Bringing Jerry Zimmer Home

Pictured is Elaine Zimmer Davis and Maj Gen Drew O’Donnell, aboard the Davises boat.  Elaine and husband, Ron — a Marine veteran helicopter pilot, hosted Drew and his family for an afternoon of cruising on San Diego Bay.

Drew recently took command of the Third Marine Aircraft Wing at Marine Corps Air Station Miramar in San Diego.  He is one of the many Marines who embodies the generational spirit within the Corps.

The joke among Marines in the early years was that if the Marine Corps wanted you to have a wife, they would have issued you one.  Not to minimize difficult times and uncertainty that all military families face, the notion of generational careers within Marine Corps  families remains strong and wives traditionally have played an important role.

It is not uncommon to find second and third generation Marines spread throughout the world.  Recently, I had the pleasure of meeting such a Marine – Maj Gen Andrew O’Donnell, Jr., who will soon take command of the Third Marine Aircraft Wing, at Marine Corps Air Station Miramar in San Diego, CA.

The Change of Command ceremony for O’Donnell is slated in late September, with Maj Gen Thomas Conant, current commander of the 3D Marine Aircraft Wing, heading for Hawaii to serve as Deputy Commander of the U.S. Pacific Command (USPACOM).  Conant will pin on his third star and become the first Marine ever to serve as second in command of USPACOM.

My husband, Ron, met O’Donnell, who is known in the Marine Corps community as “Jr.” but introduced as “Drew,” a couple of years ago at a Quiet Birdman (QB) meeting at the San Diego hangar.  For those who are not familiar with the QBs, it is an organization that has been around since 1921 and known for attracting a diverse membership of high time aviators, including the likes of Red Baron and Charles Lindbergh.

The QBs have several chapters throughout the U.S., called hangars, where members meet monthly at a restaurant for the sole purpose of sharing stories about flying. Typically the QBs invite noted pilots to share their experiences, too.  Addressing an audience of savvy pilots, a guest speaker traditionally has topnotch flying credentials.  A helicopter pilot, named Marine Corps Aviator of the Year in 2000, Drew did not disappoint the QB crew when he spoke of today’s Marine Corps flight program.  

Shortly after the QB meeting, Drew deployed to Afghanistan, and Ron stayed in touch with him by email during his yearlong tour.  Upon Drew’s recent return, Ron and I invited the O’Donnell family for an afternoon of boating on San Diego Bay.  It was a perfect day, and we couldn’t have asked for a nicer family to join us.

Drew is the son of Lt Gen Andrew “Andy” O’Donnell, Sr. – a highly regarded fighter pilot and leader of Marines, whose passing in recent years was considered a huge loss to a band of warriors.  “I loved the guy,” said Col Jack Gagen, a retired Marine and long-time fighter pilot, who logged about 3,000 hrs in F4s during his career.  Jack credits the “Big O” – as the elder O’Donnell was called — for selecting him to command two fighter squadrons.  “He was the one who gave me an F4 squadron at El Toro and later sent me to Yuma and gave me another one,” said Jack.

Col Jack Gagen, USMC (Ret) Photo:  August 2011.

Jack said that many other retired Marine Corps pilots, including Lt Gen John Hudson and Maj Gen Mike Sullivan, were fans of the Big O.  “We all thought he was a tremendous guy,” said Jack, listing some of Andy O’Donnell’s accomplishments over the years, of which included two tours in Vietnam, as well as Command of the Third Marine Aircraft Wing.  “I am so happy Andy’s son is doing well,” said Jack, recognizing that his good friend had been an excellent role model for a son, who was now following in his father’s footsteps, like so many other generations of proud Marine Corps families.

Jack Gagen was a Marine Major in 1969, serving his second tour in Vietnam with VMFA-542, which was the F4 squadron of my first husband, Capt Jerry Zimmer.   On Aug 29, 1969, Jack flew as Jerry’s wingman, since it was his first flight back in country.  Sadly, that mission turned out to be Jerry’s fatal flight.  I never knew the name or whereabouts of Jerry’s wingman until Ron, a former helicopter pilot in the Marine Corps, began conducting his own investigation of Jerry’s crash a few years ago.  Ron tracked down Jack and found that he and his wife had retired a short distance from where we lived in San Diego.  Since then, Jack and I have become good friends, meeting for lunch every three or four months at Ruby’s Restaurant in Carlsbad.  Jack is a great guy and recognized as having been an incredible fighter pilot like his friend, Lt Gen Andy O’Donnell.