[Congressional Record Volume 167, Number 97 (Friday, June 4, 2021)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E607-E608]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




     RECOGNIZING WWII VETERAN EVERTT ATKINSON ON HIS 99TH BIRTHDAY

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                             HON. MIKE BOST

                              of illinois

                    in the house of representatives

                          Friday, June 4, 2021

  Mr. BOST. Madam Speaker, I rise today to celebrate Evertt Atkinson of 
Mt. Vernon, Illinois, who turns 99 tomorrow.
  Evertt was born on June 5, 1922, in Jefferson County to Emery Pearl 
and Hallie Winnifred Morre Atkinson. Upon the death of his mother, 
Evertt dropped out of school at the age of 13 to help his father tend 
to the family dairy farm and help raise his three younger brothers. 
Upon hearing of the bombing of Pearl Harbor, Evertt hitchhiked from Mt. 
Vernon to Scott Air Force Base to enlist in the military. However, he 
was only 19 at the time, and he was forced to return home to get his 
father's written permission to enlist.

[[Page E608]]

  By November of 1942, he became an Aviation Cadet. He went on to take 
additional training as an electronic specialist, became a commissioned 
2nd Lieutenant and then a Flight Instructor in the Army Air Force. He 
was also elected to the Honor Committee and graduated in the top 10 
percent of his class. While on a 10-day leave, he met and fell in love 
with Doris Louise McCauley, whom he married on December 3, 1943. Three 
years later, Evertt was honorably discharged as a First Lieutenant.
  Upon returning home to Mt. Vernon with Doris, they raised their three 
children: Ruth Ann Clark-Wheeler, Rebecca Louise Hill, and Dennis Dale 
Atkinson. In 1948, Evertt acquired his high school diploma and worked 
on his wife's family's dairy farm until 1965. He then worked for 
Sturdi-Built as a salesman for the next 28 years.
  Those who know Evertt are familiar with his outgoing, positive 
approach to life and loss. He continues to volunteer for numerous 
charitable causes in his community. Madam Speaker, please join me in 
honoring Evertt Atkinson on his 99th birthday. On behalf of Southern 
Illinois, happy birthday.

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