STORY
NUMBER
ONE
Many years ago, Al Capone virtually owned Chicago .
Capone wasn't famous for anything heroic. He was
notorious for enmeshing the windy city in everything
from bootlegged booze and prostitution to
murder.
Capone had a lawyer nicknamed "Easy Eddie." He was
Capone's lawyer for a good reason. Eddie was
very good! In fact, Eddie's skill at legal
maneuvering kept Big Al out of jail for a long
time.
To show his appreciation, Capone paid him very
well. Not only was the money big, but Eddie
got special dividends, as well. For instance,
he and his family occupied a fenced-in mansion with
live-in help and all of the conveniences of
the day. The estate was so large that it
filled an entire Chicago City
block.
Eddie lived the high life of the Chicago mob and
gave little consideration to the atrocity that went
on around him.
Eddie did have one soft spot, however. He had a son
that he loved dearly. Eddie saw to it that his
young son had clothes, cars, and a good education.
Nothing was withheld. Price was no
object.
And, despite his involvement with organized crime,
Eddie even tried to teach him right from
wrong. Eddie wanted his son to be a better man
than he
was.
Yet, with all his wealth and influence, there were
two things he couldn't give his son; he couldn't
pass on a good name or a good
example.
One day, Easy Eddie reached a difficult decision.
Easy Eddie wanted to rectify wrongs he had
done.
He decided he would go to the authorities and tell
the truth about Al "Scarface" Capone, clean up his
tarnished name, and offer his son some semblance of
integrity. To do this, he would have to
testify against The Mob, and he knew that the cost
would be great. So, he
testified.
Within the year, Easy Eddie's life ended in a blaze
of gunfire on a lonely Chicago
Street . But in his
eyes, he had given his son the greatest gift he had
to offer, at the greatest price he could ever
pay. Police removed from his pockets a rosary,
a crucifix, a religious medallion, and a poem
clipped from a
magazine.
The poem
reads:
"The clock of life is wound but once, and no man has
the power to tell just when the hands will stop, at
late or early hour. Now is the only time you
own.. Live, love, toil with a will. Place no faith
in time. For the clock may soon be still."
STORY NUMBER
TWO
World War II produced many heroes. One such man was
Lieutenant Commander Butch
O'Hare.
He was a fighter pilot assigned to the aircraft
carrier Lexington in the
South
Pacific.
One day his entire squadron was sent on a
mission. After he was airborne, he looked at
his fuel gauge and realized that someone had
forgotten to top off his fuel
tank.
He would not have enough fuel to complete his
mission and get back to his
ship.
His flight leader told him to return to the
carrier. Reluctantly, he dropped out of
formation and headed back to the
fleet.
As he was returning to the mother ship, he saw
something that turned his blood cold; a squadron of
Japanese aircraft was speeding its way toward the
American
fleet.
The American fighters were gone on a sortie, and the
fleet was all but defenceless. He couldn't
reach his squadron and bring them back in time to
save the fleet. Nor could he warn the fleet of
the approaching danger. There was only one
thing to do. He must somehow divert them from
the
fleet.
Laying aside all thoughts of personal safety, he
dove into the formation of Japanese planes.
Wing-mounted 50 caliber's blazed as he charged in,
attacking one surprised enemy plane and then
another. Butch wove in and out of the now
broken formation and fired at as many planes as
possible until all his ammunition was finally spent.
Undaunted, he continued the assault. He dove
at the planes, trying to clip a wing or tail in
hopes of damaging as many enemy planes as possible,
rendering them unfit to
fly.
Finally, the exasperated Japanese squadron took off
in another
direction.
Deeply relieved, Butch O'Hare and his tattered
fighter limped back to the
carrier.
Upon arrival, he reported in and related the event
surrounding his return. The film from the
gun-camera mounted on his plane told the tale.
It showed the extent of Butch's daring attempt to
protect his fleet. He had, in fact, destroyed
five enemy aircraft
This took place on
February 20, 1942 , and for that action Butch became
the Navy's first Ace of W.W.II, and the first Naval
Aviator to win the Medal of
Honour.
A year later Butch was killed in aerial combat at
the age of 29. His home town would not allow
the memory of this WW II hero to fade, and today,
O'Hare Airport in Chicago is named in
tribute to the courage of this great
man.
So, the next time you find yourself at O'Hare
International, give some thought to visiting Butch's
memorial displaying his statue and his Medal of
Honor. It's
located between Terminals 1 and
2.
SO
WHAT DO THESE TWO STORIES HAVE TO DO WITH EACH
OTHER?
Butch O'Hare was "Easy Eddie's"
son.
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