli about the men he served with. He was proud of them, too, Kelli said.
He was proud of his military career, she said.
Like other veterans, he returned home from the war and moved on with his life. In 1947, he married Carol and began raising a family.
He worked at the F.S. Company Feed Mill in Mendota, Ill., then at DeKalb Feeds in DeKalb, Ill., and finally at Vilas & Co. in Storm Lake, Iowa. He also was a member of the Veterans of Foreign Wars Post No. 2312 in Monroe.