story.txt

As a 20-year-old PFC in the Air Force, Oct. 27, 
1949, was a day  I’ll always remember. 
I was stationed at Chanute Field, Illinois, 
after finishing basic training at Sheppard Air 
Force Base in Texas. I was transferred to Chanute 
to attend aircraft  engine and general aircraft training.
While on barracks cleanup duty, 
I found a copy of the  Vancouver Sun newspaper, 
from  British Columbia. The front-page article 
was about the Pacific National Exhibition 
Beauty Contest, with a photo of the winner, 
Miss Vancouver. The article also listed the 
11 other contestants and the cities they represented.
Well,  I got the bright idea of writing a letter to 
the winner, hoping to get some mail in return. 
Since I had been away from home for almost a year, 
the highlight of my day was mail call. I wrote  
to two other contestants as well, but had only 
their  cities to use for the address. I was shocked 
when I got return letters from all three contestants. 
I was very impressed with the letter from Miss 
Port Moody, Kay Ronco, and we began writing regularly.
By this time,  I had finished the tech school 
programs and was transferred to a base in Omaha, 
Nebraska.  Kay and I continued to write. After 
seven months, I was made a crew member on a B-29 
bomber  scheduled to fly to Seattle, Washington, 
for modification.