Wallowa County Chieftain
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wallowa.com
Funny thing happened
on way to Algiers…
By Steve Tool
Wallowa County Chieftain
It’s like a scene from an old
movie. Maybe something Hum-
phrey Bogart would star in.
In 1943, four World War II
soldiers from Wallowa Coun-
ty, serving in different units,
accidentally meet each other
on the streets of Algiers in
north Africa. Those soldiers
spend one day together: rem-
iniscing, posing for a street
artist caricature and spending
the evening in a bar.
But this is not the scene
from Casablanca. It’s a re-
al-life incident that happened
to four local men who had that
chance meeting in a city that
then was home to 8 million
people.
Forrest Wilson, a resident
of Wallowa Lake Village, is
the son of one of the soldiers
in this story. Wilson had read
a Nov. 9 Chieftain story about
former Wallowa County res-
ident Gayle Stockdale, and a
light fl ashed in his head.
“When I saw the Stockdale
writeup, I said, ‘My God, I
think this is one of the four.’
And I went and dug out (the
caricature art) out of my dad’s
wartime stuff,” he said.
The caricatures depict all
four men in their respective
duties. Lt. Robert “Bruce”
Wilson, Forrest’s father, is seen
driving construction equip-
ment, Capt. Gayle Stockdale is
driving a tank, Warrant Offi cer
Bud Jones is fl ying a British
airplane and Lt. Charles C.
Thorpe is drawn with artillery.
Either a bottle or a glass of
spirits is also depicted in each
character.
Wilson’s father was raised
on a Wallowa County farm.
He moved to Hawaii with his
brother to combat the tough
times of the Great Depression.
He eventually obtained con-
struction work at the Army
Air Force’s Hickam Field and
watched the Pearl Harbor at-
tack unfold before his eyes.
Robert Wilson immediate-
ly enlisted but was initially
turned down because he was
too old — he was 36 at the
time. However, he had a de-
gree from the University of
Oregon, and after he passed a
physical fi tness test, the Army
enrolled him in Offi cers Can-
didate School and assigned
him to the Army Corps of En-
gineers.
“He would have been
Steve Tool/Chieftain
The caricature drawing, now laminated and in possession
of Forrest Wilson, son of Lt. Robert “Bruce” Wilson at the far
left. The other Wallowans, from left, are Lt. Gayle Stockdale,
Warrant Officer Bud Jones and Lt. Charles C. Thorpe.
crushed if he hadn’t been able
to get involved,” said Forrest
Wilson. “That was the big
thing in his life, and it was the
big thing in all their lives.”
Wilson was running sup-
ply missions for the Corps in
the North African campaign.
He found himself in Algiers
and went for a stroll.
“He said he was walking
through town and ran into an-
other Wallowa County boy. In
those days they all knew each
other — it wasn’t like Wal-
lowa, Enterprise and Joseph
were separate,” Wilson said.
He is no longer sure which
one his father ran into fi rst,
but they headed to a local wa-
tering hole for a drink, where
they eventually ran into two
others doing the same thing.
“My dad really liked the
idea that all four of them ran
into each other, so they de-
cided to go out on the street
and have these caricatures
drawn. I don’t know if it was
my dad’s idea to have them
drawn, but since he ended up
with it, I assume it was his
idea,” Wilson said.
Forrest fi rst saw the car-
icature when he was about
10, when his father was going
through his war collection.
His father remembered
that day vividly.
“My dad just talked about
how much fun it was just to sit
there and reminisce about Wal-
lowa County instead of what
was going on,” Forrest said.
To the best of Forrest Wil-
son’s recollection, the men
never again met during the
war, but his father and Stock-
dale returned and talked on
occasion. Robert Wilson tried
farming on leased land in
Wallowa County, but eventu-
ally went to work at the Han-
ford Project in south-central
Washington, commuting back
and forth to spend time with
his family, who still resided in
Wallowa County. After a se-
vere accident during his Han-
ford commute, he decided to
return to college and become
a teacher. He eventually found
employment as a teacher at
Willows, Calif., where he re-
mained the rest of his life. He
passed away in his sleep on
Dec. 2, 1981. He was 75.
Although that chance
meeting happened more than
70 years ago a half a world
away, Wilson still shakes his
head in wonder.
“Think of it. Four guys
from Wallowa County, none
of them coming over together,
but running into each other in
a city like Algiers,” he said.
“It’s very unique, the odds are
phenomenal.”
NEOEDD receives
partnership grant
Last minute shopping
can be fun!
By Wallowa County Chieftain
We still have lots of great
choices and don’t forget,
we will gladly gift wrap
your Bookloft purchases
The Oregon Community
Foundation awarded a $10,000
grant to the Northeastern Or-
egon Economic Development
District in Enterprise.
The grant is intended facil-
itate a partnership with Busi-
ness Oregon’s new statewide
Rural Entrepreneurial Devel-
opment Initiative (REDI) to
build a network of centers to
meet the resource and technol-
ogy needs of entrepreneurs at
different stages and locations
throughout the region.
Births
A son,
Lukas
Jeffry Weis
was born December 2, 2016
in Lewiston to Alison Curry
and David Weis of Lewiston.
Grandparents are Jeff
and Jane Curry.
T HE B OOKLOFT
Across from the courthouse in Enterprise
107 E. Main • 541.426.3351
always open at www.bookloftoregon.com • booklofteoni.com
Retirement Party
December 21, 2016
Fishtrap open house draws patrons
By Steve Tool
Wallowa County Chieftain
Several dozen people at-
tended Fishtrap’s Dec. 16
open house at their location
on 400 E. Grant St.
Fishtrap is a literary
nonprofi t dedicated to clear
thinking and writing in and
about the west. Visitors were
treated to a night of Christ-
mas music as well as a table
of hors d’ouevres and the op-
portunity to talk with Fish-
trap staff.
Fishtrap program manag-
er Mike Midlo said it was his
third or fourth holiday open
house.
“I’m always impressed
by who comes. Some people
I only see once or twice all
year long, and they come to
this to help bring in the hol-
iday season. It’s really nice
with all the things going on
in the holiday season that
they take time for Fishtrap,
and we’re happy to have
them,” he said.
Midlo said 2016 was a
successful year for the or-
ganization, with progress on
several fronts — particularly
with Fishtrap Story Lab. Sto-
ry Lab is a program in con-
junction with local schools
that encourages children to
tell stories through the use of
multimedia.
“We started this in Joseph
two years ago, and now it’s
moved down the valley into
Enterprise, the alternative
school, Wallowa,” he said.
Midlo added that story
labs intended for the commu-
nity are well-attended, too.
“It’s brought a new group
of people: kids, students,
adults and educators into
Fishtrap,” Midlo said.
Fishtrap Fireside, a
monthly gathering at Fish-
trap that allows local writers
to air their work in front of
an audience, is another pro-
gram growing by leaps and
bounds.
“This is the fourth season
and every month it’s full,”
said Midlo. “Amy Zahm is
curating it, and she’s just
bringing in a diversity of
folks, age groups, genders;
folks from around the county
that you would never expect
had a story in them come up
and read at Fishtrap Fireside,
and that’s what we’re about.”
Executive director Shan-
non McNerney has also
played a role in Fishtrap’s
growth. Midlo said she has
built and strengthened con-
nections with community or-
ganizations and individuals
this year.
In the immediate future,
Midlo said that Fishtrap is
preparing for this year’s Big
Read, which is a weeks-long
Fishtrap community effort to
explore a book selected by
the community for in-depth
study. This year’s selection is
the Vietnam War-era classic:
“The Things They Carried”
by Tim O’Brien.
ATTENTION
TEACHERS, SOCIAL AGENCIES
WALLOWA COUNTY YOUTH SERVICES DEPT,
COMMMUNITY CONNECTIONS, SAFE HARBOR,
WALLOWA CENTER FOR WELLNESS,
BUILDING HEALTHY FAMILIES, OTHERS
WALLOWA COUNTY ROTARY MEMBERS AND
THE DAGGET FAMILY HAVE DONATED FUNDS
TO PURCHASE NEW, WARM WINTER COATS,
GLOVES AND BOOTS FOR INFANTS, CHILDREN,
AND ADULTS IN WALLOWA COUNTY.
Join WC Commissioners for
cake and ice cream to
celebrate the retirement of
Gay Fregulia
WC Assessor with 20+ years of service
John Lawrence
WC Interim Commissioner
December 29th, 12:00pm
Thornton Room at the Court House
A son,
Ryle
David Smith
was born December 5, 2016
in Enterprise to Rowdy and
Linzi Smith of Enterprise.
Grandparents are Joni and
Randy Strohm, and Donna
and John Smith.
A son,
Uriah
James King
was born December 5, 2016 in
Enterprise to Amanda Palmer
of Enterprise. Grandparents
are Becky and Jim Dockery.
301 W. Main, Enterprise • 541.426.3177
A3
PLEASE CALL MARILYN AT
BUILDING HEALTHY FAMILIES
TO PLACE REQUEST: 541-426-9411