Maj. Joseph P. Lackey, Jr. - World War II Veteran

Joe met Velma Bishop in her hometown of Carrollton, Illinois, while there visiting his grandparents.  "I chased him 'til he caught me!" she loved to say.  World War II started, Joe enlisted in the Army, and was sent off to Fort Sill, Oklahoma.  Always clever  with a pen, one can only imagine Joe's letters, since none remain.  He finally wrote and asked Velma to marry him.  Much to the chagrin of some family members, she packed her bags and headed south on the train. On March 9, 1943, with attendants in army fatigues, Joe and Velma were married before being sent off to Seattle. Joe would spend most of the rest of the war on a ship in the Pacific, while Velma, who knew no one in the northwest, worked in the office at Boeing.

JoAnne P, Miller