THE WALL OF FACES

Don and I attended the same Grammar ,High and College together.He was and is a Gentleman

Do not stand at my grave and weep
I am not there. I do not sleep.
I am a thousand winds that blow.
I am the diamond glints on snow.
I am the sunlight on ripened grain.
I am the gentle autumn rain.
When you awaken in the morning's hush
I am the swift uplifting rush
Of quiet birds in circled flight.
I am the soft stars that shine at night.
Do not stand at my grave and cry;
I am not there. I did not die.

My father also died on this plane, Lt. Col. Robert H. Barr
He was on board as an observer that day.

Dear Captain Donald Maccio, Thank you for your service as a Navigator. Saying thank you isn't enough, but it is from the heart. It is Memorial Day weekend, but like none other. Time passes quickly. Please watch over America, it stills needs your strength, courage, guidance and faithfulness. Rest in peace with the angels.

On July 27 1969, a U.S. Air Force Boeing B-52D Stratofortress strategic bomber (#56-0630) from the 17th Bomb Wing, 4133rd Bomb Wing, Strategic Air Command, crashed into the Pacific Ocean following the failure of the starboard wing after takeoff from Anderson Air Force Base in Guam. All eight personnel aboard were killed. The lost crewmen included aircraft commander MAJ Edward W. Wyatt, co-pilot CAPT John A. Albasio, radar navigator CAPT Donald J. Maccio, navigator CAPT Edward A. Miskowski, electronic warfare officer (EWO) 1LT Gary P. Leach, and gunner TSGT Clinton E. Tibbetts. The two other U. S. Air Force personnel reportedly on board the aircraft were LTC Robert H. Barr and TSGT Richard Piskula. The wing loss occurred about the time the nose wheel left the ground during takeoff. Eyewitness accounts reported that the plane continued momentarily in level flight, then made a violent bank below the sight of the cliff at the end of the runway, crashing into the ocean. Aircraft commander CAPT Wyatt attempted to eject, and his chute was found either fully or partially deployed. His remains were recovered. The remains of the four other crewmen and one passenger were also recovered. However, neither Leach’s nor Barr’s bodies were found. Tibbetts was posthumously promoted to Master Sergeant. [Taken from coffeltdatabase.org, aviation-safety.net, and web.archive.org]