 |
| Lt. Leo Tomaso served as a B-17 navigator in the 100th Bombardment Group. https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/63075590/leo-tomaso https://100thbg.com/index.php?option=com_bombgrp&view=personnel&id=2061&Itemid=122 |
Leo Tomaso never had a chance to reach 100 years old today. Instead, he sacrificed his life for our freedom.
He was born on July 22, 1918 in Texas. His parents Sam and Rosa were both born in Italy. His father worked as a barber and died in 1925. Leo was the oldest child in his family. He had one younger brother. Leo attended Texas A&M and SMU.
He enlisted in the Army Air Forces in 1942. He became a second lieutenant and navigator in the 351st Bombardment Squadron, 100th Bombardment Group which as equipped with B-17 Flying Fortresses.
Lt. Tomaso's crew joined the 351st BS on January 9, 1945. He flew 17 missions.
His final mission was on March 23, 1945 with a target of Marburg, Germany. His plane was hit by flak and collided with another bomber that crumpled the right wing. The B-17 spun to the ground and exploded on impact. All nine crew on board were killed.
His grave is at Restland Memorial Park in Dallas, Texas.
Last year on this date I profiled Samuel Ogden, commander of the 3rd battalion, 325th Glider Infantry Regiment, 82nd Airborne Division who was killed in the Battle of the Bulge. You can read about Samuel here.
On behalf of the fallen, if you would like to see more people become aware of this project to honor the WW2 fallen, be sure to share with others on Twitter, Facebook, etc. Thanks for your interest!
I created this video to explain why I started this project: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vXt8QA481lY.
Please consider joining the public Facebook group to increase the exposure of this project. Go to: WW2 Fallen 100
No comments:
Post a Comment