Page 12 - Senior Link Magazine Fall 2018- Online Magazine

Chester Young
A Long, Happy Life

by Nancy Young Stoll

January 14, 1944. Just before reporting
for duty, Vicki Lynn Young was born on
January 5. He was glad he was there for
her birth but worried about leaving his
wife and newborn daughter.

Dad did basic training at Ft. Sill, Oklahoma
and then rode a train cross-country to
Gardner Field in California for Aviation
Cadet Training. He also attended training
in Emporia, Kansas and then at Minter
Field, near Bakersfield, California, where
his duties were to service, fuel and inspect
the planes (in addition to KP and guard

“ s good as the best, and better than duty, of course.) In February 1945, he was
sent to San Antonio for pre-flight school,
the rest!” This is the reply my Dad,
AChester Young, gives whenever with the goal of becoming an Army Air
anyone asks him how he is doing. This Force pilot. However, near the end of
is ironic since he is currently undergoing training, they were told that no more
chemotherapy for stage four colon cancer pilots were needed, so Dad chose to be
at the age of 92. a B-29 Flight Engineer. He was sent to
“
Amarillo for an eight-week course. After
Chester Roscoe Young was born at home, that, he was stationed at Hondo, Texas and
delivered by his father, in a small house in was trained on simulated B-24 bombing
Bethany, Oklahoma on December 23, 1925 missions. On one of these missions, they
- the youngest son. He grew up with two flew a low circle over his house, and he
brothers and three sisters. On November saw Claudine hanging clothes out on the
19, 1930, a tornado struck their home, and clothes line in their backyard! Finally,
Chester, aged 5, and his Mom were lifted Dad was fitted for his officer’s uniform,
into the air on their living room couch and and graduation was set for November
dropped onto an adjacent property. Their 6, 1945. But fate intervened, and the
home was completely destroyed, and it Japanese surrendered after the bombs were
took a long time rebuilding the home with dropped in Hiroshima and Nagasaki. All
scraps and lumber left by the storm. Life training was stopped, and just three days
was hard during the Depression and the before graduation, Chester was given an
Dust Bowl of the 1930’s, but the family honorable discharge.
endured with lots of hard work.
Dad recalls one of the last training flights
Dad attended school in Bethany, and ended with a fiery crash, killing 13 of the
during high school, he met a dark-haired soldiers, two of them his roommates. This
beauty named Claudine at the movie certainly helped Dad make the decision to
theater. Their courtship involved meeting accept his discharge. He volunteered to be
at the skating rink whenever possible. At an Honor Guard to accompany the body of
the young ages of 17 and 15, they secretly one of his friends to his family in Duluth,
ran off and married before a Justice of the Minnesota on the train.
Peace in May 1943. Dad boasts it was the
best $10 he ever spent! Chester was discharged November 4,
1945 - just two days before he was to
In October 1943, the Army Air Corps be commissioned as a 2nd Lieutenant.
recruiters came to Bethany High School, He happily went home to his young
and Dad enlisted on December 8, 1943. family. Within the first four years of their
Shortly after his 18th birthday, on marriage, three daughters were born, Vicki
December 23, he received notice to report Lynn, Linda Lea, and Nancy Jean. In 1956,
to the recruiting station for duty on the family moved to Dallas for his job with
American Tobacco Co.

12 Lubbock Senior Link