1

November 2010

Volume XXII

Grand Prairie Historical Organization

www.GPHistorical.com MEETING LOCATION

Our meeting is November 4, 11:30am and will be held at the old Senior Citizens Center 925 Conover Street, Grand Prairie

The Cost of the lunch is $15 which is being catered by Eddlemon Brothers

Please RSVP to Angela Giessner 972-262-5151

Our newest Life Members are: Bobby Donaldson, Janette Skrasak, Bebe Bing-ham, Rochelle Crump, Reggie Crump, Pat Capps, Scott Donaldson, Gary Hill, JoBeth

Peebles, Loni Haran, Betty Hulse, Linda McNeff, Joan Longorio Claybourn, Bill

Claybourn, Don Goldsmith, Mickey Powell, Greta Berry Beckler, Alice Stanfield

Ernst, Paul Wayne Ernst, , Kathy Ritterhouse, Laurie Johnson, Kathy Kaderka Sherrill, Kenny

Tyler and John Wright

Check out the new Web Site! Thank you so much to Kath-

leen Andrews for making this happen. Kathleen did an exceptional job with this

site and volunteered hours of her time to make it look

fantastic.

Would you like to play a bigger role in the growth of our organization? We need Volunteers to staff the

Copeland Home tours and to help organize the museum. If you are

interested, please contact Kathy Goolsby at : k _goolsby@tx.rr.com or 817-319-9936

As decided by the group, this may be your last hard copy of the newsletter if you are not a

paid member. We will be send-ing the newsletter out via email

and a hard copy to paid members that do not have an email address. If you would like to receive the newsletter via email please send

a request to:

bingham@alliance-services.com

In this meeting, the Grand Prairie Historical Organization salutes our hometown Veterans with a presentation by Bobby Donaldson.

Please join us for this special program and meet some of our WWII Veterans including Claude (Buster) Tinsley, John Henry, Tom Bill

Bostick, Joe Ausmus and more.

ww.w. GPhistorical.com

2

Page 2 Volume XXII

Grand Prairie Historical Organization — Life Members

Judy Armstrong, Billy Joe Armstrong, Greta Berry Beckler, Carol Bell, Grant Bell, Bebe Bingham, Brian W. Bingham, Verna Brown, Lisa Chennault, Thomas Chennault *, Jo Robertson Campbell, L.R. Cannon, Pat Watson Capps, Helen Chennault, Thomas B Chennault, City of Grand Prairie Marketing, Bill Claybourn, Joan Longorio Claybourn,Jorja Jackson Clemson, Joe W. Colwell, Marge Copeland, H. Victor Copeland * , Jerry Corley, Reggie Crump, Rochelle Crump, Bobby Donaldson, Scott Donaldson, Cheryl Friman Dover, Charles and Janice England, Kirk and Marcy England, Alice Stanfield Ernst, Paul Wayne Ernst, Olive Galloway, Angela Sutton Giessner, Don Goldsmith, Norma Hale, Loni Haran, Marvin J (Jack) Hays, Lee D. Herring, Thomas Hight, Gary Hill, Betty Hulse, Ruthe Thompson Jackson, Vera Jinks, Laurie Johnson, Blythe Kizziar, Duane McGuffey, Linda McNeff, Kenneth R. Miller, Ouida Chapman Lewis, Lynn Motley, JoBeth Peebles, Betty Phil-lips, Laura Thompson Potter, Mickey Powell, Charles Powers, Kathy Ritterhouse, Bob Roberts, Kathy Kaderka Sherrill, Susan Shuffler, Fynlon and Eugenia Simpson, Janette Skrasek, Ouida Daugherty Smith, Amy Sprin-kles, Donald Stanfield, Joyce Colwell Stanfield, Marie Kerr Stufflebeme*, Donald Taylor, Kenny Tyler, Paul and Madie Vernon, John Wright *

Grand Prairie Historical Organization—Corporate Sponsors

Freedom is not Free

by Ashley Persyn

There is a price we pay for freedom For it is not truly free

But rather paid for by the contributions of veterans To buy our liberty

As their blood drains from their body and runs like a river through the grass Over the years it's forgotten, war is placed in our past I don't think we all realize the importance veterans play

as they voluntarily serve America each and every day We should honor the veterans for they act like a shield Protecting us from danger, keeping America healed.

So if you would take a second to commemorate You will instantly see

We owe veterans our gratitude For they are the reason we are free

Thorne and Skinner, Attorneys at Law Grand Prairie ACE Hardware

Bobby Shanks

Durwood Sutton Delbert Hale

George “Dan” Liggett

Barley W. Bingham Merle Kaderka Mose T. Carter John Henry Joe Ausmus William Crymes Claude Tinsley

3

Answering The Call to Duty Joe Robert Ausmus, World War II vet age 93, has lived in Grand Prairie since 1954. Along with his wife, Sammie Janice Sanders Ausmus, he raised five children who all attended Grand Prai-rie schools. Joe retired from LTV after thirty-five years of service. Joe joined the Army for the first time in 1937. He served from 1937-1940 and was based in Cheyenne Wyoming where he served in the Army Honor Guard. He and his fellow soldiers did close order drill which included marching and rifle drills. Joe and his First Infantry, Co. B performed for President Roosevelt when the President came to Wyoming for the Western Days festivities. After his first stint in the army, Joe trained as an electrician becoming a Journeyman Electrician, joined the In-ternational Brotherhood of Electrical Workers and did defense work at Camp Maxey during the beginning of WWII. In late 1943 Joe was drafted back into the Army at age twenty-seven. By this time he was married with three children, but the army needed men, and he went. During WWII he served in 5th Army, 85th Divi-sion, Company B of the 338 Infantry Division. As part of the campaign to win victory in Italy, Joe landed in Naples, Italy in August, 1944. Along with his buddies, he fought in the Po Valley through Rome and Pisa all the way up to Bologna. He served under the com-

mand of General Mark Clark and can re-member walking with Gen. Clark and four other fellow soldiers serving as an advanced guard for his battalion. While serving in WWII, Joe was wounded twice--once from small arms fire and once from shrapnel--and was awarded a Purple Heart with one Oak Leaf Cluster. He also has an E A M E Campaign Medal with 3 Bronze Stars. Like many WWII vets, Joe did not talk about the war unless you asked him. Indeed, much of what we know about his service we found out when he was 88 and was being inter-viewed by his great-granddaughter Made-leine for a school project. Her assignment was to interview someone who had par-ticipated in a heroic event, and she chose her Granddaddy Ausmus. Because Joe grew up surrounded by family and hard work, he became first and foremost a family man who learned to be a good provider. Joe is a thoughtful, modest man of strong character who is slow to anger and an excellent role model for his family. He has worked hard and has a great sense of commitment to his family that does not waver. He is blessed with a great sense of humor and has a kind, gentle soul. As Tom Brokaw says in his book, The Greatest Gen-eration, their “…generation was united not only by a common purpose, but also common values--duty, honor, economy, courage, service, love of family and coun-try, and above all responsibility for one’s self.” Sammie Ausmus Walker

4

Comments, dues and suggestions :

Grand Prairie Historical Organization

P.O. Box 532173

Grand Prairie, Texas 75053-2173

214-808-1913

Volume XXII

"Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay

down his life for his friends." (John 15:13)

Sgt David Melton Archer, 5th Marine Regiment B CO 1 BN 1st Marine Division

Born: April 5th, 1927, Seriously wounded while fight-ing the enemy in Korea and died of those wounds on August 13, 1950: Changchon—Hill 202. Sergeant Archer was awarded the Purple Heart, the Combat Ac-tion Ribbon, the Korean Service Medal, the United Na-tions Service Medal, the National Defense Service Medal, the Korean Presidential Unit Citation and the Republic of Korea War Service Medal. Sgt. Archer joined the service in 1943 prior to graduat-ing from Grand Prairie High School. He would have graduated with the class of 1945.

David Archer

GPHO Year Book David Archer

A huge THANK YOU to:

Carol Ann Liggett Anderson Bell Carol has supported the GPHO with her time and money for many years. Most recently she sponsored the October 14th Reception. Thank you Carol for everything you do to help promote the

GPHO and preserve the history of Grand Prairie.

Joe Robert Ausmus

At our November 4th meeting, the Grand Prairie Independent School District will present an honorary diploma of graduation from Grand Prairie High School class of 1945 posthumously to

David Archer. His brother, Robert H. Archer of Eldorado, Arkansas, will accept it on his behalf.