In last week’s blog post, people wondered about A Quirky Old Man who every Friday evening would walk to the end of a fishing pier with a bucket of shrimp to feed the seagulls. This week’s blog post explains why he did this. It’s called Courage of a Hero.
On one of his flying missions across the Pacific, Captain Eddie Rickenbacker and his six-member crew looked for the island of destination. They never spotted it and could not get bearings from the ill-equipped island. They were nearly out of fuel and knew once they crashed into the sea, they would have 30 to 60 seconds to escape the aircraft. They grabbed what survival equipment they could and braced for the crash.
The ocean was rough, with high swells. Miraculously, all of the men survived, scrambled out of their B-17 plane, and climbed into life rafts. The crew floated for days on the rough waters of the ocean. They fought the sun, sharks, hunger and thirst and fatigue. By the eighth day, their rations ran out. They were hundreds of miles from land, and no one knew where they were or even if they were alive. Every day across America millions prayed that Eddie Rickenbacker and his crew might somehow be found alive.
They needed a miracle!
The men prayed for a miracle. Hungry, thirsty and exhausted, they tried to nap. Eddie leaned back and pulled his military cap down over his nose. Time dragged on. All he could hear was the slap of the waves against the raft.
Suddenly, Eddie felt something land on the top of his cap. It was a seagull.
He sat perfectly still – planning his next move. With a flash of his hand and a squawk from the bird, he managed to grab it and wring its neck. He tore the feathers off, and he and his starving crew made a meager meal of it. They used the intestines for bait and with it, caught fish, which gave them food and more bait. They had their miracle! They were able to endure the rigors of the sea until all but one were rescued alive after 24 brutal days at sea.
Eddie Rickenbacker lived many years beyond that ordeal, but he never forgot the sacrifice of that first life-saving seagull…and he never stopped saying “Thank you.” That’s why almost every Friday evening, he would walk to the end of the pier with a bucket full of shrimp and feed the seagulls. He gave thanks to the God of miracles for His rescue and that of his crew.
Side note: Eddie Rickenbacker was the founder of Eastern Airlines Before WWI, he was a race car driver. In WWI, he was a pilot and became America’s ace. In WWII, he was an instructor and military advisor. He also flew missions with the combat pilots. Eddie Rickenbacker is a true American ace of aces and had the courage of a hero. He died July 23, 1973 of pneumonia at age 82.