Desert Hills Presbyterian Church (DHPC) member Blaine Keith will be speaking at the Veterans Day ceremony at the Boulders Resort which begins at 4 p.m. on Friday, Nov. 11. Come and hear his story.
Blaine’s flying career began with delivering U.S. mail in Rural Pennsylvania in about 1935, taking the controls at age 10 and making his solo flight at age 12. At age 17 in 1942 Blaine embarked upon an 18 year career with the U.S. Marine Corp.
Before the year was over, he earned his Silver Star and Sergeant Stripes and was flying in Guadalcanal with the legendary Joe Foss. In Guadalcanal he earned his first Bronze Star followed by a Silver Star. The Silver Star was presented by Admiral William (Bull) Halsey, Commander of The Pacific Fleet.
Blaine’s WWII career includes not only action in Guadalcanal, but Bouganville, Tinian, Saigon, Iwo-Jima and Okinawa among other Pacific Islands.
After the war, Blaine graduated from the War College and returned to flying jets in Korea, earning his second Bronze Star and a Purple Heart.
Korea was followed by several years working undercover for the Marines, North American Aviation, and NASA designing and test piloting aircraft and rocket planes.
