LOCAL
A12 • HERMISTONHERALD.COM
WEDNESDAy, AuguST 28, 2019
WWII paratrooper surprised by party in his honor
By KATHY ANEY
STAFF WRITER
Walt Liebe’s family yearned
to know more about his time as
a World War II paratrooper. For
years, Liebe kept most of it to
himself.
His grandchildren didn’t know
about how Liebe and other mem-
bers of the 11th Airborne Division
liberated 2,147 prisoners from a
Japanese internment camp during
the Raid on Los Banos in the Phil-
ippines. Or about serving on Gen.
Douglas McArthur’s Honor Guard
on the USS Missouri. Or the nitty
gritty about his time in the glider
infantry and later as a paratrooper
jumping from C-47 military trans-
port planes.
Lauded as the Greatest Genera-
tion, Liebe’s generation might also
be the humblest.
The country is losing WWII
veterans like Liebe at a dizzy-
ing pace. As of 2018, fewer than
500,000 of the 16 million who
served in the war still lived. Hon-
oring these veterans and coaxing
them to tell their stories before
they are gone is taking on more
urgency for groups such as the
National WWII Museum, which
conducts oral histories and pro-
duces exhibits. And for fami-
lies, such as Liebe’s, the clock is
ticking.
Family members and friends
recently showered the 96-year-old
Hermiston veteran with apprecia-
tion — and plenty of questions —
during a surprise gathering Aug.
10, 2019. Linda Stark, who attends
church with Liebe, spearheaded
the gathering.
He thought he was going to
lunch at Denny’s. His son, John,
missed the turnoff, or so Liebe
thought. John turned instead onto
Airport Way and continued to the
main airport building. He ushered
his father inside to a room adorned
in red, white and blue balloons
Staff photo by Kathy Aney
World War II paratrooper Walt Liebe answers questions about his war experience during a surprise party in his
honor on Aug. 10, 2019, at the Hermiston Airport.
and toy WWII-era airplanes. A
cake proclaimed in red icing: “Our
Thanks to Walt Liebe: Honorable
WWII Veteran.”
The elder Liebe reacted with
incredulity.
“He was surprised and a little
choked up,” John said. “He had no
clue.”
Over the next couple of hours,
Liebe received accolades and a
Quilt of Valor draped around his
shoulders. He answered ques-
tions about his time in the military.
The veteran said he went on four
maneuvers with the glider infan-
try and later made 10 jumps from
C-47 transport planes.
“Gooney Birds, they were the
workhorse of the South Pacific,”
he said of the C-47s.
A grandson asked about the
weapon he carried and so Liebe
described a .30 caliber Browning
Automatic Rifle, which weighed
more than 20 pounds. The gun
provided quick bursts of automatic
fire, but required a lot of ammo.
Ammunition bearers jumped
alongside.
During the 1945 Los Banos
prison camp raid, members of the
11th Airborne conducted a dar-
ing rescue of American and Allied
civilians. Some soldiers para-
chuted in while others, like Liebe,
came on amphibious vehicles. The
mission went smoothly.
“Everything just clicked,” he
said. “Everything went as planned.
It was a perfect operation.”
Listening, Liebe’s grandson
Matt Gettmann shook his head.
“He was involved in one of
the most successful operations in
world history, but he never told us
about that,” Gettmann said.
When pressed, Liebe told the
story about stopping over on the
island of Okinawa to refuel on the
way to Japan. Whoever fueled the
aircraft forgot to put the cap back
on.
“We were airborne when some-
one looked out and saw gaso-
line splattering out of one of our
engines,” he said. “We landed, put
on the gas cap and went on our
way to Japan.”
At times during the party, Liebe
went silent. His son, John, filled in
blanks.
“At the end of the war, he was
selected to be with General Doug-
las MacArthur in his honor guard
on the USS Missouri,” John said.
“Those are pretty high accolades,
Dad.”
Indeed. On Sept. 2, 1945, the
Japanese formally surrendered
aboard the Missouri and the gener-
al’s honor guard was aboard.
Liebe didn’t elaborate on his
son’s remarks, which his family
says is typical.
“He’s the quietest, most hum-
ble person I’ve known,” Gettmann
said of his grandfather.
At war’s end, Liebe returned
home a 23-year-old with a lifetime
of experience.
“He came home a very old
young man,” said younger brother,
Bill Liebe, of Pilot Rock.
“We’re glad you made it home
in one piece,” said Ron Linn, sit-
ting at the opposite end of the table.
Liebe concurred. He described
arriving back in the states by ship,
passing under the Golden Gate
Bridge.
“It was the most wonderful
feeling,” he said. “I was glad to be
home.”
After the war, Liebe learned to
fly on dirt runways at the Hermis-
ton Airport using GI Bill benefits
to pay for the lessons.
“I learned to fly in an old tail-
dragger,” Liebe said.
The veteran had a long career at
the Umatilla Chemical Depot.
Mark Gettmann, of Seattle, mar-
veled at his grandfather, lamenting
that someday he will no longer be
around to share his rich history.
“He’s a treasure we’re not going
to be able to enjoy forever,” Gett-
mann said.
Before heading out from the
airport, Liebe got into airport
board member Mike Martin’s Ford
Ranger and was chauffeured into a
hangar where he feasted his eyes
on a variety of airplanes.
Though lunch at Denny’s had
gone bust, Liebe seemed happy
with the alternative destination —
and the avalanche of appreciation
and curiosity he found there.
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