Samuel B. Whitby McGowan

Col. Samuel B. Whitby McGowan COLUMBIA - Funeral services for Col. Samuel B. Whitby McGowan (USAF ret) who passed away Friday, February 6, 2015 will be held at 1:00 P.M., on Tuesday, February 10, 2015 at Thompson Funeral Home at Greenlawn Memorial Park, 845 Leesburg Road, Columbia, SC 29209. Interment will follow, with full military honors, in Greenlawn Memorial Park. The family will receive friends for one hour, prior to the service, at the funeral home. Col. McGowan was born October 29, 1919 in Kenansville, NC. After graduating from High School in Johnston, SC he attended Clemson College and graduated in 1940 with a degree in Civil Engineering. He entered the Army Air Corps and was commissioned as a Second Lieutenant. During WWII, he served as a group navigator in Newfoundland in 1943 and later as a group navigator for the 480thAnti-Submarine Group stationed in England. He served as a navigator in B-24's flying anti-submarine patrols off the coasts of England and North Africa. His crew was cited for sinking a German U-Boat thus possibly saving the lives of many soldiers and sailors traveling by sea to the European Theatre. Col. McGowan flew 67 combat missions in the B-24 Liberator totaling more than 800 hours in the Europe, Africa, Middle East and American (EAME) theatres of the war. His last military assignment was as Deputy Commander of the USAF Support Group in Moron Air Base, Spain. The Colonel was one of the first navigators in the US Air Force to be given the title of Master Navigator. He also holds many awards and decorations including: the Air Medal with two Oak Leaf Clusters, the Army Commendation Ribbon, the Presidential Unit Citation, the Air Defense Medal with one star, the American Theatre Ribbon with one star, the EAME Theatre Ribbon with one star, the WWII Victory Medal, the National Defense Service Medal and the Air Force Longevity Service Award with one Silver Oak Leaf Cluster. Col. McGowan was married in Shandon Baptist Church in 1942 to the former Ethel Fuller of Columbia. He is survived by his wife, as well as five sons and their spouses, Brian W. (Lorraine) of Monroe, CT, Robert W. (Yvonne), Donald W., Stephen W. (Claudia Parnell) and David W. (Lynda) McGowan, all of Columbia. He is also survived by ten grandchildren and nine great grandchildren. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made in Col. McGowan's memory to the Wounded Warrior Project, by visitingwww.WoundedWarriorProject.org, or by mail to the Wounded Warrior Project, P.O. Box 758517, Topeka, KS 66675. Condolences for the family may be left at http://www.thompsonsfuneral.com/