37th PHOTO MAPPING SQUADRON
ESLER FIELD, LA.

January 15, 1944

Dear Friends:

I have just received you letter of December 8, 1943. Many thanks for the list of addresses of my fellow classmates in the service. At the top of the page you will notice my latest address. Your last letter took over a month to reach me because it was addressed to Greenville, S.C. where I was stationed about 10 months ago. Since then Many things have happened to me. I spent about six months on the other side of the Atlantic in the European Theatre of War. I hope to be able to tell my friends at Bryant of my flying experiences on the other side some time in the future.

I returned to the United States on our second anniversary of the beginning of the war, Dec. 7. Within two weeks of my return I received a 20 day leave as a reward for foreign service. While on this leave I married a beautiful Texas girl who had promised to await my return. We are now living in the swamps of Louisiana (Winnfield) where I am doing my best to teach the latest flying technique to those who are on their way across.

My typing ability has gone downhill considerably since I have left Bryant so please keep this letter away from anyone connected with the typing dept.

I have not as yet received a Christmass [sic] package from the Bryant Service Club but it is probably with several more of my letters etc. that were sent overseas and must be sent back here. I am still receiving Christmas cards and packages and I believe it will be about two more months before everything has cought [sic] up with me.

Sincerely,
Kirke Everson [Transcription ends]

April 2, 1943

Dear Friends:

Many thanks for the letters and packages from the Bryant Service Club. It is great to hear what the College and my former classmates are doing in the war.

I am no longer teaching flying at Randolph Field but am now at an operational training unit here in South Carolina getting ready to go overseas. I will be here for about two months training a crew for my B-25.

Give my regards to my friends at Bryant and tell Lts. Shors and Hammond to look around in the army for me.

Sincerely
Kirke Everson

My new address:
Lt. Kirke B. Everson Jr.
473 Bombardment Squadron
G.A.A.B. Greenville, S. C.
[Transcription ends]

Randolph Field, Texas

February 10, 1943

Bryant College Service Club.
Bryant College
Providence, Rhode Island

Dear Friends:

I am sorry that I did not as yet thank you for the box of candy which I received from you at Christmas Time. It arrived in good condition in plenty of time for Christmas and was greatly appreciated.

Not long ago one of my students let the plane we were flying get out of control on a take-off and we were six weeks recuperating. But everything is back under control again and I am back instructing.

Please let me hear more from Bryant in the future and I will try to be more prompt in my replys [sic].

Sincerely,
Lt. Kirke B. Everson Jr.
B. O. 2. Randolph Field
Texas
[Transcription ends]

PRESIDENT:
KIRKE B. EVERSON

Feb. 6, 1943.

Bryant College Service Club
Bryant College
Providence.

Gentlemen,--

Replying to your letter of Jan. 19 inquiring whether my son Lt. Kirke B. Everson Jr. received the packages which you sent him Apr. 27 and Dec. 4,--he was home on sick leave during the last week of December, said he had received packages from you, and he intended to call and thank you in person.

But his leave was short, and he was not allowed out during bad weather on account of his weak condition, so he did not have time for several calls.

I shall remind him. His address is B. O. Q., Randolph Field, Tex. Please accept his parents’ thanks for your kindness.

Yours truly,
Kirke B. Everson
[Transcription ends]

“WEST POINT OF THE AIR”

July 25, 1942

Dear Bryant Co-Ed:

While going through some papers, I came across your letter of April 27 and decided to answer it late as it is.

Having forgotten almost everything Mr. Naylor taught me about correspondence while I was at Bryant I will try to compose an interesting and reasonable letter.

I am a lieutenant in the Air Corps and was assigned to Randolph Field as a flying instructor last May much against my will. When I received my wings I had visions of flying bombers in Australia but these have long since faded into the distance. My work here consists of teaching flying cadets to fly basic trainers and myself to fly the new fighting ships as fast as the Army receives them.

In case you have ambitions of becoming a flying instructor, here is an accounting of a day’s work. At 8:00 A.M. (a reasonable hour) I go to the flying line and make a preflight inspection of my plane and any plane my students may fly. At 9:00 A.M. the eager! young! cadets arrive. Five are assigned and report to me. We have a little talk about what is expected of them and then start flying. I fly one hour with each student and spend about 15 minutes criticizing the student’s flight. By about 4 P.M. we are through flying unless night flying is scheduled. I give the planes their daily inspection and put them to bed. After spending about an hour making out students’ grade slips for the day’s work it is 6 P.M. and suppertime. We are then off until 8 P.M. when night flying starts. This is just a repetition of the day’s flying and usually lasts until 2 A.M. If no night flying is scheduled we teach ground school until about 10 P.M. We get time off every time weather does not permit flying. Otherwise the above schedule goes on seven days a week.

For recreation I generally get about an hour’s swimming just before supper at the pool at the Officers’ Club which is pretty nice.

You can tell my teachers at Bryant that I never knew what they were up against until I started teaching navigation, meteorology, etc. to these cadets. If you have a chance I would appreciate your showing this letter to Mr. Gulski. I am sure he will remember me as I was more trouble to him than most students.

I also wish to express my thanks for the packages from the Bryant Service Club and the Bryant Alumni Bulletin which arrives frequently.

Texas isn’t a very good place to spend the summer and work here is very monotonous. I would like to be back in New England where the temperature isn’t 100-110° almost every day. I think that if I am a good boy I may get a five day leave around Christmas. However, with all the flying regulations we have here it is very hard to behave myself considering my reckless nature. Twice so far I have been reprimanded for doing maneuvers which are considered bad examples to students. They will admit I am still alive so my flying must be safe enough.

Please let me hear more about the happenings at Bryant and in Providence.

Sincerely,

Kirke Everson [Transcription ends]