Honoring the 5th Auxiliary Surgical Group: Dr William Coleman PRATT

Tulsa World - Sunday, April 25, 2004

PRATT -- William Coleman, M.D., was born in Sallisaw, OK on January 18, 1912 to Ella Coleman Pratt and John Howard Pratt. Upon his graduation from Central High School in Muskogee, OK in 1929, he was awarded a scholarship to Washington University in St. Louis, MO, where he received his Bachelor's Degree in 1933. There he was the house manager for and a member of Phi Delta Theta Fraternity. He was a swimming and life saving instructor at the Muskogee YMCA for one year prior to entering medical school at Washington University, graduating in 1938. During his internship at Geisinger Memorial Hospital in Danville, PA, he met his wife, Elva, who was a nursing student. They were married on February, 14, 1941 in Des Moines, IA.  Following his first year of surgical residency at Geisinger, he volunteered for service in the U.S. Army, serving for 5 years during WWII.  He was stationed at Fort Des Moines, IA, Camp Leonardwood, MO, Carlisle Barracks, PA, Randolph Field, TX and Fort Sam Houston, TX. His service included 1-1/2 years with the 5th Auxiliary Surgical Group in the European Theater of Operations. He was awarded the Eurpean African Middle Eastern Service Medal with 3 battle stars and the Bronze Star for his service. Following his military service, he continued his training in Rochester, MN, where he was a Fellow at the Mayo Clinic, completing a 31/2 year residency program and earning a Masters of Science in Surgery Degree from the University of Minnesota in 1948. His many accomplishments include membership in the Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research (1949), Fellow in the American College of Surgeons (1954), Fellow of the Southwestern Surgical Congress (1956), American Board of Surgery (1970), member of the Tulsa County Medical Society and a life member of the American Medical Association. He was an Associate at Children's Medical Center in Tulsa, when it was known as "Sunnyside," served as Chief of Staff at St. Francis Hospital for one year and was a staff member at St. John Hospital, Hillcrest and St. Francis.   Dr. Pratt practiced surgery at Springer Clinic for 20 years. He is survived by his wife of 63 years, Elva of the home; and 6 children, Lorraine Pratt (Houston), William Pratt, Jr. (Tulsa), Dr. John Pratt and wife, Sharon (Denver), Nancy Slater and husband, John (Albuquerque), Betsy Long and husband, Lyn (Tulsa), and Thomas Pratt, M.D. and wife, Marsha (Edmond); 10 grandchildren, William Shockley (Los Angeles), Bart Shockley (Houston), Bryce Shockley (Houston), Kerri Snyder (Charlotte, NC), William Pratt III (Tulsa), Matthew Slater (Seattle), Nicole Slater (Albuquerque), and Eric, Sarah and Laura Pratt (Edmond). His great-grandchildren are Cooper, Hayden and Carson Shockley (Houston) and Ashton Shockley (Houston). He was preceded in death by his parents and son, James Wood Pratt. Dr. Pratt dedicated his life to surgery, and the pursuit of knowledge and service to his patients. He had a deep appreciation of the fine arts, and the beauty and wonders of nature. He was an avid reader, an accomplished artist and proud of his Cherokee heritage. His life is celebrated and cherished by the family, friends and former patients to whom he was so devoted. Private family memorial service will be held at All Souls Unitarian Church. Cremation Society of Oklahoma, 599-7337.

Honoring the 5th Auxiliary Surgical Group: Dr Calvin PLIMPTON

Amherst Bulletin (MA) - Friday, February 9, 2007

Dr. Calvin Plimpton, former president of Amherst College

AMHERST - Calvin H. Plimpton, 88, physician-educator and former president of Amherst College, died Jan. 30 in Westwood. He died of complications following surgery for a fractured hip.   Dr. Plimpton was born in Boston on Oct. 18, 1918, and grew up in Walpole, just outside of Boston. He was educated at Phillips Exeter Academy, Amherst College, class of 1939 and the Harvard Medical School, class of 1943. He served in Central Europe, 5th Auxiliary Surgical Group during World War II.  He returned to Harvard for a master's in biochemistry, 1947. He also received a doctor of medical science from Columbia University, College of Physicians and Surgeons, in 1952.  In the course of a long, distinguished career, he piloted three institutions of higher learning through turbulent times and played a pivotal role in directing many others. He was trained as a physician and the first inkling of what he sometimes referred to as his itchy feet occurred when he took a leave from the Columbia College of Physicians and Surgeons to be chairman of the department of medicine at the American University of Beirut, 1957-1959.   He believed that a "doctor tries to educate people to live," and so it was a logical step to become the 13th president of Amherst College, a position he held from 1960 to 1971. In his opening address to the college in September 1960, he charged the students, faculty and guests to "Ask not what Amherst College can do for you, ask what you can do for Amherst College."   Four months later, he was startled to hear President John F. Kennedy use the same turn of phrase in his inaugural address to the nation. When Kennedy came to Amherst for the ground breaking of the Robert Frost Library on Oct. 22, 1963, he asked Kennedy where he had gotten the phrase. Kennedy replied, "I don't know, Cal ... where did you get it?"   While he was at Amherst College, there had been talk among the neighboring four college presidents of jointly founding a fifth, more experimental college. The plans languished until Dr. Plimpton convinced Harold Johnson to donate the initial funding of $6 million and Hampshire College was born.   In 1971, he returned to New York, where he was president of the Downstate Medical School until 1978 and a professor of medicine until 1983. He then spent a year at the National Library of Medicine, working in international affairs.  He was a member of the Board of Trustees of the American University of Beirut for 23 years, becoming chairman of the board in 1965. After the then president of the University, Malcolm Kerr, was assassinated outside his campus office in 1984, Plimpton agreed to take over as president. His three years in the position were marked by escalating insecurity and the kidnapping of professors and other Americans. In an attempt to bring stability to the situation, he journeyed to Amman, Jordan, to meet with Yasir Arafat. The meeting occurred on Arafat's turf, and in the middle of the meeting, Dr. Plimpton, ever on the lookout to interject a bit of humor, turned to Arafat and inquired in broken Arabic if there were any thoughts of kidnapping him, to which Arafat replied, with a sly grin, "No, college presidents don't command any ransom." In retelling the story, Dr. Plimpton noted that clearly Arafat had done his homework.  In addition to the American University of Beirut, he was trustee of the World Peace Foundation from 1961 to 1977, director of the Commonwealth Fund from 1962 to 1984, trustee of University of Massachusetts from 1962 to 1969, trustee of Phillips Exeter Academy from 1965 to 1975, president of the board from 1972 to 1979, Harvard University Board of Overseers from 1969 to 1975, Executive Committee from 1969 to 1974, trustee of Long Island University from 1972 to 1980, and a trustee of New York Law School from 1976 to 1984.  He is survived by his wife of 65 years; Ruth Talbot, and four children; David of Brooklyn, N.Y., Polly of Boston, Tom of Leverett, and Edward of Amherst; and seven grandchildren. There will be a memorial service at Amherst College in the spring.

Honoring the 5th Auxiliary Surgical group: Dr Alvin LEONARD

Dr. Alvin Leonard - Berkeley's ex-director of public health

San Francisco Chronicle (CA) - Thursday, May 29, 2008

Dr. Alvin Leonard, a onetime director of public health for the city of Berkeley who mixed his passion for medicine with a commitment to peace, has died of pneumonia. He was 90.  A lifelong advocate for public health, he urged employees in the city health department to run up and down stairs decades before the advice became trendy. He launched a campaign to promote use of seat belts before they were made standard equipment in U.S. automobiles.  He helped to establish the Berkeley Free Clinic, monitored sanitary conditions at the request of Native Americans during their 1969 occupation of Alcatraz, and counted among his most satisfying achievements his arrest during a protest at the Nevada Nuclear Test Site in 1988.  "He was the kind of person who engendered trust. He was clearly there to help people," said his daughter, Cathy Leonard.  Dr. Leonard was Berkeley's public health director from 1957 to 1970, and after teaching for five years at the University of Arizona he returned to California for a variety of posts in state and county health departments.  Dr. Dileep Bal, the former chief of the Cancer Control Section for the California Department of Health Services, remembered Dr. Leonard as a "friend, mentor and my guru." An early anti-smoking advocate, Dr. Leonard advised Bal during the creation of the state health department's tobacco control section.  "Al was a very low-key, understated, modest man - of giant intellect," said Bal. "He was one of the unrecognized geniuses of public health in this country."
Among his achievements was the establishment of statewide programs to control high blood pressure among different ethnic groups.  Dr. Leonard retired in 1984, but continued to consult on public health affairs for decades. He was a picture of health himself, rising at 6 a.m. to jog through the Berkeley hills five days a week. He continued that ritual past his 90th birthday in January, until he fell ill with pneumonia in February. He died at Alta Bates Medical Center April 20.  Born in New York City, he was raised in Los Angeles and graduated from UCLA in 1938. He graduated at the head of his class at the University of Southern California Medical School in 1942.  He joined the U.S. Army in 1943, and served in Europe as an anesthesiologist in the 5th Auxiliary Surgical Group . His family said that the experience led him to become a pacifist. He was active in the organization Physicians for Social Responsibility, a leading organization of doctors opposing the use and spread of nuclear weapons.  Dr. Leonard is survived by his wife, Pearl of Berkeley; and daughters Barbara of Levallois-Perret, France, and Cathy of Richmond.   A memorial service is being planned. Donations can be made in Dr. Leonard's name to Physicians for Social Responsibility, San Francisco Bay Area Chapter, 2288 Fulton St., Suite 307, Berkeley, Ca., 94707.

Honoring the 5th Auxiliary Surgical Group: Dr James W KELLEY

Dr James W Kelley

Tulsa World (OK) - Thursday, August 13, 2009

Section: Transitions
Page: A12

 

KELLEY - Dr. James W., 94, Topeka, KS passed away on Monday, August 10, 2009, at Lexington Park. Dr. Kelley was born January 22, 1915, in Wilmington, DE, the son of John W. and Bertha (Faulkner) Kelley. He served in the U.S. Army during World War II and was awarded the Bronze Star for service between August 1944 and May 1945. He performed more than 400 major operations during his combat service with the 105th Evacuation Hospital in Europe and was named Chief Surgeon of the 5th Auxiliary Surgical Group. He graduated from the University of Delaware and Duke University School of Medicine in Durham, NC. He was the first resident in Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery at Duke. Dr. Kelley had a private practice in Tulsa, OK, from 1949 until 1970. He served as head of the Student Health Department at Washburn University from 1971 until his retirement in 1981. He served as President of the Tulsa County Medical Society and the Oaks Country Club in Tulsa. He was chosen by the Topeka Chamber of Commerce for the Top Hat Award based on his commitment and service to Washburn University. He was the President of the Ichabod Club and named Outstanding Ichabod of the Year from 1976-77. He was certified by the American Board of Plastic Surgery, a member of both the American Society of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery and the American Association of Plastic Surgery. He was a member of the First Presbyterian Church of Topeka where he served as an Elder. Dr. Kelley was a long time member of the Topeka Fellowship, which is actively involved in the annual Governor's Prayer Breakfast. Dr. Kelley married Elizabeth Ramsey on September 15, 1945, in Tulsa, OK. She survives. Other survivors include their children: Ann Kelley, Santa Cruz, CA, Carolyn Kelley, Seattle, WA, Patricia Kelley Ladue, Phoenix, AZ; and three grandsons, Tyler Ladue, Travis Ladue and Scotland Schieber. He was preceded in death by his sister, Addie Calhoun. Funeral services will be held at 1 p.m., on Friday, August 14, 2009, at First Presbyterian Church. Dr. Kelley will lie in state at Penwell-Gabel Mid Town Chapel after 2 p.m., on Thursday and visitation will be from 6 to 8 p.m. Memorial contributions may be made to First Presbyterian Church, 817 SW Harrison, Topeka, KS 66612 or the J.W. & Elizabeth R. Kelley Athletic Endowment Fund, c/o Washburn University, 1700 SW College, Topeka, KS 66621. To leave a special message for the family online, visit www.PenwellGabelTopeka.com

Honoring the 5th Auxiliary Surgical Group: Louis Errichiello

LOUIS ERRICHIELLO, 71, RETIRED HOUSE PAINTER

Staten Island Advance (NY) - Sunday, December 18, 1994

Page: A41

Louis Errichiello, 71, of Great Kills, a retired painter, died yesterday at home.  Born in Rosebank, Mr. Errichiello, moved to Tompkinsville in 1950 and to Great Kills in 1974.   He was a graduate of New Dorp High School.  Mr. Errichiello served in the Army during World War II in the European Theater from 1941 to 1945 as a medic with the 5th Auxiliary Surgical Group .  He was a house painter for the Garmel Painting Co. of Manhattan for almost 30 years, retiring in 1990.  Mr. Errichiello was a member of the Labetti Veterans of Foreign Wars Post, Rosebank, and the Columbian Lyceum bowling league.  Mr. Errichiello was a parishioner of St. Clare's R.C. Church, Great Kills.  He is survived by his wife, the former Loretta Mannino; a son, Louis; two daughters, Linda Couch and Lois Ingram; and six grandchildren.   The funeral will be Tuesday from the Matthew Funeral Home, Willowbrook, with a mass at 10 a.m. in St. Clare's Church. Burial will be in Moravian Cemetery, New Dorp.

Honoring the 5th Auxiliary Surgical Group: Edith PERKINSON

OBITUARIES - Edith Perkinson, nurse, home care trainer

The Atlanta Journal and The Atlanta Constitution - Sunday, March 7, 1999

A nurse in World War II's Battle of the Bulge, Edith Ann "Doss" Perkinson of Atlanta was no stranger to suffering. Later in life she was still working to alleviate it, ensuring that Atlanta nurses could provide quality home care. "To my mother, if you needed care, you needed care. Period," said her daughter, Coe Perkinson of New York. "If that meant that a nurse had to come to you, so be it."

Mrs. Perkinson, who died at her residence Wednesday of complications from Parkinson's disease, served as the president of the Visiting Nurses Association of Atlanta during the 1960s. By recruiting nurses and overseeing home care training and fund-raising, she helped make home nursing more widespread in the area. Mrs. Perkinson's memorial service will be at 2 p.m. Monday at St. Anne's Episcopal Church. The body was cremated. Cremation Society of Georgia is in charge of arrangements.

A member of the Tlingit tribe of Native Americans, Mrs. Perkinson was born in Cordova, Alaska. Graduating from Hartford Hospital School of Nursing in Connecticut and the University of Rochester in New York state, Mrs. Perkinson specialized in neurological surgery and joined the Army. She was sent to Europe with the 5th Auxiliary Surgical Group . She later said her life became a blur as she worked with a mobile field hospital in heavy combat. "They were moving around an awful lot, maybe threedays in one place, then they'd have to evacuate those they could and move somewhere else where the fighting was more severe and the casualties greater," said her husband, Dr. Neil Perkinson, a surgical oncologist. "They didn't have helicopters in the Army back then. Everything was done by ambulance, so they had to be as close to the front as possible." Returning stateside, Mrs. Perkinson met her husband while the two were working at a hospital in New York. They married in 1951 and moved to Atlanta in 1956, where Mrs. Perkinson kept busy raising their children, gardening and leading a Campfire Girls group. She also belonged to the Medical Association of Atlanta's Auxiliary. In 1974, Mrs. Perkinson returned to work, taking a position with the Emory University School of Medicine's dermatology department. She served as administrator of a research grant on skin cancers, overseeing the project's scientists. "She knew medical terms and had the experience; that's why they hired her," said Dr. Perkinson."She had to train the other people they hired." Survivors other than her husband and daughter include three sons, Bill Perkinson and Neil Perkinson Jr., both of Atlanta, and Paul Perkinson of Winnetka, Ill.; a brother, Jerald Lucchini of Seattle; and three grandchildren. In lieu of flowers, the family requested that contributions be made to St. Anne's Episcopal Church, 3098 Northside Parkway N.E., Atlanta, GA 30327.

Last goodbyes...

August 21, 1945 - France

Sgt. Stanley W Safford 39539976

5^th Auxiliary Surgical Group

APO 339

c/o Post Master

New York  New York

Marseille Area, France

August 21, 1945

Dearest Mother:

I suppose you are awaiting this letter as it has been some time since last I wrote you.

The war has ended and the so called "Peace” is just around the corner, I hope.

If and when it does get here I will be home, which according to present plans should not be far off.  This will be my last letter for a while and the next time you will hear from me by phone if all goes well in Tokyo. Otherwise by mail.

I will call in the evening so be on the look out for the telephone bell.

Well all for this time and a lot more later when we have a 30 day reunion.

As always,

All my Love,

Your son,

Stanley

 On the USS Ballou

USS General C. C. Ballou (AP-157) was a General G. O. Squier-class transport ship for the U.S. Navy in World War II. She was named in honor of U.S. Army general Charles Clarendon Ballou. She was transferred to the U.S. Army as USAT General C. C. Ballou in 1946. On 1 March 1950 she was transferred to the Military Sea Transportation Service (MSTS) as USNS General C. C. Ballou (T-AP-157). She was later sold for commercial operation under several names before being scrapped some time after 1981.[1

General C. C. Ballou, (AP-157) was launched 7 March 1945 under Maritime Commission contract (MC #714) by Kaiser Co., Inc., Yard 3, Richmond, California; sponsored by Mrs. Harry J. Bernat; acquired by the Navy 20 May 1945; and commissioned 30 June 1945, Comdr. M. D. MacGregor in command.

Following shakedown off San Diego, General C. C. Ballou departed San Pedro 29 July 1945 for France via the Panama Canal. She arrived Marseilles after the Japanese surrender, and sailed with returning veterans 23 August bound for Hampton Roads.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USS_General_C._C._Ballou_%28AP-157%29

August 12, 1945 - France

Sgt. Stanley W Safford 39539976

5^th Auxiliary Surgical Group

APO 339

c/o Post Master

New York  New York

Marseille Area, France

August 12, 1945

My Dear Mother

A few lines today to let you know I am still here and in the light of the present events, I may be for some time to come.  Who knows.

We here in the ETO wonder a lot about our future, but it always ends up with no wonder or decision on our part and in fact why should we as the army eventually gets around to us.

In regards to the present situation, I feel that they have sent Japan a very good answer to their question.  I certainly was not in favor of accepting them on their term.  We would be establishing a God in Japan, which I feel would some day again turn on us.  A good housecleaning is what they need there now and a few more months on my part and the rest of us here and there, I am inclined to think would be worth it.  We have had so much grief and discomfort, that I think they should pay dearly for it.  The strange thing is that a great many of us feel the same way about it.  I could go on for hours and perhaps a lot would not pass the cursor so I will stop here.

I feel that finally we have someone who can deal with our allies with a little horse sense.  Truman has surprised me a great deal and I think he is more capable of driving a hard bargain than Roosevelt around a Peace table.  He could perhaps be even a little more stern.  If we do not watch out for ourselves now, it will be too late at another time when there are no bones to be picked.

On another subject, the weather here, I can say it has been very strange.  The first few weeks here the weather varied very little, but recently it has changed.  We now have a few cooler days with clouds quite often and even rain at times, such as today.

Enclosed you will find a picture which Olson took of me while sitting behind a box taking care of Immunization records which we were still at Marburg, Germany.

Also find enclosed a newspaper clipping[1] from the Army newspaper here, which came out for interviews the other day.  They certainly made a mess of it too.  My original statement was much longer and quite different.  The others of our organization are underlined.

We are going to have chicken today and I hope it is better than it has been in the past.  They have trouble of not cooking things well enough here.

Well you can begin getting my room ready for my arrival home a year from now.

As always,

Love,

Stanley

---

[1] Stars and Stripes, August 10, 1945

Hiroshima - Nagasaki Atomic bombing 1945 Aug

Aug 8, 1945 - France

Sgt. Stanley W Safford 39539976

5^th Auxiliary Surgical Group

APO 339

c/o Post Master

New York  New York

Marseille Area, France - 22

Aug 8, 1945

Dearest Mother:

Sitting here in the doorway of the dispensary, looking out over the camp toward the water.  I can see a very beautiful sunset, which is quite a bit like a California sunset in a way.  Have been C2 here all day and have done practically nothing other than waste time.

Kupfer is going to the Riviera tomorrow along with some others.  It should be quite nice there, but perhaps a little warm.  I did not care for it as I want relaxation and a chance to get away from GIs for a change. And I could not do it here on a trip of that kind.  We have never really had any decent passes as other organizations have had and a lot of them have been here a much shorter time than we have.

Aug 9, 45

Well the news here today sounds quite interesting and it begins to look as tho the war may be shortened some. From where I sit I can still see no sooner release for me.

As the radio states, the main topic of discussion here is the Atom bomb[1].  Wild stories certainly start easily on something of that type.

The other day I went into town with another fellow here and we went out on the motor boat cruise around the bay.  It was quite interesting and it made it possible for us to see a lot more of the bay.  They have an extremely beautiful coastline here and it looks much nicer from the ocean.

The other night we had a very severe rain and lightning storm here.  It was by far the heaviest rain I have ever seen.  In a short time we had a stream running thru the tent.  It at least kept the dust down for a couple of days, giving us some relief from that for a while.

I have seen three or four fairly good shows recently.  One was “Together Again” with Irene Dunne and Charles Boyer.  I thought it very good and recommend it to you for a good show.  The other was “Practically Yours” with Claudette Colbert.  It was a very amusing story and well acted.  The other, which perhaps you would not care for was “Salome When She Danced”.  Very colorful and very expensively produced. With  nothing else to do a show provides good entertainment in the outdoor theaters here, since we have no lights in our tents.  I grow weary of writing since we have had no mail for some time.

I can think of no more to write of so I will close sending my love to you all there.

All my Love,

Stanley

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[1] http://www.ibiblio.org/pha/policy/1945/1945-08-06a.html

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Atomic_bomb_1945_mission_map.svg

3 Aug 1945 - France

Sgt. Stanley W Safford 39539976

5^th Auxiliary Surgical Group

APO 339

c/o Post Master

New York  New York

Marseille Area, France - 21

3 Aug 1945

Dearest Mother:

As afore said, our mail has ceased coming, so I have not heard from you for some time.

The weather here has been nice for all but one day when we had a violent wind and a lot of dust all over everything as a result.  That day I took off for town and remained there all day but returned to find no difference.

Had intended on meeting Sgt Olson in town and going for a boat trip, but the sea was much too rough.  He was transferred from the unit here along with a few other high pointers and is stationed not far from here at one of the general hospitals.  Had I mentioned previously of him being a father shortly after the first of the year?

Have just about given up learning Bridge as there is no one here who really knows all there I about it.  Perhaps would be very interesting otherwise.

My friend in the Evacuation hospital which you may recall is on his way home after being here only since January.  They are being redeployed thru the states.

Kupfer and I are debating on one of two languages to take Spanish or Portuguese.  I am for some reason in favor of the latter.  It seems to appeal to me a little more.  It would be much easier for me and for him of two work together on something of that type.

Near here are some old Roman ruins which should be quite interesting.  I would like to go out there sometimes also.  This district is quite ancient in historic value.

There are districts here in Marseille which would put a person in mind of the motion picture “Algiers”.  The narrow streets and the steep narrow stairways.  I suppose the houses are a mass of walls, tunnels and doorways, the same as any “Casbah” would be.

Well this is about all for now so I close sending you all there my Love, from here.

Your Son,

Stanley