Batavia man honored at air museum
Batavian Ron Altman, 79, has been busy poring over historic documents, obtaining World War II uniforms, ribbons and medals, and piecing together a tribute to his friend George Von Hoff, a famous Batavian who passed away nearly a year ago.
Altman, a Navy Yeoman petty officer in the Korean War with a passion for air and naval military history, is helping organize new displays and line up speakers from the famous 82nd Airborne Division for the seventh annual Air Classics Museum open house from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. June 18 at the Aurora Municipal Airport in Sugar Grove.
Closest to Altman's heart is the fact that the museum will be displaying the uniform and medals of Von Hoff, who was a chief aviation mechanic aboard the USS Lexington aircraft carrier when it was severely damaged in the Battle of the Coral Sea on May 8, 1942.
“The Lexington was delivering planes to Wake Island and other Solomon Islands, not long after Pearl Harbor,” Altman said. “They were helping set up bases at the harbor of Rabaul when they came under attack by about 60 Japanese airplanes.”
Altman said Von Hoff worked on the planes that ace fighter pilot Edward “Butch” O'Hare, the namesake of Chicago's airport, used in earning his Medal of Honor for shooting down five Japanese planes during the Battle of the Coral Sea. O'Hare's F4F-3 Wildcat flew off the Lexington, but he was safely aboard the rescue ship, USS Yorktown, when it picked up Von Hoff after he survived the explosion on the Lexington.
“The Air Classics Museum has a big Butch O'Hare display, so it is fitting that George will have a display nearby as well,” said Altman, who has volunteered at the museum for the seven years it has been at Aurora, after being located at DuPage Airport for the nine years prior.
In addition to getting more artifacts from family for the Von Hoff display, Altman has also been in contact with the widow of Rocco Pesola, a Park Ridge man who was a D-Day paratrooper with the 82nd Airborne, to obtain his uniform and artifacts.
“His wife gave me the uniform because she wanted it in a place of honor,” Altman said. “She has been staying at Jennings Terrace retirement home in Aurora, which recently created a World War II wing of memorabilia at the facility.”
Altman has the makings of a museum of his own in the den of his Batavia home, where he has numerous military books, photos and artifacts. Many focus on the Battle of Midway, which has long been a favorite of Altman's.
“It's one of the most fascinating battles because of the way we went about winning, with tremendous odds against us,” Altman said. “The Japanese had more ships than we did, but we still beat them.”
In his tireless efforts to secure pieces for the Air Classics Museum, Altman has relied on many sources, including contacts and knowledge gained from writing the “Fox Valley Veterans” book, which is sold at the airport.
It has helped him secure three speakers from the 82nd Airborne for the open house — Chester Sowinski of Wheaton, a lieutenant in the Fifth Army Air Force in World War II; Ralph Calderon of Elmwood Park, a paratrooper in the Korean War; and Chester Alakazar, also of Elmwood Park, a World War II paratrooper.
Altman has plenty of help from Hank Winkler of Sugar Grove, a Vietnam attack squadron commander who is also a member of the museum board.
Winkler was working at the museum, sorting out materials for displays and making contact with potential speakers when he mentioned a key factor for the June 18 event.
“We need good weather for the open house, but we will have a tent set up,” Winkler said of the museum, which is located on the far west end of the airport property off Rte. 30.
“We expect 300 to 500 people to come out, and there will be free admission and free parking,” Winkler added.
Information about the open house is available by calling the museum at (630) 466-0888 or Altman at (630) 879-3057.