Pictures from Baer family: service time                                         

Click to enlarge

 

1st Lt US Army Air Force

Service #:   O-703416

Unit:    458 BG  752 BS

Entered Service: Montgomery, Pennsylvania

Hometown: Haverford, Pennsylvania

Born:    22 July 1924 Haverford, Pennsylvania

Died:    9 December 2007 

Buried: Memorial Garden of the Church of the Redeemer in Bryn Mawr,                         Pennsylvania

Married : Helen Baer (nee Bettle) + 1981

POW:   Stalagluft 3

           Sagan Silesia Bavaria moved to Nuremberg, Langwasser 49-11.

Awards: DFC, AM, POW medal

FAG: http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GSln=baer&GSiman=1&GScid=1932859&GRid=169502222&

 

 

Picture: Baer family

 

After landing: info from Letitia Baer Dalton (daughter)

My father told me that after he landed on the ground, he made contact with a farmer who gave him milk. The farmer made contact with a member of the resistance and my father was given civilian clothes and a bicycle.

He was sent to another town where he was met by another member of the resistance, then sent to the next town.

There he was met by German soldiers who had infiltrated the resistance group. From that time, he was a POW until the war ended.

He was held in many different prison camps during those months.

 

Escape Route

 

German report of capture:

 

 

Questionnaire about Baer:

 

 

Enlistment card: click to enlarge

Documents from Resistance Group G

Translation:

Report written by Felix Vandevenne and his wife Maria Juchtmans

USA number: -703416

Take off: 6:00 hour on 20July 1944

Aircraft number B 24 H – 117

Shot down in the vicinity of Diest, Zwarte Ring (Schaffen)

Civil address: Black Rock, Aromore, PA, USA

Came down at Schaffen, Zwarte Ring.

Hiding Russians took him away.

Joseph Briers from Baalberg, Tessenderlo came to take him to George Lemahieu from Boshuis, Tessenderlo.

From there Felix Vandevenne from Begijnenstraat 31, Diest took Baer with him and brought him to Alfons Snijers who was living at Heze, Schaffen. (here he met Holcomb and Spence)

Alfons gave Baer new clothes and something to eat.

Felix Vandevenne guided him to his house in the Begijnenstraat 31, Diest.

From here, Baer went to Graulus, Waanrode.

Here 3 persons took Baer with them to Vanderseypen, Geetbets.

These 3 persons were Paul Goossens, Sabine Strauven and Joseph Meers all from Kortenaken.

After 14 days Paul Goossens took Baer again to Prosper Graulus at Waanrode.

Then Paul Goossens led him  to  Alfons Omloop from Glabbeek.

Papers for Baer were made by Felix Vandevenne, Begijnenstraat 31, Diest.

It was Maria Claes, Stationstraat 22, Diest who brought those papers to Joseph De Crock, Vandenbroeckstraat 52, Brussels.

Papers for departure, place and date handed over by Maria Juchtmans, Begijnenstraat 31, Diest.

Joseph De Crock from Brussels came to Alfons Omloop at Glabbeek and took Baer with him to Brussels.