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Elmer Gene Allred
was born in
Holdenville, OK, but he grew up in the Fort Worth, TX, area. He had
a challenging childhood. His father John P. Allred and his mother
Lily M. Fowler divorced when he was a baby. He had two siblings,
Loretta and Royce, who lived with their father. Elmer lived with his
mother until he started school, at which time he lived with his
mother’s sisters.
His childhood goal
was to fly, but his family was not supportive of him so he decided
to reach his goal on his own. At age 12 he moved to the back of a
General Store where he slept on a cot and used an old outhouse. He
had many challenges along the way, but he overcame them. In 1947, at
the age of 16, he graduated from the Fort Worth Technical High
School where he played basketball and was the Valedictorian of his
class. He received a two-year scholarship to Oklahoma A&M where he
majored in aeronautics prior to entering West Point in July 1950.
As a member of
Company F-1 Elmer hit the ground running and as reported in the 1954
Howitzer he “promptly proved himself as a happy-go-lucky guy.
He is always ready to help a buddy. From old Elmer, the pride of
Texas, you can learn anything: that you’re good for a 3.0 in fluids
to the latest tall tale. There will never be a dull moment with
Elmer around.”
It did not
surprise anyone (except perhaps his family) that upon graduation he
was commissioned in the Air Force. It was another major step forward
in accomplishing his lifelong goal of flying.
He met his
wife-to-be on a blind date during First Class year. Lillian Gean
Sito was a New York City gal and she found Elmer to be quite
different from the other cadets she had met. As time went on she
learned of Elmer’s childhood life and that this self-made man had
many of the attributes she admired. Their relationship blossomed.
Before reporting for flight training they were married in Fort
Worth, TX, on Jul 17, 1954. Together they would share 24 moves
during their 27 years of military service.
They started their
life together at Hondo, TX, where Elmer got his basic training. From
there they went to Williams AFB in Chandler, AZ, where in 1956 Elmer
earned his wings as an F-86 pilot. Their daughter Derri Lee was born
while they were at Williams. A year later, while stationed at Nellis
AFB, Las Vegas, their second child, a son Marc Rane, was born. This
followed by a three-year overseas tour at Kadena AFB, Okinawa, where
their third child, Roice Gene, was born.
Subsequently,
their assignments took then to Myrtle Beach AFB. During this
assignment Elmer was frequently deployed to Aviano AFB in Italy. In
a major change from his previous flying assignments Elmer was
assigned to Fort Bragg, NC, from 1962 to 1964, where he was a
Forward Air Controller (FAC). At Fort Bragg he also qualified as a
jumpmaster at the 82d Airborne Division.
From Fort Bragg
Elmer was assigned to Vietnam (1964-65) with duties as a FAC. From
1965 to 1966 he was a flight commander in the USAF F-104 training
program for the German Air Force at Luke AFB, AZ.
Elmer continued to
find time from his flying duties to continue his education. In 1970
he received a Master of Arts Degree from Arizona State University.
In 1971 he graduated from the Air War College and also received a
Master of Political Science from Auburn University.
After the War
College he was again assigned duty in Vietnam, this time flying the
F-4, for what was to be his final flying assignment. He had duty at
Langley Air Force Base upon his return from Vietnam. This was
followed by an unaccompanied tour in Korea.
It was during the
Korean tour that Elmer was selected to be the commander of Ching
Chuan Kang (CCK) Air Base in Taiwan. His mission was to eventually
turn the base over to the Chinese. After Elmer settled into his
command assignment, Lil joined him for a year on Taiwan and lived on
the economy. Although there were challenges associated with living
on the economy in Taiwan, Lil remembers her time there as among the
happiest times of her life.
Following the
Taiwan assignment Elmer served at the SHAPE Headquarters at Mons,
Belgium, from 1975 to 1978. Following that he was assigned to
Langley AFB, VA, where he retired as a colonel with 27 years of
service in 1981.
After leaving
active duty Lil and Elmer settled down in Scottsdale, AZ, to be near
their children and their families. Elmer put his many talents
together as a real estate broker, eventually establishing his own
successful brokerage firm.
Elmer loved to
gamble, so he and Lil took many trips to Las Vegas. He was also an
avid reader mostly about history and science.
In January of 2012
Elmer went to the doctor for a check-up and was diagnosed with liver
cancer, which metastasized into brain cancer.
Elmer was
described as a happy-go-lucky person who was extremely generous and
always ready to try anything new. In addition to their two sons and
one daughter they were blessed with five grandchildren and one
great-granddaughter.
Elmer rose from a
difficult and challenging childhood to fulfill his youthful dream of
becoming a pilot, but more than that he served his country for 27
years in a wide variety of demanding assignments throughout the
world. This was followed by a very successful 30-year career in real
estate. Well Done Elmer, Be Thou at Peace.
— Ken Bailey ’54
and Lil Allred
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