About this Site
This site has come to be a labor of love, dedication and respect and truly came about quite by accident. All because of "Uncle Eddie."
MIA/KIA December 22, 1943
Great-Uncle Eddie - 2nd Lt., Edward T. Mueller, Pilot - 379th-524th squadron
All my life, I have grown up hearing about my Great-Uncle Eddie, my great-grandfather's youngest brother, who was shot down on a return mission from Osnabruck, Germany on 12/22/43 (on his return trip to Kimbolton Air Force Base). The story that we always heard, was that he just "disappeared into the clouds." Our family never knew much more than that. Uncle Eddie's brothers, sisters, parents and the later generations were always left with the question of whether he could have been a POW and survived the crash, as his body has never been recovered. There has never been any closure. Uncle Eddie remains a large part of our family and in a manner of speaking, is forever young.
In the meantime, I have been writing essays for college scholarships and came across a scholarship which asked the question, "Why Should We Remember World War II?" Not knowing how involved I would become I embraced the question. In researching, I came across a web site called: Finding and Telling Your Dads War Story On a lark, not really expecting to find anything, I found that uncle Eddie had a memorial grave in the Netherlands. On further research I found his unit, message boards, chats, associations, and some of the nicest bunch of people you could ever meet at the Heavy Bombers Website. (In regards to message boards, there are many people willing to help you by lending information on what they know, where to go to find the answers and who to ask for what. They are an excellent resource.)
One blessing I would have to say is my new realization as to how close our country came to losing our freedom. I truly had no clue except for what I had read, seen on T.V., or seen at the movies. Sure I had read about Hitler, read about the concentration camps, knew about Pearl Harbor, but I did not know enough of the "behind the scenes history" to feel it so deeply. I am so profoundly moved by my new knowledge and the great kindness and friendships I have made in my quest for finding "Great-Uncle Eddie," that I cannot get enough information for myself, nor can I preach enough to the masses as to how wonderful the World War II men and women were. Both on the foreign fronts and homefront. There was so much patriotism, group efforts, pride, effort and love. For example, I never knew or learned in school that the "air masks" had to be worn above 10,000 feet in a B-17 -- or that they had to be removed every 5 minutes to knock off the slobber or nasal accumulations. I did not realize how thin the skin of a B-17 was or how cold it was (that you could not touch it with bare skin or you would adhere to it). These are things that both horrified and amazed me.
The biggest blessing: Out of the blue (and in a very short time period I might add), our family finally received closure. An eyewitness and survivor of the Osnabruck mission contacted me. According to his eye witness account, Uncle Eddie's plane took a shrapnel/explosion hit by a German Heinkel. Which answered questions we had wanted answered for over 50 years.
In going to the various campuses to interview for colleges it dawned on me that the men and women of World War II were mere teenagers and youths fighting for our country. That the young Junior at the college I was interviewing with was the same age (or actually older) than my Great -Uncle Eddie was when he was piloting a B-17 Flying Fortress. And this young college man was older than my great uncle was when he died.
I could go on and on. But I won't. I want to relay the stories to everyone from the people who were there. Therefore, this site is intended as a "Living Memorial" and tribute to all of those who served. I feel it is best to let them speak and let me provide the forum.
I have tried to find other web sites and links that offer so much insight, knowledge and information. If you know of a website that should be put on this web page, please e-mail me with the link.
I would urge you, whether you are the actual WW II veteran, wife, child, grandchild, or other family member, to obtain their war stories, information and records. It will give you a deeper insight and a richer love for you fellow-man and country.
Feel free to e-mail me with any comments, information or links.
Furthermore, I would appreciate it very deeply if you would like to provide your own "trace". Either send us your link and we will add it to our website, or let us help you build a website.
Thank you and God Bless America!
