Lt. Joseph S. Pesek, 396th Air Service Squadron, 12th Air Service Group. Photo from December 1, 1943, Keesler Air Force Base.
Lt. Col. Joseph Pesek, USAF, (Retired) was born on January 14, 1918 in Auburn, NY.
On December 5, 1936, he enlisted in the Army 28th Infantry, Fort Ontario. "The people I talked to at the gas station where I worked, many who were World War I vets, all said there was another war coming on, and I figured I might as well join up." He was eventually promoted to corporal.
He enlisted a second time on January 5, 1940, in the United States Army Air Corps, serving at Hickam Field, Hawaii, assigned to headquarters squadron, 5th Bomber Group. He was promoted to staff sergeant effective March 18, 1941. He was an eyewitness to the Japanese attack at Hickam Field on December 7th, 1941 and survived several near misses during the Japanese attack. At one point, a machine gun crew he had just helped took a direct hit, killing all, but he had already left them during a lull in fighting. Another time a bomb dropped on a hanger where he was getting ammunition, blasting him to the ground.
He departed Hawaii in 1943 and was assigned to Headquarters, 12th Air Service Group (ASG) in Santa Maria, California. Enroute to this assignment, he was selected to attend Officer Candidate School in Miami, Florida. Upon commissioning, he returned to the 12th ASG and was assigned to Luliang, China supporting the China-Burma-India campaign, where the group was known as the "Service Commandos." He was in China on VJ Day. "We all knew about the atom bomb being dropped [a few days before] and that the war would soon end. We were happy it was over."
The war being over also allowed important personal business to go forward, and Joe and Georgiana were married on October 25, 1945. The two would be married for 70 years, and have five children.
Following the war, Joseph Pesek would serve in a number of other assignments stateside before being transferred into the United States Air Force following its 1947 activation. He was assigned to the United States Air Force Inspector General team and the Defense Courier Service before retiring in 1960 after 24 years of active duty. He would return to the Defense Courier Service as a civil servant for 20 years before he retired from the federal government in 1980 to enjoy a full and active retirement. He spent a lot of time with his grandchildren, traveled the world, was an avid golfer and died a die-hard Redskins fan. He passed away in November 29, 2015 at the age of 97, and was laid to rest at Arlington National Cemetery in the summer of 2016.
A brother, Robert P. Pesek, also served in the Army Air Corps. in the war.
(Image courtesy of Ken Pesek, son, and text based on original text provided by Ken Pesek, as well as other sources, including Howard County Beacon.)
