Engagements
O’Callaghan – LeGaye
Meg and Kevin O’Callaghan of Rye announce the engagement of their daughter, Kelly Joy, to Albert Felicien LeGaye III, the son of Sally Husson, of Copper Mountain, Colorado.
After graduating from Rye High School in 2006, the bride-to-be received her undergraduate degree from Dartmouth College. She is currently in her first year at Boston College Law School.
The future bridegroom graduated from Dartmouth College in 2007. He is currently the business development manager at Crimson Hexagon in Boston.
A June 2012 wedding in Rye is planned.
Mission Accomplished
Last November, friends of 95-year-old Rye resident Hollis Chase, including Jules Alexander and Police Officer Mike Olsen, notified Rye American Legion Post 128 that Mr. Chase, a World War II B-24 bomber pilot who distinguished himself in combat in the South Pacific, had been discharged without receiving several of the medals he had earned. Past Commander Tom Saunders contacted Congresswoman Nita Lowey’s office and began a yearlong process that culminated in an awards ceremony just in time for Veterans Day.
Congresswoman Lowey presented Mr. Chase with the medals November 10 at the Mamaroneck Public Library, after briefly describing some of the feats that won him recognition.
Mr. Chase was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross for extraordinary achievement while participating in an unescorted mission to an enemy base, Eton Island, Truk Atoll, on June 7, 1944. Even though the striking force was only a small fraction of the original formation, the remaining fighters “unhesitatingly attacked and successfully bombed the primary target.”
He also received the Distinguished Flying Cross (Oak-Leaf Cluster) for extraordinary achievement while participating in an aerial flight to Balikpapan, Borneo, on September 30, 1944.
The citation reads: “Lieutenant Chase led a squadron of B-24 aircraft which took part in the first mass daylight raid against this heavily defended Japanese oil refining center. Carrying the maximum bomb and fuel load, with their ammunition supply cut in half, these bombers flew a record distance of more than 2,500 miles over water without fighter escort into an area where strong enemy resistance was inevitable. As they approached the target, a very intense and accurate concentration of anti-aircraft fire was encountered. Despite this opposition, enemy defenses were penetrated and bombs were dropped on the target, causing great damage to the refineries and other installations. The outstanding courage and devotion to duty displayed by Lieutenant Chase during this flight are worthy of the highest commendation.”
— Photo by Tom Saunders