Paul Gerhardt Petersen was born on August 19, 1923, in Rembrandt, Buena Vista County, Iowa. He was the son of Nettie Petersen. He was the husband of Lois Oral Bergum Petersen. He served in the 762nd Bomber Squadron, 460th Bomber Group, Heavy, as a Staff Sergeant and Machine Gunner of B-24 #42-51085 during World War II.

The B-24 #42-51085 “My Gloria” took off from Spinazzola, Italy, on a mission to bomb the Allach motor factory in Munich. They were hit by German flak during the bombing which caused a fire in two of the motors and fuel to leak into the fuselage. They attempted to return to Italy, but the problems worsened as the third engine started to falter so they diverted in the hopes of landing in neutral Switzerland. They parachuted out of the doomed plane at 1154 and the plane crashed 300 meters further near to this spot. The local French resistance immediately gathered the crew into hiding and they spent 34 days on the run with the resistance. See site Lac de la Fare for several memorials that tell the story of how the local french resistance assisted this crew of 11 to freedom. The area where they were hiding was eventually liberated by invading American forces and the crew made their way back to their unit in Spinazzola. The saga is recounted in the book “Eleven Americans who Fell from the Sky” by Pierre Montaz.

After the war, Petersen pursued his higher education at Bethany Lutheran College, Bethany Lutheran Theological Seminary, and Eau Claire State College. He was ordained in 1952 and went on to serve congregations in Iowa, Minnesota, Colorado, and Wisconsin, as well as holding roles in development and mission work for the Evangelical Lutheran Synod. Petersen died on March 17, 2004, and was buried in Roselawn Memorial Park, Monona, Dane County, Wisconsin, USA.

Source of information: www.facebook.com/ ELS Ottesen Museum, francecrashes39-45.net