 Cover
Artwork
was produced by Tom Gintjee originated the Red devil logo.
Note that the art theme was continued on the name tags (see below). |
The First Annual
Reunion of what would become the 508th PIR Association was held in Chicago,
IL. The "Windy City" was seen to be a central point accommodating
flights from all major airlines and from anywhere in the U.S. In fact,
at that time, it was the largest and busiest airport in the nation.
The Marriott hotel, easily accessible from the terminal area was chosen as
the venue. In fact, the reunion was such a success that the 2nd
reunion was held a year later in that same hotel. After that, the
venues moved about the country, which not only enabled some veterans to
travel shorter distances, it also gave their comrades a chance to see parts
of the nation that they had never before visited.
Thanks to a year of dedicated effort by O.B. Hill, 227 men of the 508th had been located and 133 of them attended this first get-together.
No one knew it then but this was the beginning of a tradition that would last for thirty years. The search for other men of the
508th continued and reached its zenith of 1,415 in 1995. The annual conclaves would not end until the Association chose to "Retire With Dignity" on October 19, 2004 when it stood down at Camp Blanding, Florida almost exactly 60 years after the regiment had been formed there. |
