[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 149 (2003), Part 12]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 16908]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                      MAJOR GEORGE WINTON THOMPSON

                                 ______
                                 

                         HON. NICK J. RAHALL II

                            of west virginia

                    in the house of representatives

                        Thursday, June 26, 2003

  Mr. RAHALL. Mr. Speaker, tomorrow, alumni of Woodrow Wilson High 
School Class of 1958 will congregate in Beckley, West Virginia. They 
gather to celebrate the 45 years passing after the graduation of 343 
students.
  My alma matter, Woodrow Wilson High School, so named in 1917, traces 
its roots to July 13, 1900. The school mascot is a flying bald eagle 
and the enrollment of the school is identified as the Flying Eagles. As 
the bald eagle is a majestic bird, it is also an independent creature. 
Eagles nest but they do not flock. It was therefore preordained that 
the alumni of this school separate and spread to the four corners of 
our great Nation and beyond.
  The year 1958 represents a very different time with American citizens 
living under different standards. The Universal Military Training Act 
defined one of those standards. Under this Act, able-bodied male 
citizens past the age of 18 years were subject to six years of military 
training and duty. The United States Army, Navy, Air Force and Marine 
Corps thereby benefited with the coming of age by Woodrow Wilson 
alumni. One chapter of the military contribution made by the Class of 
1958 can be found in the Vietnam War. West Virginia sacrificed more 
sons on a per capita basis in the Vietnam War effort than any other 
state in the Union. Vietnam in wartime was where some 1958 graduates 
celebrated their 10th year beyond graduation. By the end of the Vietnam 
War, these alumni had returned to their homes and families, except one. 
This Flying Eagle was reported as missing-in-action on May 16, 1966, 
when the AC-47 gun ship he was navigating failed to return from a 
mission. At the time of his last action, the young man who had 
interrupted his studies at West Virginia University to serve his 
country held the rank of 1st Lieutenant in the United States Air Force. 
When the exchange of prisoners of war took place following the Vietnam 
War, this airman was not among the repatriated. During the following 
years, the airman's mother was encouraged by our government not to 
relinquish hope. She mailed letters and packages for years. None of the 
letters or packages were either acknowledged or returned. During these 
same years, the airman received posthumous promotions up to the rank of 
major. The mystery surrounding this Class of 1958 Flying Eagle was not 
resolved until November 24, 1999, when his recovered remains were 
positively identified. His remains, along with the remains of seven 
additional crewmembers on the ill-fated military aircraft, were 
obtained from the crash site during three separate collections during 
1995, 1996, and 1997. The recovered remains of all eight crewmembers 
were scant, as the plane had been consumed by flames upon crashing, 
followed by more than 30 years of deterioration in a jungle 
environment.
  During the 34th year following his last day on Earth, this Woodrow 
Wilson High School alumnus was buried in Arlington National Cemetery, 
in common with the limited remains of his fellow crewmembers. Every 
Class of 1958 Woodrow Wilson High School classmate who served honorably 
in this Nation's Armed Forces gave something, but this one airman gave 
all for his country and in a greater sense, his family and his 
classmates. The Woodrow Wilson High School Class of 1958 alumni 
gathering in Beckley, West Virginia tomorrow wish to honor this 
classmate, Major George Winton Thompson, by having his name placed in 
the Congressional Record, as evidence he has yet to be forgotten. I 
hereby honor that request, as this is the first class reunion that the 
group has known the outcome of Major Thompson's story.

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