ARLINGTON, Va. - All their lives, Charles Durgin and his brother Jack heard stories of a man they never met named "Uncle Fred."
"He was the guy who was always living a little care free, wanting to be on the edge a little bit," said Charles Durgin.
His name was Staff Sgt. Frederick Harris and in World War II, he served as a tail gunner of a B-24 bomber nicknamed "Shack Rat."
The Durgin family never knew what happened to Fred.
"I'd heard rumors and stuff about how he went missing and maybe it was a volunteer mission and no one really knew the details," said Jack Durgin.
What is known is that in October 1943, Harris and 11 crewmates took off from this airbase on New Guinea for a reconnaissance mission and disappeared.
The fate of the "Shack Rat" and her crew stayed a mystery until August 2003, when a crew member's ID card was found in New Guinea. But the site was so remote, forensic crews couldn't reach the location until 2007.
The Durgins and the families of the “Shack Rat's” 11 other crew members soon received a call from the Pentagon, asking the families to provide DNA to help in identifying remains that were found at the site. Charles said, "Nobody expected it, no one hoped for it, actually we didn't even know anyone was looking for anyone and they told us there are teams of military personnel looking all the time."
After a long process, the 12 members of the "Shack Rat" were finally identified, and given full honors in a joint burial at Arlington National Cemetery. The ceremony marked the end of a six-decade mystery, but the beginning of a generation's new appreciation of life, and death.
For Jack Durgin, it is a lesson he can now share with future generations of his family.
"Arlington is a lot more than headstones, and to make that connection, we've got to realize every headstone, every family has a story,” said Jack.
And after 68 years, the crew of the “Shack Rat's” story has an end.
The crew of the “Shack Rat” was laid to rest in section 60 of Arlington National Cemetery. It is the area that contains most of the present day casualties from the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. Their names are listed below:
1st Lt. Jack E. Volz
2nd Lt. Regis E. Dietz
2nd Lt. Edward J. Lake
2nd Lt. Martin P. Murray
2nd Lt. William J. Shryock
Tech. Sgt. Robert S. Wren
Tech. Sgt. Hollis R. Smith
Staff Sgt. Berthold A. Chastain
Staff Sgt. Clyde L. Green
Staff Sgt. Frederick E. Harris
Staff Sgt. Claude A. Ray
Staff Sgt. Claude G. Tyler
Source: http://www.myfoxdc.com
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