RONALD J HOFFMAN
Name: RONALD J HOFFMAN
Entry Date: '56
Exit Date: 59
Rating:
Status: K
I GREW UP IN A SMALL TOWN, OCONOMOWOC, WIS. WHICH IS LOCATED ABOUT HALF WAY BETWEEN MILWAUKEE AND MADISON. I WAS ALWAYS INTERESTED IN BECOMING PART OF OUR ARMED FORCES SOMEDAY AND WHILE I WAS STILL IN HIGH SCHOOL I JOINED OUR LOCAL NATIONAL GUARD UNIT IN 1953. I WAS TRAINED AS A MACHINE GUNNER AND OF COURSE BEING THE NEW GUY IN THE SQUAD IT WAS MY JOB TO DIG VERY LARGE FOXHOLES FOR THE MACHINE GUN NEST. MY BROTHER-IN LAW WAS A MEMBER OF THE NAVY DURING WORLD II AND HE SHARED MANY FASCINATING STORIES. THE ONE THING I CAME TO REALIZE IS THAT BEING IN THE NAVY MEANT YOU WOULD NEVER HAVE TO DIG FOXHOLES SO AFTER I GRADUATED FROM HIGH SCHOOL IN 1955 I RECEIVED A RELEASE FROM THE NATIONAL GUARDS AND JOINED THE NAVY. ON NOV. 17 I STARTED MY RECRUIT TRAINING AT GREAT LAKES NAVAL TRAINING CENTER. OUR COMPANY RECEIVED HIGH HONORS DURING OUR TRAINING AND WAS THE FIRST COMPANY SINCE THE 1940’S TO GRADUATE WITH SUCH AN ACCOMPLISHMENT. WE WERE INFORMED THAT OUR NAMES WOULD BE PUT ON A PLAQUE TO BE DISPLAYED. I WAS ALSO GIVEN THE HONOR TO BE SELECTED AS HONOR MAN OF OUR COMPANY 712.WE WERE PRESENTED WITH THE HALL OF FAME FLAG ON GRADUATION DAY AND THE GUYS FROM OUR COMPANY SIGNED THEIR NAMES TO THE FLAG AND GAVE IT TO ME WHICH I STILL HAVE TODAY. I HAD INFORMED THE NAVY, WHEN I FIRST SIGNED UP, THAT I HAD BEEN A MEMBER OF THE CIVIL AIR PATROL SINCE I WAS 14 YEARS OLD. I WAS THEN GIVEN THE OPPORTUNITY TO SWITCH TO THE AVIATION BRANCH WHICH I WAS VERY EXCITED ABOUT. AFTER LEAVING BOOT CAMP I WAS TRANSFERRED TO AVIATION PREP. SCHOOL AT NORMAN OKLAHOMA AND LATER TRANSFERRED TO MILLINGTON TENN. WHERE I WAS TRAINED AS STRUCTURAL MECHANIC AND SPECIALIZED IN HYDRAULICS MAINTENANCE. THEN CAME THE BEST YEARS OF MY LIFE WHEN I WAS ASSIGNED TO VP21 IN THE FALL OF 1956. I ASSUMED THE ROLE AS DUTY DRIVER FOR THE SQUADRON FOR THE FIRST FEW WEEKS AND LATER ASSIGNED TO THE STRUCTURAL MECHANICS SHOP. THE SQUADRON MADE SOME CHANGES IN THE CREW MEMBERS OF OUR 12 PLANES AND A STRUCTURAL MECHANIC WAS PLACED ON CREW. I WAS ASSIGNED TO CREW 1 AND COULD WRITE A BOOK OF OUR MANY EXPERIENCES OF OUR HOURS ON FLIGHT PATROL.I HAVE BEEN ABLE TO MAKE TWO SQUADRON REUNIONS, ONE IN BRUNSWICK AND THE LAST ONE IN BRANSON. I AM ALSO IN TOUCH WITH BOB NELSON WHO WAS CO-PILOT AND PAUL PETERSON OUR NAVIGATOR IN THOSE GOOD OLD DAYS. SOME OTHER SQUADRON MEMBERS, FROM THOSE DAYS, I STILL KEEP IN TOUCH WITH ARE WAYNE JACOBSON, MARLYN ANDERSON, JACK BLAIZER, BILL FITZGERALD, BOB McKNIGHT, NORM ROINSTAD,RUSS LANSBERRY BILL LOCKE DICK WEBB & JOHN ESPOSITO. MY WIFE, LYNN AND I WERE MARRIED IN DEC. 1957 BUT BECAUSE OF THE UPCOMING DEPLOYMENT TO MALTA SHE STAYED HOME AND JOINED ME IN BRUNSWICK IN 1959 UNTIL I WAS DISCHARGED. I GAVE IT SERIOUS THOUGHT TO RE-ENLIST BUT SHE JUST WANTED TO GO HOME WHICH WE NOW BOTH DEEPLY REGRET. TODAY WE ARE BOTH RETIRED WHICH GIVES US TIME TO SPEND WITH OUR FOUR CHILDREN, 8 GRANDKIDS AND 2 GREAT GRAND-KIDS. AFTER LEAVING THE NAVY I TOOK ON A VARITY OF JOBS AND EVENTUALLY WAS GIVEN THE OPPORTUNITY TO WORK FOR THE LOCAL SCHOOL DISTRICT AND RETIRED AS DIRECTOR OF BUILDINGS & GROUNDS IN 2002. ONE LAST THING I WOULD LIKE TO MENTION..I WAS INFORMED THAT MY OLD PLANE 143173 HAS BEEN REMOVED FROM THE BONE YARD OF OLD AIRCRAFT AND IS BEING RESTORED FOR FLIGHT. I HAVE BEEN IN TOUCH WITH THE PERSON, RICHARD CAMP WHO IS DOING THIS, AND SHARED MANY STORIES ABOUT THE PLANE WITH HIM.