Court honors veteran

A community member was honored for the many militaristic accomplishments achieved in his 30 years of service as well as his decade-long stint on this earth. Hays County Commissioners Court proclaimed Nov. 7, 2023, as Lt. Col. George C. Carruthers Day.

According to the court, Carruthers is a U.S. Air Force veteran who was honored with many awards, including the distinguished Flying Cross, the Purple Heart medal, the Air Medal and the Prisoner of War Medal. He was also selected for the French Legion of Honor, the highest level of recognition awarded by the French Government, for his service to France during WWII.

His son, Rob Carruthers, said some words to honor his father.

“I want to thank Commissioner [Lon] Shell and the entire Commissioners Court for honoring my father and his service,” Carruthers said, adding that he wanted everyone to attend the Veterans Day Parade at the Hays County Courthouse at 10 a.m. on Saturday. “I want to encourage everybody to come out to that parade and thank a veteran for what they’ve done. It is an incredible sacrifice that not only our men and women in uniform make but also their families.”

The proclamation stated Carruthers was born in October of 1923 in Dallas, Texas, and was raised in Tyler during the Depression.

“Lieutenant Colonel Carruthers graduated from John Tyler High School in 1943, and following the attack on Pearl Harbor enlisted in the U.S. Army Air Force, completed training as a bombardier and was assigned to the 8th Air Force 305th bomb group, 422d Bomb Squadron,” the proclamation stated. “On July 14, 1943–Bastille Day–after completing a successful bombing mission over the Nazi-occupied Villacoublay Air Base, the 19-year-old second lieutenant and his crew of the Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress Windy City Challenger were attacked by two German fighters near Lucon, France–30 miles southeast of Paris–resulting in the explosion of the plane.”

The proclamation stated that the four crew members survived and were sent to Stalag Luft III as prisoners of war. Seven did not survive the attack.

“In late January [of] 1945, with the Soviet Red Army near the camp, the Germans ordered the evacuation of Stalag Luft III,” the proclamation stated. “Lieutenant Colonel Carruthers and nearly 10,000 other POWs were forced to march in the bitter cold and snow for a distance of 46 miles and were eventually sent to the overcrowded Stalag VII POW camp.”

The proclamation stated that on April 29, 1945 elements of Patton’s Third Army attack on the troops guarding the camp led to the prisoners' liberation. Lieutenant Carruthers is now the last living man from his flight crew.

“After the war, Lieutenant Colonel Carruthers was assigned to various bomb wings: flying B29, B50, AP-47 bombers, including a one-year tour in Vietnam where he flew over 100 combat missions,” the proclamation stated. “Lieutenant Colonel Carruthers retired from the U.S. Army [Air] Force on Nov. 1, 1971 after 30 years of service.”