My daughter alerted me this afternoon of the death of her second cousin, James Bryan McKamey. J.B. (Meg's father's aunt's son) was a Navy pilot during the Vietnam Conflict. He was shot down over Vietnam, captured, and was a prisoner of war for over seven years in that country. His wife didn't even know he was alive for over five of those years. As the conflict began to wind down in the early 1970s, negotiations were being made between countries in order to get the POWs freed. I didn't know JB then...or even OF him...but I vividly remember the televised scenes of those men on the airplane that brought them out of Vietnam and into free airspace. What a victory! The men had endured untold suffering in the name of the USA.
JB was one of the few long-term POWs who returned to an intact family and remained in the military to complete his career. JB's wife, Nancy, was a fighter and was not about to give up on him. Upon his return, he didn't want to call attention to himself but his hometown of Greencastle, Indiana, celebrated his return. He was even called to be a Grand Marshal of an Indianapolis 500 parade. Captain James Bryan McKamey (USN Ret.) was called home today. May God accept the soul of JB and give solace to his family at his passing.
JB was a friend when I was at NAS Lemoore and we spent some time together when I was at Balboa Hospital debriefing another POW. Nancy was a mainstay in the POW Wives organization and as lovely a woman as JB was a fine man. He will be sorely missed but he certainly left his mark. More than most can say.
ReplyDeleteI wish that I could have known him better, or at the very least had a conversation with him again before he passed. Grandmother would always talk to me about him when I visited or talked to her on the phone. I feel that he and I would have had a lot in common considering my recent career. When I was briefly stationed in Pensacola, Florida, Patsy and I visited with Nancy with my mother and younger sister, Marilyn. I had so many questions for J.B. and had really looked forward to a conversation with him when I had found out that I would be an air traffic controller for the Navy.
ReplyDeleteI know that he was a good man and that he did a lot for NAS Pensacola (more than most new sailors that transition through there will ever know). I hold the highest respect for him and only hope that I can come close to the amount of dediation and love he has for his country.
May my thoughts be with you and the entire family.
- Matthew Ferrell