Cpl. Joe Harris, whose existence is described as stunning, lived a wonderful life.
He served in various missions as a member of the 555th, the first all-Black parachute battalion in World War II, which was affectionately known as the” Triple Nickles.”
Friends, families, and defense personnel who were present at his funeral services on Saturday performed and sang in honor of Harris, who is regarded as the oldest glider veteran at the time he passed away on March 15.
He was 108.
His daughter, La Tanya Pittman, reported to The , Times as “he was a kind, thinking, and sympathetic man.” He continued,” He didn’t allow the fact that he was fighting for freedom in times of segregation prevent him from living his life.”
Harris, who was born on June 19, 1916, in Westdale, Louisiana, passed away in a , Los Angeles , medical surrounded by home. He sat in peace on Saturday at Lewis Metropolitan CME Church.
One last step for Harris into the unknown led to many tears and laughter while well. The company felt like a reunion.
His nephew, Ashton Pittman,  , thanked his father for all that he made sacrifices.
He said,” He was our rock, the foundation on which generations have been built.”
Harris was interred at Inglewood Park Cemetery and received full military honors.
A World War II Willys Van escort and a military plane flew over the Harris house in , Compton, where he had lived for more than 60 years, as part of his funeral procession.
The area was looking into plans to name a street after Harris, according to Compton , Mayor , Emma Sharif .
Members of the armed forces, the U.S. National Forest Service, and soldiers from various branches of the military all donned World War II clothing.
They included Sgt., Sgt., and retired U.S. Army. Donald Garrison, who initially met Harris a few years ago and has participated in Triple Nickles memorial activities and balloon dives, is credited with doing it.
As his speech sounded hollow, Garrison said,” Holy smokes, man, he paved the way for individuals like myself.” I feel something in my soul because I feel it. He made a lot of sacrifices because he wasn’t supposed to be anything other than a servant, cook, or manager. He was a hero, a glider.
La Tanya Pittman  claimed that while her parents was qualified as a parachute, he wanted to fly while he was serving in the military.
They “won’t let him perhaps try,” she said. He continued to serve his state, though.
Harris was a part of a” Triple Nickles,” but the troops were not sent overseas because they were “prepared for combat.” Instead, they were some of America’s first” smokejumpers.”
They were given the task of parachuting into forests to battle wildfires that had been ignored by Chinese balloon bombs and Chinese balloons, and then launched into North America from across the Pacific Ocean.
The smokejumpers used highly mysterious mission Operation Light to extinguish wildfires and subdue any lost explosives.
According to the U.S. Forest Service, they were stationed in , Pendleton, Oregon, and , Chico, California, where they responded to 36 fires and made 1, 200 dives.
According to chief historian Matt Seelinger with the Army Historical Foundation, one of the main reasons the procedure was kept secret was to prevent information from reaching Japan and the information about the balloon bombs that arrived in North America.
Although there were only six fatalities near Bly, Oregon, in May 1945 when a broken balloon was discovered, the total damage from the weapons was small.
According to Seelinger,” The balloons did not function as the Chinese meant.”
According to the documentary Beyond the Call, which records soldiers ‘ reports, Harris performed 72 successful jumps while he was in the Army.
The smokejumpers had access to additional tools, including a football-style set hat with a pan in entrance, and wildland firefighting gear.
After receiving an honorable release, Harris and his high school sweetheart Louise Singleton Harris purchased a house in Compton and had three children. He then spent almost 40 years working for the U.S. Border Patrol.
Omar Bradley, who was born next door to the Harris home, danced in Harris ‘ living space next to a huge television unit when he was 3 or 4 years old. He was also an ex-compton and mayor and grew up next door to the Harris family.
He eventually learned that the other gentlemen were veteran troops with the 555th and that he liked to invite me over and have me dancing in front of his friends. However, he had put$ 1 down and make everyone in the home, including his wife, his children, laugh because I would start doing the separates if he really wanted me to turn it on.
Harris was a beloved and a device in the Compton and Highland communities.
He was” steady, committed, and unwavering,” Bradley said. ” A genuine United,”
Neil Gallagher, a former and former wildland firefighter, and the U.S. Marine Corps were honored to attend Harris at his apartment in January.
A Pulaski, a fire device used to create firebreaks, and a parachute piece were presented to Harris by him and two other soldiers.
Gallagher, the director of the oral past organization Preserving Their Stories, said,” They fought authoritarianism and then they fought racism.”
Our nation must make sure soldiers like Mr. Harris and Mr. Harris are not forgotten, and that starts with giving models like the 555th the recognition they deserve, he said.
His wife and one nephew preceded him in death in 1981.
Two sons, one child, four children, 15 great-grandchildren, and 20 great-great-grandchildren remain.
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