By Beverly Clinkingbeard

Jay Bohling grew up on a farm west of the Missouri River near Auburn, Nebraska. He was one of a family of seven children of Walter and Rosa Pearl (Moody) Bohling. He attended Happy Valley, Dist. 71, country school and graduated in 1961 at Auburn High School. By September, he was enlisted in the U.S. Navy and was in San Diego, California, training at boot camp.

Following boot camp, he was home for five days before going to Jacksonville, Florida, for a temporary assignment until a Class A Special Security Forces school opened up in Memphis, Tennessee. There, he was assigned as AME (Aviation Machinist Mate Emergency Equipment) and rated as an Airman. Nine weeks later, he was on his way to an assignment at Miramar Naval Station near San Francisco, California (Blimp Field) to VA95 Attack Squadron. He was flown to Yakuska, Japan, and joined A1H Squadron, a bomber attack plane. He was stationed aboard the USS Ranger, an aircraft carrier. His duties involved taking care of planes and he was in charge of oxygen and explosives maintenance. The USS Ranger sailed the South China Sea, staying at sea 30 days at a time, making bombing sorties into Viet Nam, before making port in Japan or Hong Kong. When in port, Jay played the role of tourist and tried to see what he could.

The USS Ranger returned to San Francisco Treasure Island. From there, Jay was sent to a Naval Station at Lemoore, California, for re-training and further exercises in Yuma, Arizona. Following that, the USS Ranger was again deployed, patrolling in the South China Sea. The ship stayed at sea for 65 days before returning to port. The objective of the military was to stop the infiltration of the Viet Cong by bombing bridges, roads and other primary targets. Jay loaded bombs, including nuclear bombs and was required to stay with the plane if the captain was not present. (Official involvement in Viet Nam was declared in 1965 by President Johnson. However, in 1955, President Eisenhower began a military assistance and presence to South Viet Nam.) Liberty for the USS Ranger was Hong Kong and Jay boarded a train traveling to see the Great Wall of China. He walked the wall and did other sightseeing in Hong Kong. He also attended the 1964 Summer Olympic Games in Tokyo, Japan.

The ship returned to Treasure Island in 1965 and Jay was sent to Lemoore Naval Base. He bought a car and took leave to drive home to Nebraska. He drove back to Lemoore and was discharged in August, 1965. His military status was moved to Reserve Duty. He decided to check out Seattle, Washington, and discovered his money didn’t last long. He drove home, enrolled at Peru State College, Peru, Nebraska, and with the aid of the GI Bill, earned a BS degree in Education. He married Patsy Katz in his junior year and when they graduated, walked across the podium as husband and wife. Patsy had a job teaching in Auburn schools, but in the absence of finding a teaching job, Jay worked other jobs, and that turned into 22 years at a lumber yard and 15 years at Farmer’s Market. “Forty-two years I punched a time clock and never missed a day of work.” Jay and Patsy had four sons, Scott, Doug, Derek and Benjamin, and divorced after 32 years of marriage.

These days, Jay is experiencing a busy retirement. He lives in Sidney, Iowa, and his volunteer efforts are many. Through the Nebraska Senate Lutheran and St. Paul’s Hickory Grove Church in Auburn, twice a year he accompanies a mission to the Cherokee Indian Reservation in Oklahoma. In the fall of 2022, the crew installed a new roof on a home. He is a participant of the Promise Keepers Bible Study in Tarkio, Missouri. He serves on the Porter’s Lake Board (family-style skating rink open to the public), as well as the Senior Citizens Center Board in Shenandoah, Iowa. He is also a member of St. John’s Lutheran Church, Westboro, Missouri. When asked, “What’s the best thing about life?” he answered, “Learn from experience and go from there.”

Thank you, Jay, for your time and your service!

’Til next time . . .