THOMAS J. FORKIN SR.
The Post-Gazette requested that we honor our heros. My family has four of them, & which one should we honor? We should honor them all, but most important to me would be my husband & my two precious sons of whom he was very proud. Sgt. T3 Thomas J. Forkin Sr., 7th Armored Division, 129th Company, was one of the first group of draftees from the South Side of Pittsburgh.
I'm sure he had many experiences, but spoke little of them unless they were amusing. He told a story about how during training one of his crewman got stuck trying to get out of the tank (because he was a larger fellow) & the other crewmen laughed & teased him a lot. He had to be reassigned from the tank crew because of his size.
He was a tank commander and was wounded several times. Three tanks were blown up from under him in WWII. He fought in France, Belgium, Germany, Netherlands & Holland to name a few. He fought in the Battle of the Bulge & had nightmares as a result. He trained in the desert in the US in NV & also LA, but then ended up fighting in Europe. He went ashore in Normandy. He kept in contact with some of his tank crew after the war.
He enjoyed life & was able to father two sons, Thomas J. Forkin Jr. (Air Force in Vietnam) and James J. Forkin (US Army in Vietnam).
As to my other family Vets there are too many to mention. We did have an MIA in the Korean War (Robert Wagner-US Army) & others that will always be in our hearts. I also honor my second husband Donald Jackson (US Army) & a slew of good friends.
I've seen a lot of heros in my 95 years & am glad to thank them all today.
Sincerely, Helen Forkin
4/21/17 - 2/21/73