A hero understands the degree of responsibility that comes with his freedom.

At a presentation and book signing event in Grand Rapids, Michigan this week, I was honored to recognize Sergeant and tail gunner, Keith Clinton.

Mr. Clinton is the only living member of the B-17 crew led by his pilot and flight commander, Clarence Raymond Stephenson, of Ironton, Ohio, in She Called Him Raymond – A True Story of Love, Loss, Faith and Healing. Most of the crew lost their lives in a fiery crash on September 6, 1944.

I first met him and his wife of seventy years (and member of the Women’s Army Corps), Evelyn, four years ago at his home in Michigan while researching the book. His touching stories, air battle descriptions, as well as his photographs and records, were essential to the successful completion of this project..

Just shy of his 94th birthday, Mr. Clinton is a brave soldier, a man of unquestioned integrity, and the devoted patriarch of a beautiful family. Tom Brokaw must have had him in mind when he coined the phrase, “America’s Greatest Generation.”