Louis Badolato
Lieutenant General
- Joined
- Apr 25, 2005
- Messages
- 17,354
This is my 10,000 post on this forum, a forum which has enabled me to write and publish 5 volumes on the hobby, attend Toy Soldier Shows I never otherwise would have known to go to, and along with fellow treefroggers Hans Hedrich and Lawrence Lo found the New York Toy Soldier Symposium, but, most importantly, to make many uniformly terrific new friends.
Among the best of these friends, and among the best people I have ever known, is the late Chuck Harris. I only had the good fortune to meet Chuck Harris in person once, several years ago at one of the first OTSN Chicago Shows I attended. However, over the years I have spoken to Chuck Harris about once a month over the phone, and always made a point of calling him from the Chicago Show and Symposium so he could chat with everyone and be a part of everything. Chuck was a great family man, and a great American. He made a career of serving his country, including 8 years in South East Asia as a Navy SOG officer assigned to the American Embassy in Bangcock (read between the lines). As a result of this service (which he could never discuss, even to confirm or deny) he suffered terrible physical ailments which eventually claimed his life. Despite years of suffering (when I met him in Chicago he was already confined to a scooter and on oxygen) he was always in good cheer, and most often spoke about how proud he was of his daughter and grandson, and how grateful he was for the care he received from his incredibly patient wife. When he did speak about his time of service (for which I am incredibly honored) he left me impressed by his honesty and his humble nature. To anyone who reads my novel (should I ever get around to getting it published) much of the combat - and particularly the effect of the combat on the characters - was inspired by my private conversations with Chuck, who, like the other veterans whose real life experiences helped inspire my novel, reviewed and approved my poor prose.
One of my favorite stories about Chuck, which I can retell here, was one of his adventures as a 12 year old boy. Chuck's dad worked on a Army Air Corps base during WWII, and Chuck stowed away on a B17 being flown to Nova Scotia to then fly to Great Britain. It was only a couple of hours into the flight that the crew discovered a nearly frozen 12 year old Chuck hidden on board, and had to turn back to the base. Despite the whipping he received from his old man as a result, it remained one of his favorite experiences for his entire life. The adventurous spirit he displayed as a 12 year old boy stayed with him his entire life. I wish him nothing but the best as he embarks on the great adventure we must all embark on eventually.
Thank you, Chuck, for your service and your friendship.
And thank all of you, my friends here on the forum, for all these wonderful years of good fellowship. Any of you who cares to join us Saturday, March 17th or Sunday March 18th in honoring Chuck's memory at the Symposium are very welcome.
Among the best of these friends, and among the best people I have ever known, is the late Chuck Harris. I only had the good fortune to meet Chuck Harris in person once, several years ago at one of the first OTSN Chicago Shows I attended. However, over the years I have spoken to Chuck Harris about once a month over the phone, and always made a point of calling him from the Chicago Show and Symposium so he could chat with everyone and be a part of everything. Chuck was a great family man, and a great American. He made a career of serving his country, including 8 years in South East Asia as a Navy SOG officer assigned to the American Embassy in Bangcock (read between the lines). As a result of this service (which he could never discuss, even to confirm or deny) he suffered terrible physical ailments which eventually claimed his life. Despite years of suffering (when I met him in Chicago he was already confined to a scooter and on oxygen) he was always in good cheer, and most often spoke about how proud he was of his daughter and grandson, and how grateful he was for the care he received from his incredibly patient wife. When he did speak about his time of service (for which I am incredibly honored) he left me impressed by his honesty and his humble nature. To anyone who reads my novel (should I ever get around to getting it published) much of the combat - and particularly the effect of the combat on the characters - was inspired by my private conversations with Chuck, who, like the other veterans whose real life experiences helped inspire my novel, reviewed and approved my poor prose.
One of my favorite stories about Chuck, which I can retell here, was one of his adventures as a 12 year old boy. Chuck's dad worked on a Army Air Corps base during WWII, and Chuck stowed away on a B17 being flown to Nova Scotia to then fly to Great Britain. It was only a couple of hours into the flight that the crew discovered a nearly frozen 12 year old Chuck hidden on board, and had to turn back to the base. Despite the whipping he received from his old man as a result, it remained one of his favorite experiences for his entire life. The adventurous spirit he displayed as a 12 year old boy stayed with him his entire life. I wish him nothing but the best as he embarks on the great adventure we must all embark on eventually.
Thank you, Chuck, for your service and your friendship.
And thank all of you, my friends here on the forum, for all these wonderful years of good fellowship. Any of you who cares to join us Saturday, March 17th or Sunday March 18th in honoring Chuck's memory at the Symposium are very welcome.
