Letter to the Editor: Hats off to Springfield businessman, D-Day veteran

Dear Editor,

At Utah Beach in Normandy, France, this past June 5, the French government presented Jack Hamlin its highest award, the Legion of Honor, created by Napoleon in 1802 for extraordinary heroism displayed by foreigners fighting on French soil.

I had the great fortune of traveling with Jack to France, and I’ve learned his story is nothing short of legendary.

A lifetime Springfield resident, Jack was signed out of Springfield High School in 1939 by Tom Greenwade for the New York Yankees, the same scout who later signed Hall of Famer Mickey Mantle.

Jack’s professional baseball career was cut short by the Pearl Harbor attack on Dec. 7, 1941. Attempting to enlist in the Navy for training as a Naval aviator, Jack was turned down due to a prior rheumatic fever episode. A friend told him he could enlist in the Coast Guard which was commanded by the Navy in World War II.

Assigned to one of 60 83-foot wooden cutters in Rescue Flotilla One, Jack and his 12 shipmates role on D-Day was to rescue wounded or drowning soldiers in the water off Utah Beach. With a 25-foot rope tied to his waist, Jack braved frigid 48-degree water with up to 25 mph currents to pull American soldiers out of the ocean to his shipmates on board the cutter.

Jack, his shipmates, and the other 59 cutters saved 1,486 soldiers and one female nurse.The next day, June 7, 1944, Jack was credited with shooting down a German fighter plane that was strafing American soldiers on Utah Beach.

Upon receiving his award, Jack said, “I wasn’t a hero. I just did my job like everyone else. The real heroes were the ones we couldn’t save and never made it back home.”

Jack was a hero to all the throngs of French who attended the 70th anniversary D-Day celebration. He was mobbed in the beaches and on the village streets for autographs, pictures, hugs and kisses. I personally witnessed Jack kissing at least 1,000 French women. That’s 4,000 kisses, one on each cheek for Jack and each lady admirer. I had to give Jack my ChapStick to get him through all the accolades.

Upon Jack’s discharge from the Coast Guard after the war ended, he earned his undergraduate degree from Drury College and his law degree from the University of Missouri. Opting for a career in insurance, Jack formed his own agency and later sold it to Ollis Insurance and retired. During his career, he served his community as a state legislator and head of the Missouri Department of Revenue. Surviving his beloved wife, Sis, of 60 years, Jack has three children and six grandchildren, who are very proud of him.

It was my privilege to escort Jack to Washington, D.C., on June 6, 2012, on his Honor Flight as well as his Legion of Honor on Utah Beach June 5, 2014. Jack continues to support Honor Flight by encouraging veterans, guardians, volunteers and donors to help continue our flights to honor our very deserving veterans.

—Walt Cameron, co-director, Honor Flight of the Ozarks