It was a pact made many years ago when the aging members of the 510th Fighter Squadron from World War II decided they could no longer attend their annual reunions.

The pact left the last two surviving members of that unit sharing a final toast of Brandy in support of their fallen comrades occurred April 7, in Seattle, Wash., and Lompoc, Calif., when Col. (ret.) Ralph Jenkins and Maj. (ret.) M.E. Johns toasted each other virtually through Facetime.

“The ceremony is important to my father because it’s paying tribute to all his men,” said Kim Jenkins, daughter of Col. (ret.) Ralph Jenkins. “He had a deep confidence that the work that they were doing in the military contributed enormously to the relative peace our country is enjoying today. He was honored to pay tribute to the finest of men who fought for an undeniably righteous and united cause through the way of ultimate team work and sacrifice.”

The toast was made possible by Airmen of McChord Field, part of Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Wash., and Airmen of Vandenberg Air Force Base, Calif., who worked together to ensure these heroes were reunited.

The two men toasted together saying, “To the finest men I have ever known or will ever know, may God bless you.”

“I’m not sure how it worked out,” said Jenkins, who celebrates his 98th birthday this year. “But decades later it did and I am forever grateful.”

Jenkins spoke about his unit during this event, and how times were during this conflict.

“Our fighter squadron at that time [during WWII] had about 400 people and about one half of them were enlisted and the other were aviators,” said Jenkins. “We had almost zero causalities among the enlisted people.

“However, among our aviators, between 30 and 40 percent were causalities in the war and out of all of those 400 members, there is only the two of us left.”

The two bottle of 1945 Calvados Brandy, were transported across the country by a family member, the late Col. (United States Marine Corps ret.) Dick Dunnivan of the 510th squadron.

When the bottles arrived, both Jenkins and Johns received a sealed letter from Dunnivan.

Col. Leonard Kosinski, 62nd Airlift Wing commander, had the honor of reading that letter to Jenkins and here are some excerpts from that.  
“When I was asked by my Uncle to do this, I told him I considered it an honor,” said Dunnivan. “Being a retired U.S. Marine Corps aviator myself, I knew how much this must mean to you and your squadron mates.

“Sir, I thank you for your service and the many opportunities I was afforded by your efforts, and sacrifice during that critical period in our nation’s history. Looking back, I concur with Tom Brokaw, yours was truly the greatest generation.

“During my service, and to this day, I endeavor to live up to the standards you set, and hoped that my contribution would somehow serve to perpetuate your legacy of excellence in service to our great nation.”

Not only did this toast reunite these members, but it also united the active duty 510th Fighter Squadron at Aviano Air Base, Italy, as they got together to celebrate in this event.

“Members of the 510th gathered, after a day of flying F-16’s at their current home of Aviano Air Base, Italy, and wearing the original squadron patch in honor of this days event, proposed a traditional toast at 1510 local time in honor of major Johns and colonel Jenkins,” said Capt. Thomas Barger, 31st Fighter Wing, Aviano Air Base, chief of public affairs.

That toast was “To my brother buzzards, past and present… if it bleeds… we kill it.”

This event meant just as much to the family as it did to Jenkins.

“It’s important to our family because for us it’s about honoring not just Dad and the brave men in his squadron but also paying tribute to the women,” said Kim Jenkins.  “Such as our mother Wisteria, the ‘Tallahassee Lassie,’ who provided so much support throughout the war.

“This was a toast well-earned and deserved, the fruition of a pledge, many many years in the making.”