By Deborah Larsen
Richard Robert Ponke
Richard Robert Ponke was born in Royal Oak, Michigan, on September 22, 1923, the son of August and Wanda Magdowski Ponke. Richard grew up in Avon Township, where his family lived on Hamlin Road.
In December 1942, Richard enlisted in the U.S. Army Air Forces. He was trained as a waist gunner on the B-24 bomber and assigned to the 703rd Bomb Squadron of the 445th Bombardment Group, stationed in Tibenham, England. On May 29, 1944, Richard was serving on the crew of a B-24 hit by enemy antiaircraft fire. The damaged airplane made a forced landing in Sweden, a neutral country during the war. Richard was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross and the Air Medal. He was released from military service in December 1944.
After the war, Richard married, started a family, and worked for Ford Motor Company, retiring in 1979.
Richard Robert Ponke died at age 75 on May 15, 1999.