My Dad, Col. James H. Hall (USAF) ret. was the best Dad ever. He enlisted in the navy at 17. Spent time on a carrier at very end of WWII. He received a fleet appointment to the US Naval Academy. He graduated in 1950. He took his commission in the Air Force, and became an Ace fighter pilot during the Korean war. He always joked that instead of flying for the Navy he flew for the Air Force, because he liked his runways where he left them. When he proposed to my Mother he said marry me and you marry his airplanes. He always flew anything "hot and fast." A direct quote. It was a very sad day when he was no longer able to fly, due to eyesight. Pilots don't where bifocals. But he stayed in aeronautics, flying a desk as he put it. He retired in 1976. Something he really wasn't ready for, but decided the military was not the same, and it was time. We lost him to a very rare disease in 2001. He was only 74. He was buried at Arlington National Cemetery with full military honors. Something he said was not necessary, but as a family we felt her deserved it. It was worst day of my life, but I have never been so moved. I miss him every minute of everyday. I will always love him, and he will always be my hero!

Mary Hall Doak
Mechanicsville, VA