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B is for Berlin Candy Bomber - Col. Gail Halvorsen

4/1/2015

17 Comments

 
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"Every Hero Has A Story." My Blogging From A to Z theme bridges the summer library reading programs throughout the U.S. with storytelling opportunities, ideas, and activities.
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Children and adults alike should hear this true tale of personal courage, caring for others, and perseverance. I had never heard of the Berlin Candy Bombers or Gail Halvorsen until a few years ago but now I share their story often to the schools I visit while storytelling.
Three years after the end of WWII on June 24, 1948, Russia's Josef Stalin, blockaded the canal routes, roads, and railroads to cut off West Berliners from food, clothing, and heat for fifteen horrific months. America and Great Britain's Air Forces  stepped up and on June 26, 1948  through Sept. 30, 1949 flew over 277,000 missions, delivering needed staples such as flour, wheat, milk, meat, coal, and kerosene - day and night. Their efforts fed over 2.2 million people! 
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Col. Gail Halvorsen was one of those pilots and this is where his story begins. While delivering supplies, he noticed about 30 children, ranging from 8 - 11 year olds, standing at the end of the runway. They were hungry, but remained courteous, thanking him for the flour and asking questions. There was no complaining - just grateful that America and Great Britain had not forgotten them - just grateful for their freedom. Gail wanted to give them something so he dug into his pocket and pulled out two sticks of Spearmint Gum wrapped in the foil paper. He knew it wouldn't be enough for all the kids but went ahead and handed them over to the kids. The wrappers were then torn in thin pieces and passed around to the others so each could smell the mint. Witnessing all of this made Gail proclaim that he would drop chocolate the next day, realizing that these children had probably never tasted sugar or chocolate. The kids asked how they would know it was him and Gail replied that he would wiggle the wings of the plane and then drop the chocolate down using parachutes made from handkerchiefs. As promised, he delivered the Hershey Chocolate bars one day after the next. He was  soon known as "Uncle Wiggly Wings" or "Onkel Wackelflügel" and "The Chocolate Bomber."  Eventually, a German reporter caught Col. Halvorsen in action and wrote an article in their local newspaper. Halvorsen's secret act of kindness was not secret anymore. Gail noted that he was disciplined and almost court martialed but other pilots joined him in this brave endeavor to give the West Berliners hope for their freedom by delivering masses of Hershey Chocolate bars to now thousands of children.

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The Germans remember this act of kindness, braveness, and humanity. The pilots were considered heroes and still are today. Please share this story to others - especially children of today who are learning what acts of kindness mean to the world.

Links to the Berlin Candy Bomber- Col. Gail Halvorsen

Great link for elementary and middle school children on the Berlin Candy Bomber
teacher_kit_pdf.pdf
File Size: 235 kb
File Type: pdf
Download File

This is a PDF lesson plan kit on the Berlin Air Lift
Nice narration by Gail Halvorsen of his decision to drop chocolate candy using white handkerchiefs as parachutes from the plane.
A bit more detailed information about Gail and his men.
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Mercedes and the Chocolate Pilot
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The Berlin Candy Bomber
17 Comments
Sharon link
4/2/2015 02:52:56 am

Thiscwascawesome! I've never heard this story before!

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Sue Kuentz link
4/2/2015 03:41:14 am

Totaly agree Sharon! Pretty amazing! Thanks for visiting!

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Chuck Allen link
4/2/2015 04:22:04 am

What a cool story! I love hearing about people like this.

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Julia link
4/2/2015 04:45:51 am

Wow this is a very nice story. It also makes us cognizant of appreciating the small things we have. Just because the store is filled with candy does not mean we have to buy a whole bunch and eat it all. We can remember how such things as chocolate candy were considered a luxury, and a surprise gift during times of scarcity. I think such stories can make us appreciative of what we have.

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Sue Kuentz link
4/2/2015 04:53:14 am

Thank you for your comments Julia and I totally agree with you. I do recall my Grandparents telling me how they had to ration the sugar and chocolate during WWII - I couldn't relate as a kid but now I cherish their stories and the ones I'm just now discovering!

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Jeri Burns link
4/2/2015 05:16:02 am

Great story. You know I once heard it and am so grateful to be reminded about it. Thank you. What a great theme Sue!

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Kari link
4/2/2015 05:31:38 am

I love this theme!

I first heard of the candy bombers a few years ago when a junior high friend (re-encountered on Facebook) published a book called The Candy Bombers. It's a cool story!

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megan hicks link
4/2/2015 05:37:59 am

What a great story. And I have a new favorite word: wackelflugel!

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Susan McCullough
4/2/2015 06:35:54 am

Megan, it actually should be Wackelflügel, or Wackelfluegel. Always capitalized, as a noun or proper name (even though it's a combined word noun) and "Flügel" is always umlauted. Flugel doesn't mean anything at all, but Flügel is wing(s).

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keagan
3/18/2016 08:46:48 am

hello

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Kate Norris link
4/2/2015 07:32:01 am

Thank you so much for sharing this! We live in the Netherlands and are going to Berlin later this month, so little bits of history like this are what I'm looking for. :)

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Robin Bady link
4/2/2015 07:48:23 am

I go to Berlin a lot; my brother has been living there for the past 35 years. I will send this to him and ask him what he knows about it.

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Tarkabarka
4/2/2015 09:30:56 am

I love this story :) We talked about it in our Cultural Diplomacy class :)

@TarkabarkaHolgy from
<a href="http://multicoloreddiary.blogspot.com">Multicolored Diary</a> - Epics from A to Z
<a href="http://hungarykum.blogspot.com">MopDog</a> - 26 Ways to Die in Medieval Hungary

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Carolyn Stearns link
4/2/2015 02:45:19 pm

This is a really good story! It fits my investigative theme for the month with the kids at after school. We will investigate the Candy Bomber and maybe have a re-enactment!

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Sue Kuentz link
4/2/2015 04:43:09 pm

How exciting Carolyn! The kids will love the investigative research. Post pictures of the re-enactment!

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Shawn Griffith link
4/7/2015 03:36:22 am

Great A-to-Z post. I love this story and had actually heard a version of it when I was growing up. You are right that there needs to be more kindness and other good character traits in the world. Thank you for sharing this and promoting great stories as a way of extolling good character virtues!

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dgkrf link
1/10/2018 03:24:30 pm

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