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Ditched to sea The wind brought TNT closer to the Chinese mainland than Saylor — perhaps any of the crew — had imagined. Pilot Lt. Donald Smith could see the coastal mountains outside his windshield. He attempted to gain altitude, but fuel was dangerously low.
OBITUARIES CHRISTOPHER GORSLINE Buckley resident Christopher Gorsline, 16, died April 17, 2013. He was born July 5, 1996, in Puyallup and attended White River High School. He is survived by mother Mary Gorsline of Buckley; father Mark Gorsline of Puyallup; sister Kaitlin Gorsline of Buckley; and grandmother Mildred Owens of Parkersburg, W.V. Visitation was from 4 to 8 p.m. Tuesday, April 23, and a memorial service is planned for 2 p.m. Wednesday, April 24, both at Weeks’ Funeral Home in Buckley. All may sign the online guest book at www.weeksfuneralhomes.com.
ALDO FARINHA Aldo Adam Farinha died April 13, 2013, at the age of 89. He was born May 1, 1924, in Lincoln, Calif., to John and Mary Farinha. He attended Lincoln High School where he played basketball and baseball, but the family farm often took him home for chores. More oHe was a three-time war veteran, serving in World War II with the 8th Air Force, 351st Bomb Group, 508 Bomb Squadron. He was tail gunner
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through a crack in the wall. Finally en route to the mainland, the crew learned plane No. 7, “The Ruptured Duck,” had suffered a rough beachside landing, throwing its crew clear from the point of impact. They had been taken in for care by nearby civilians, but four of the five had to be rushed to Linhai Enze Medical Bureau for serious injuries. As the only flight surgeon among the Raiders, and being fortunately close to the hospital, White knew he was obligated to assist. By the time they arrived at the hospital, pilot Lt. Ted Lawson had a life-threatening infection in his knee, Saylor said. White assisted Dr. Chen Shenyan in amputating the leg. Lawson would survive and go on to write his memoir “Thirty Seconds Over Tokyo,” which would be adapted to film two years later. “He had very little anesthesia — just a little bit of morphine — and by the time the surgery was almost done, he was waking up,” Saylor said. “And he kind of knew what was going on, but they were sewing him up. He needed a transfusion and the only person who had his kind of blood was our copilot.” Without proper transfusion equipment, the doctor used his syringe to administer the blood shot-by-shot. Next week: Homeward Bound Correction: Lt. Col. James Doolittle’s name was incorrect in Part 1.
The Enumclaw City Council was requesting to be part of any negotiations or discussions concerning access to the land for recreation. City Administrator Mike Thomas said at the meeting, “The city wants a formal chair at the table (regarding recreation access) whether it is with Hancock or any subsequent property owner. The county was willing to put together a written agreement that gives us that kind of proximity to the discussion and access to that discussion.” There was some controversy concerning a special meeting initially called by the a majority of the council, which was canceled by Mike Reynolds, city attorney, because of a potential violation of the Open Public Meetings Act. Reynolds outlined the issue in the letter to Thomas Thursday. “The city of Enumclaw cancelled a special meeting requested by a majority of the City Council after it came to light a council
“Councilman Dickson in no way meant to limit the transparency of his actions or the decisions of the City Council, nor did he seek to form a consensus or coordinate a strategy prior to the meeting. Enumclaw’s city code 2.04.015 authorizes special meetings to be called by the “mayor or any three members of the council. “Councilman Dickson was merely attempting to setup a meeting to discuss this sensitive issue and believed he was acting under not only the letter, but spirit of the law.” After canceling the first special meeting, the mayor called a second meeting for the same time to allow council members to discuss and take action on the letter to be sent to King County regarding access to the forest. At the meeting, Darrel Dickson said, “If there was any awkwardness in the setting up of this meeting, my intention was to let conversation happen. For my clumsiness I apologize. I thank the city attorney for clarification to make this correct.”
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and ball turret gunner on a B-17. He also served in the Korean War and did two tours in Vietnam. He spent 21 years in the Air Force and was a loyal veteran. In retirement, he traveled all over the country with his 351st group and loved to meet veterans and their families who shared the same love for their country. After retiring from the service, he attended Green River Community College and earned a degree in building technology. He had several rental homes that kept him busy. He loved to ski and he did so until the age of 73. He also swam competitively in masters swim meets and played indoor hockey into his 70s. He is survived by sister Emily Farinha; daughter Karen Kelley and husband Robert; sons Michael Farinha and wife Connie and Eric Farinha and wife Dana; five grandchildren and one great-granddaughter. He was preceded in death by sister Henrietta and brothers Claude and George. A memorial service is planned for 11 a.m. Wednesday, May 1, 2013 at Saint Andrew Catholic Church, 1401 Valley Ave. in Sumner with a reception following. Remembrances may be sent to Saint Andrew Church.
More obituaries on pages 4, 5
member appears to have violated the state Open Public Meetings according to the city attorney,” Reynolds’ letter said. The person referred to was Councilman Darrel Dickson who had contacted council members individually, seeking to call a special meeting concerning the conservation easement for the forest. Reynolds wrote in the letter to Thomas, “Upon inquiry I learned that the meeting was requested by a majority of Council by a Councilman circulating a writing to each member, having a discussion, having the member execute the request for the meeting and then ultimately delivering that request to our City Clerk…. I believe that the method in which this was carried out is arguably a violation of the Open Public Meetings Act (OPMA).” Dickson said by phone and at the meeting it was not his intent to violate the act. Rob Dickson, an attorney representing Darrel Dickson, wrote a Thursday email in response to Reynolds’ letter.
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a carrier, and that we would have to make it within 200 miles of Tokyo to make it back to the carrier. And, plus the fact they didn’t think they could be hit anyway. That was their mindset. “The surprise element saved us.” Saylor fully expected to be shot down and die on the mission, he said. Any one of the coastal ships could have shot them down cold. That didn’t happen. Guided by the 20-cent “Mark Twain” bomb sight — two strips of aluminum meant to replace a secret state-of-the-art sight intended for high altitude missions — they hit their targets and pushed on without damage. Success didn’t relieve the crew’s expectation of death. The Imperial navy may not have downed their craft, but the headwind still had a clear shot. Luck was on their side. The headwind turned into a tailwind, pushing them onward.
They wouldn’t make it. Smith dropped the plane, ditching into the East China Sea less than half a klick (kilometer) away from the Tantou Mountain Island. “Somehow, I didn’t panic,” Saylor said. “It was a good spot to be panicking, but I got out all right. “I got into the China Sea and kind of floundered around, because I didn’t know how to swim. People ask me what the first thing was I did when I got back, and I tell them, ‘the first thing I done is learn how to swim.’” The crew made it to the shore of Tantou. They lost track of Dr. White, who had wandered off on his own in a desperate bid to find the medicine box he lost at sea. Imperial forces were in hot pursuit, raiding the island during the day and patrolling in gunboats at night. Civilian friendlies found them first, helping them get off the island disguised as fishermen. “We thought we had made it to the mainland, but it turned out we were just on another island,” Saylor said with a chuckle, as if he still couldn’t believe their bad luck. They trekked up to a Buddhist temple, where a man inside told them Japanese military were combing the islands for their attackers. In their efforts to get off the second island, Saylor came within mere feet of being found by his pursuers; he recalled squatting in a cave and watching Imperial boots walk by
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Wednesday, APRIL 24, 2013 • The Enumclaw Courier-Herald • Page 3
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