The Marine Corps League Detachment 281 All Divisions on Friday organized a celebration of Joe Waldowski’s 103rd birthday outside his residence at Paul’s Run, 9896 Bustleton Ave.
Waldowski was born in Detroit on Aug. 8, 1922. After the United States joined its allies in World War II, he enlisted in the Marine Corps in 1943 and was transported by ship to the Pacific in December 1944.
While in the Pacific, as a member of the Marine’s Bombing Squadron (VMB-613), he was the radioman/waist gunner on a B-25 bomber. They flew reconnaissance and bombing missions among the Marshall Islands, Iwo Jima, Saipan and Kwajalein. He was awarded the Air Medal for meritorious achievement in aerial fights in the central Pacific, and the Asiatic Pacific Campaign medal.
Joe and his late wife Dorothy were married for 77 years and raised four children – Dot, Paul, Sue and Joe Jr. They have 12 grandchildren and 16 great-grandchildren.
The celebration outside Paul’s Run featured drive-bys by the fire department’s Engine 62 and Ladder 34 and the police department’s Highway Patrol and SWAT. Waldowski received citations from A Hero’s Welcome, state Rep. Sean Dougherty and state Sen. Joe Picozzi, coins, balloons and a hat marking the 250th birthday of the Marines.
“Thank you all. Semper Fi,” he said. “Oorah. The Marines are the best. Nobody can beat the Marines.”
A family lunch followed the celebration. ••
