Coffin Corner Boys: One Bomber, Ten Men, and Their Harrowing Escape from Nazi-Occupied France

by Carole Engle Avriett, George W. Starks (With)

Overview

"Gripping…filled with…dramatic escapes, moments of surprising humanity, and acts of bravery." —Publishers Weekly

A Story of Adventure, Survival, Loyalty, and Brotherhood

Taking off from England on March 16, 1944, young Lt. George Starks and the nine-man crew of his Flying Fortress were assigned to the “coffin corner,” the most exposed position in the bomber formation headed for Germany. They never got there. Shot down over Nazi-occupied France, the airmen bailed out one by one, scattered across the countryside. Miraculously, all ten survived, but as they discarded their parachutes in the farmland of Champagne, their wartime odyssey was only beginning.

Alone, with a broken foot and a 20mm shell fragment in his thigh, twenty-year-old Starks set out on an incredible 300-mile trek to Switzerland, making his way with the help of ordinary men and women who often put themselves in great danger on his behalf. Six weeks later, on the verge of giving up, Starks found himself in the hands of a heroic member of the French Resistance—he calls him “the bravest man I’ve ever known”—who got him safely across the heavily guarded border.

Similar ordeals awaited the other nine crewmen, who faced injury, betrayal, cap-tivity, hunger, and depression. It was nothing short of miraculous that all ten came home at the end of the war.

George Starks emerged from his ordeal with two passions—to stay in touch with his crew whatever the obstacles and to return to France to find and thank the brave souls to whom he owed his life. His enduring loyalty enabled him to do both.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781621576556
Publisher:	Skyhorse Publishing
Publication date:	05/14/2018
Series:	World War II Collection
Sold by:	SIMON & SCHUSTER
Format:	eBook
Pages:	256
Sales rank:	349,737
File size:	1 MB

About the Author

“There’s no greater love or adventure than knowing Jesus Christ,” says CAROLE ENGLE AVRIETT, the nationally
known speaker and author of the bestselling Coffin Corner Boys: One Bomber, Ten Men, and their Harrowing Escape from Nazi-Occupied France. Currently, she invests her skills full time in writing Christian books and military history memoirs, as well as hosting a weekly Bible study and leading women’s conferences—often sharing
her powerful testimony of personal struggle until Christ came into her life at the age of thirty. She
and her husband live in central Florida.

Table of Contents

Foreword Lieutenant General E. G. "Buck" Shuler Jr. xi

Remembrances by Paul and Mike Starks xv

Introduction xix

Part I Beginnings

1 Reconnecting: The "Search" Trip 3

2 Beginning at Sixteen 11

3 Only One Jump…Ever 17

Part II The Crew and First Days Down

4 A Whistle Signal 27

5 Betrayed by the Gendarmes 33

6 "Are You Hebrew?" 39

7 Cognac and Eggs 45

8 Meeting Up with Buddies 53

9 Meeting in a Shack 57

10 A Casket and a Bicycle 61

Part III The Helpers and the Enemy

11 Processing in Frankfurt am Main 69

12 Living with the Videls 75

13 "Get the Hell Out of Here" 81

14 Sitting Around a French Fireplace 87

15 An Engineer's Home, a Dress Shop, and a Root Cellar 91

16 A Squeaky Wheel 97

17 Life in Stalag Luft III 103

18 11, Rue de Saussaies, Gestapo Headquarters, Paris 109

19 Fresnes Prison, Paris 113

20 Dulag Luft and the Forty-and-Eights 117

21 Stalag Luft IV, Deeper into Germany 121

22 Angels Watching Over 125

23 Troop Train and a Brave Man 127

24 The Captain 133

25 "Frisco" 137

26 The Theater and the Stress of POW Camp 141

27 One More Day 145

28 Steaming Clothes on a Stove 149

29 The Chief of Police and Giselle 153

30 A Train Full of Germans 159

31 Maurice Baverel, a Spy for All Seasons 163

32 Dr. Charlin and the Five-Horse power Peugeot 167

Part IV The Final Push Out

33 Worsening Conditions 173

34 The Black Death March 179

35 A Small Miracle 185

36 Swiss Surprise 189

37 Enough of Switzerland 195

38 Rowboat Ride at Midnight 199

Part V Going Home

39 George Starks and the Green Hornet 207

40 Irv Baum and Ted Badder 209

41 Dick Morse 211

42 Bill Wyatt with Don Edgerly and Bob Williams 215

43 Andy Brenden with Wally Trinder 217

44 Dale Beery and William Wallace 219

Part VI Finding Old Friends

45 Reconnecting, 1969 223

46 On to Pontarlier 227

47 The Boillots and Dr. Charlin 231

48 Back with Mike, 1970 237

49 More Visits with Friends 241

50 Reunion with the Crew 243

Epilogue: One More Time to France 245

Acknowledgments 249

Notes 253

Index 261

About the Authors 265

Editorial Reviews

03/26/2018
Avriett, a former editor of Southern Living magazine, moves far afield from that region to recount the wartime experiences of the 10-member crew of a B-17 shot down over France on Mar. 16, 1944. The remarkable story of the crew’s efforts to evade France’s German occupiers is framed by coauthor and B-17 captain George Stark’s 1969 return to France to retrace his grueling, dangerous journey to the Swiss border and freedom, and to find and thank those who aided him. Although Stark’s escape, which involved being hidden and helped by Resistance members as he walked on a broken foot into Switzerland, is the centerpiece, the odysseys of the other nine crew members, each of whom survived the war, are also gripping—several are captured and face harrowing time in brutal POW camps. This tale also illuminates the personalities and motivations of ordinary French citizens and Resistance members who at great risk helped the flyers to safety. The writing is unsophisticated and uncritical, but readers interested in WWII will find the experiences of these young airmen filled with sufficient dramatic escapes, moments of surprising humanity, and acts of bravery to transcend any defects. (May)

Publishers Weekly

Readers will catch a glimpse into first-hand accounts of what very young men did in serving our country at a time when the world was at war—and how brave people abroad responded to their mission. You will be inspired and engrossed at every turn of the page of this remarkable book.

Bill Frederick

Personal accounts of combat experiences by the veterans of the Eighth Air Force in WWII add significantly to the understanding of the most significant historical event of the last century as well as the incredible sacrifices made by these brave airmen. Coffin Corner Boys takes the reader on the perilous story of then Lieutenant, Dr. George W. Starks, of the 407th Squadron, 92nd Bomb Group, form the time his B-17 was shot down on March 16, 1944 near Vitry le Francais, France and his ensuing trek through enemy territory to safety in Switzerland. Lieutenant Starks, then barely 20, was the aircraft commander of a B-17 and responsible for the nine man crew. Reflect back when you had just completed your teen years, parachuted out of a severely crippled airplane and undertook a walk from Washington, DC to Pittsburgh, PA, with hostile people trying to capture or even kill you at every opportunity. Could you do it? George Starks did it! I strongly commend this fascinating story to you! Enjoy the read.

Lt Gen. E.G. “Buck” Shuler

A heartwarming and fascinating true account of our nations finest aviators from the Greatest Generation. Avriett brings each character to life page by page as they overcame incredible odds after their B-17 Fighting Fortress was shot down over occupied territory during WWII. Readers will be captivated by another amazing story from WWII that had to be told - not only of the brave pilots and crew who survived insurmountable odds, but also the brave French citizens who risked everything to help them. Inspiring and emotional.

Major Scott A. Huesing USMC (Ret) Bestselling Author: Echo in Ramadi

Rarely do we read true stories about the fearsome, preserving, enduring, unselfish love of country displayed by Dr. George Starks. He doesn’t like to be called a hero, but no other word can rightly portray him better. He is my hero and after reading this book, he will be yours too.

From the Publisher

On their first combat mission, ten young men had their lives forever altered. Shot out of the air, parachuting into Nazi-occupied France, the men were scattered to different fates—some escaped, others were captured. All made it home from the war. Their individual adventures exhibit a collective determination to survive. Some 73 years later, with the help of Carole Engle Avriett, their stories are being told. And not just those of the crew, but of the French men and women, who, at great risk, took some of the crew into their homes, hid them, and aided their escapes.
Equally as interesting are the stories of some of the crew returning to Europe a half century later to retrace their steps and reconnect with the people who had helped to save them. The book also helps to remind us that the Coffin Corner Boys were the lucky ones. Many, many other aircrews were to remain forever young.

Louis Joyner

A heartwarming and fascinating true account of our nations finest aviators from the Greatest Generation. Avriett brings each character to life page by page as they overcame incredible odds after their B-17 Fighting Fortress was shot down over occupied territory during WWII. Readers will be captivated by another amazing story from WWII that had to be told - not only of the brave pilots and crew who survived insurmountable odds, but also the brave French citizens who risked everything to help them. Inspiring and emotional.

Major Scott A. Huesing USMC (Ret) Bestselling Author: Echo in Ramadi

Personal accounts of combat experiences by the veterans of the Eighth Air Force in WWII add significantly to the understanding of the most significant historical event of the last century as well as the incredible sacrifices made by these brave airmen. Coffin Corner Boys takes the reader on the perilous story of then Lieutenant, Dr. George W. Starks, of the 407th Squadron, 92nd Bomb Group, form the time his B-17 was shot down on March 16, 1944 near Vitry le Francais, France and his ensuing trek through enemy territory to safety in Switzerland. Lieutenant Starks, then barely 20, was the aircraft commander of a B-17 and responsible for the nine man crew. Reflect back when you had just completed your teen years, parachuted out of a severely crippled airplane and undertook a walk from Washington, DC to Pittsburgh, PA, with hostile people trying to capture or even kill you at every opportunity. Could you do it? George Starks did it! I strongly commend this fascinating story to you! Enjoy the read.

Lt Gen. E.G. “Buck” Shuler