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<\/a><\/p>\nAs club member Vic Enchelmayer was summoned to the podium for an invocation, a surprisingly well-timed, unplanned, and absolutely fitting flyover of vintage military aircraft took off from nearby MCAS Miramar. The flight path took each plane directly over Mt. Soledad, and seemingly directly over the head of 97-year-old Navy vet Elmore, who as a young pilot logged more than 160 combat and aerial missions in both the European and Pacific theaters, and later flew more than 1,200 humanitarian relief flights during the Berlin Airlift.<\/p>\n
Elmore was accompanied by his wife, Wanda, and his two sons, Jack and James, who each took a few minutes to share some thoughts on their heroic father.<\/p>\n
\u201cOn June 6, 1944, he made six trips to France,\u201d recalled Jack Elmore, Gene\u2019s older son. \u201cThree to Utah Beach, and three to Omaha Beach.\u201d<\/p>\n
Commander Elmore joined the Navy after his 18th birthday in 1941, and is technically still in the Navy Reserve today. He joined Kiwanis in 1969, later serving as Club President and Lt. Governor, and winning the Kiwanian of the Year Award in 1982-83. He is still an active member of Kiwanis today.<\/p>\n
Also honored was Dr. Newman, a native of Warren, Ohio who spent much of his time during the war years as an Army journalist. Newman took to the podium and described some of his earliest memories of the Army, as well as his experience during the Korean War.<\/p>\n
Following his Army years, Newman, 91, maintained a 60-year career as an optometrist. He first joined Kiwanis in Van Nuys in 1971, and spent time as a member of six different Kiwanis Clubs in Southern California, including the last 16 years with Grantville-Allied Gardens (at the invitation of Elmore). He is a past Lt. Governor of Division 25, and put his journalism experience to good use as the editor of the Cal-Nev-Ha Kiwanis District newsletter during the 1980s. His wife, Bunny, was seated at his side during the plaque dedication ceremony.<\/p>\n
Taking the opportunity to speak on his own behalf, Peterson, 93, identified two critical events that had a seismic impact upon his life. The first, of course, was being drafted into the Army in 1946. The second was his invitation 20 years later to come to his first Grantville-Allied Gardens Kiwanis meeting.<\/p>\n
\u201cMy neighbor, Paul Christman, came across the street and asked me to join him at a Kiwanis breakfast. I did join him that morning, and I really enjoyed it.\u201d Peterson will mark his 55th year as a member of G.A.G. Kiwanis later this month. \u201cIt has changed my life,\u201d he gratefully explained.<\/p>\n
A native of Winslow, Arizona, one of Peterson\u2019s favorite experiences within the military was his early travel throughout the continental United States, including many parts of the nation that he had never seen before. \u201cIt made me grow up,\u201d he recalled. \u201cI had never been away from home before.\u201d He also appreciated his education at San Diego State, made possible by the G.I. Bill, which provided financial aid to military veterans for college.<\/p>\n