It is with much sadness and a broken heart that I prepare this story.
I received word yesterday that my good friend and a fellow US Army soldier, Jim Nelson passed at his home on Friday, 21 December 2018 after a long battle with cancer.
Many of you have probably never heard of Jim, nor have you seen any of his photographs, but today let's look back to the early days of my writings about the US Military in Taiwan and prepare a list stories in which his old photos were presented,
Jim contacted me a short time after I opened the Taipei Air Station dot com site on Double 10 2005.
I don't have his correspondence from that time, but we corresponded back and forth by Email and on the phone.
We have spoken many times over the phone through the years.
He mailed me many of photographs, most of which I will link to at the end of this post.
I was very happy to receive his mail and overjoyed to see so many photographs taken on Tainan as the US area was being constructed as well as some on the mountain outside of Tainan, and others off-base around the area of Tainan.
Jim and his fellow Soldier's were assigned to, A Company, 802nd Engineer Aviation Battalion. This battalion was one of many who were attached with the US Air Force. They were called - SCARWAF - Special Category Army Reassigned with Air Force.
If you were ever assigned at Tainan Air Base, you will enjoy looking back to the early days when there was virtually nothing around until the Army Arrived!
Click on each link below to see more of the early days of Tainan.
Thank you,
Kent Mathieu
Airman and Soldier
Taipei Air Station Blog and Web Site
Double click on each line below and it will open
and here, the only photos that I have of Jim......
Jim in fatigues, opening barracks for Reserve Summer Training at Fort Carson Colorado, June 1959.
Jim standing beside his 1957 Studebaker June 1959 at Fort Carson.
Jim, at the local Harley Shop 2008.
Jim left the Army in July 1959.
Jim left this World in December 2018, nearly 60 years after being discharged!
He had a long life.
God Bless Jim Nelson!
1 comment:
Thanks Kent Mathieu for sharing those photographs and giving an ode for Jim Nelson. I have talked to him many times, since 2009 when you first made me aware of his contribution with building Tainan AB, working with the Corps of Engineers. You had given me his home phone, and I was able to talk with him about Tainan AB mano to mano. He obviously had a profound love of the place and was very proud of what they accomplished during the time he was assigned there. He was very patient and open with my questions and was the perfect gentleman. I am sadden to hear of his passing now, but knew his health was waning over these last years.
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