Joe Jenkins
July 1, 1918 ~ October 3, 2016 (age 98) 98 Years OldShare using:
Joe Jenkins passed away on Monday, October 3rd. He was born on July 1, 1918 to the late Bess and Louis G. Jenkins in Wyoming, Delaware.
He was a graduate of the class of 1937 from Caesar Rodney High School. Last year he was honored to ride in the Caesar Rodney Homecoming parade as one of the oldest alumni.
Joe learned to fly in 1933 at the now defunct Dover Airfield and joined the Rehoboth Beach Flying Club. He was drafted in 1940. After the Pearl Harbor attack, Joe took the cadet exam and transferred from the 44th Division to the Army Air Force and became a night fighter pilot.
Stationed in North Africa, he was assigned to the US Air Force’s 414th Night Fighter Squadron, flying the British-built Beaufighter.
When the first American-built night fighter, the Northrup P-61 Black Widow, dubbed the “First Nighter,” was delivered to the squadron in 1944, Joe was given the controls. He saw service all over Europe, including Sardinia, Corsica, Italy and after the Battle of the Bulge, Belgium, for bombing runs on Germany. During his service, he was awarded seven Air Medals and the Distinguished Flying Cross.
Joe opened Jenkins Airport in 1948, operating a flight school and crop-dusting business throughout Delaware, Maryland, Virginia and Pennsylvania. In 1950, he began aircraft restoration work and in 1960 started an aircraft salvage business, which continues today.
Joe joined the Air Force Reserves in 1951, attached to Andrews AFB and later to New Castle County Airport and Dover Air Force Base. He retired as a lieutenant colonel.
He was inducted into the Delaware Aviation Hall of Fame on Oct. 11,2003.
Joe was preceded in death by his wife, Ellen H. Jenkins. He is survived by his daughter, Jan D. Jenkins (Brian Jesse) and his son Joe S. Jenkins.
Friends may call from 5-7 p.m. Thursday, October 6, 2016 at the Pippin Funeral Home, 119 W. Camden-Wyoming Ave. Wyoming, DE. Graveside Service will be 11:00 am Friday, October 7, 2016 at the Quaker Camden Friends Meeting Cemetery, Camden, Delaware.
In lieu of flowers the family requests donations be made in Joe’s memory to First State Animal Center and SPCA, 32 Shelter Circle, Camden, DE 19934, or Camden Friends Meeting, 122-E Camden-Wyoming Ave., Camden, DE 19934.
