Raymond Halloran

Raymond F. (Hap) Halloran

Resident of Menlo Park

Was born in Cincinnati, Ohio on February 4, 1922 the second of five boys to Paul and Gertrude Halloran. He died at the Menlo Park, Calif. VA Hospital on June 7 at the age of 89. He lived a long and extraordinary life devoted to his family, his country in military service and as a top executive in the transportation industry.

At a very early age, Hap developed a lifelong passion for golf. As a teenager he managed the golf caddies at a local club, played the sport very competitively and was Ohio State high school champion in 1940. He remained active on the links well into his ninth decade.

He also had an early fascination for airplanes and after Pearl Harbor joined the Army Air Force. He shipped out to the Pacific Theater in 1944 as a B-29 navigator. In a memoir published in 1999 Hap tells his remarkable wartime story: Shot out of the sky over Tokyo, stalked by a Zero pilot as he fell in his parachute, and spared by that pilot; taken to the dreaded Kempei Tai prison and beaten, tortured and starved; an inspiration to his fellow prisoners who would become friends-for-life, including Colonel Pappy Boyington and Brigadier General Robert Goldsworthy.

Hap was liberated on August 29, 1945 and began a lifelong journey that saw him become the most prominent US veteran in Japan. [See www.haphalloran.com for more detail.]

After the war Hap returned to his hometown, recovered from his wartime injuries and went to work for the Rock Island Railroad. After transferring to Detroit and changing from railroads to the trucking business, he met Donna Carolyn Peterman and they were married in 1953. They would soon begin their family, and through the years adopted Dan, Tim and Peggy.

In 1958 Hap took a job with Consolidated Freightways (CF), the company that he would help to build into one of the great transportation companies in the country. During his early years with the company in Portland, in spite of constant business travel, Hap's children fondly recall their father's devotion to weekend road trips, fishing excursions and his instruction in the fine skills of baseball and basketball.

In 1973 Hap was named executive vice president and became the company's top sales and marketing officer. He retired from CF in 1987 and became senior vice president emeritus.

After the war and throughout his life Hap battled the nightmares of post-traumatic stress disorder. After 40 years of this, he decided to attack PTSD head-on. He was helped with travel arrangements by US ambassador to Japan Mike Mansfield and made the first of many "reconciliation" trips to Japan, to what soon turned out to be great media attention and national acclaim. After a few years he had met the pilot who shot him down and counted as close friends and correspondents, Japanese historians, artists, school teachers, war veterans and fighter pilots.

Hap and Saburo Sakai, famous Japanese WWII ace, became golfing buddies and Hap hosted him in California in 1992. His last trip to Japan was in 2007, as guest of producers of a Tokyo Broadcasting documentary. The nightmares had long ago ceased.

Throughout the US, Hap spread his message of closure - perseverance, forgiveness, reconciliation and peace. He spoke to large military gatherings and convocations of veterans including his own beloved B-29ers, as well as local business groups, civic organizations and schools. At war-time anniversaries he was much in demand. In 1992 Boeing celebrated the B-29's 50th anniversary and, on the dais with generals and the Secretary of Defense, Hap was keynote speaker to thousands of attendees.

Over the years he appeared at events and on panels with Paul Tibbetts and Dutch Van Kirk, captain and navigator on the Enola Gay. Hap delivered Pappy Boyington's eulogy at Arlington National Cemetery on January 15, 1988. Four years later, at the 50th anniversary reunion of the BlackSheep squadron, Hap was the main speaker and was inducted that night as an Honorary Blacksheep.

Hap has been featured in many books on WWII flyers and the war in Japan and was extensively interviewed by Iris Chang shortly before her death, in her research for a book on prisoner-of-war experiences. Laura Hillenbrand was a friend of many years and a frequent correspondent during research for her book Unbroken.

Hap has received countless awards from military and civic organizations. In 2001, along with former President George H.W. Bush, he was inducted into the American Combat Airman Hall of Fame.

After retirement, he traveled the world, including memorable trips to Ireland searching for family roots with son Dan and to Saipan to share the sites of his World War II experiences. Closer to home he took his family to B29 reunions across the country and to air shows where he was often the featured guest.

As his health declined, Hap's children helped care for him in his home until his move to the VA Hospital in 2010. Hap is survived by sons Dan (spouse Rosa) and Tim (spouse Carol, children Kate and Jake) and daughter Peggy (spouse Ivone.) Their mother Donna died in 1991. Hap is also survived by brothers Don and Mick and numerous nieces and nephews and their children.

The family suggests memorial donations may be made in the name of Raymond Halloran to VA Volunteer Services #135 [GPS2365], 759 Willow Road, Menlo Park, CA 94025. Menlo Park Funeral Services (650-329-8022) is handling funeral arrangements. A Mass of Christian Burial will be held at St. Raymond Church in Menlo Park on Friday June 17 at noon with a reception at the parish following the liturgy. Hap will be interred later this year in Arlington National Cemetery with full military honors.