Soldier receives belated honors

By NATASHA LAFAYETTE

natasha@lafollettepress.com

PFC Claude Leon Baird has been missing in action for 50 years, but those who remember him still long for his company as well as answers about his disappearance.

Cousins, friends, neighbors and Baird’s two sisters remembered and mourned his memory 50 years after his disappearance on Saturday afternoon.

Friends and relatives gathered at the Campbell Memorial Gardens in LaFollette to honor his duty in the military and remember his life as a youth.

Baird served with the Military Assistance Advisory Group during the Second Taiwan Crisis in the late 1950s. Three nationalist Chinese officers and four nationalist Chinese crewmembers chartered the plane that carried Baird and three other U.S. servicemen.

During the fateful flight from Matsu Island to Taipei, Taiwan, on Oct. 1, 1958, the plane disappeared from radar.

The families of Baird, Major Robert Bloom, Captain Wayne Pitcher and RM3 Dwight Turner were told the plane was lost without a trace and the men were never heard from again.

The service over the weekend finally honored Baird. The start of the emotional ceremony recognized Baird as missing in action.

Out of the red smoke, a symbol of war, emerged an officer holding the MIA/POW flag. The Campbell County Honor Guard then gave salute to the flag while gunmen fired 21 shots into the air.

As the bugler played Taps, the crowd was overcome with sorrow at the display of honor for their lost brother and friend.

“When all else fails, we still need to have hope,” said Rev. Wesley Dupuy in the oration where he read Hebrews 11:1.

Baird’s sister, Margaret Petree, is five years younger than her brother, but she vividly remembers how he cared for his family. She said Baird carried the burden to support the large family, sending money from the north when he worked at an automotive plant.

Petree recited a poem about her journey to find the final resting place of her brother. She said her hope is that Baird would know she tried, just as he tried to take care of his family.

“Even after the service today, their hearts will still be heavy,” said Dupuy.

Petree’s son, Steve Petree, read letters provided by the comrades of Baird.

CW2 Paul R. Penn, retired from the U.S. Army, wrote that the cemetery plot dedicated to Baird was very fitting for a soldier who served his county, his home and his family in a most honorable way.

“I remember Leon as a young carefree, easygoing lad from the countryside of Tennessee,” said Penn. “I last saw PFC Claude Leon Baird on a summer day in 1958.”

According to the letter provided by Lt. Col. Leo Pleasants, retired from the U.S. Army, the day the Blue Goose plane went missing was a beautiful, sunny day with no clouds and clear visibility as far as the eye could see.

“I say to my friends, continue the search, there must be an answer,” said Pleasants.

Baird’s nephew, Petree proudly read the letters provided by the men who knew his uncle.

Petree recited the words from Col. Dave Gummere, “We must remember the inscription, ‘And ye shall know the truth and the truth shall make you free.’ In commemoration of the bravery, loyalty and sacrifice of PFC Claude Leon Baird and the other Americans reported missing on Oct. 1958, now is the time to make you free.”

Baird’s sister Sue Walden gave an emotional account of her brother’s tenderness and care.

“Our mother died and left us with a hole in our hearts that we might find out what happened to our brother,” said Walden with tears in her eyes.

The service came to an end with everyone encouraging Petree and Walden to continue the search for their brother. Many people in attendance shared their cherished memories of Baird.

Though Baird’s fate remains unknown, his family said they have some peace of mind knowing that on the 50th anniversary of his disappearance he was finally given a resting place.