John C. Priggins – Lieutenant Colonel, United States Air Force

From a contemporary press report:

John C. Priggins, 83, a retired Air Force Lieutenant Colonel and veteran of two wars who became an investigative officer with the D.C. Corrections Department, died of lung cancer June 12, 2003, at Hospice of Northern Virginia.

Colonel Priggins, who lived in Washington, was a native of Edenborn, Pennsylvania.

He entered the Army in 1937 and received a commission in the Army Air Forces in 1942. He served in Europe during World War II and in Korea during the conflict there.

He was squadron executive officer in the Eighth Air Force. Other assignments included a tour with the Air Force’s Office of Training and Personnel Procurement at the Pentagon.

He retired from active military duty in the late 1950s and worked about six years for the Corrections Department.

His wife, June Priggins, died in 1985. His son, Lawrence Priggins, died in 1994, and his daughter, Deborah Priggins, died in 1975.

He leaves no immediate survivors.

PRIGGINS, JOHN C., LTC, USAF (Ret.)

On Thursday, June 12, 2003, JOHN C. PRIGGINS of Washington, DC. Beloved husband of the late June Rudolph Priggins; father of the late Lawrence and Deborah Priggins; brother of the late Michael Priggins, Mary Wodiska and Emma Priggins; brother-in-law of Martin and Ann Hiza and Arthur Wodiska. Also survived by one niece, seven nephews, four grand-nieces and five grand-nephews.

Mass of Christian Burial at Fort Myer Chapel, Fort Myer, Arlington, Virginia, on Thursday, July 17 at 8:45 a.m. Interment Arlington National Cemetery.

Michael Robert Patterson

Michael Robert Patterson was born in Arlington and is the son of a former officer of the US Army. So it was no wonder that sooner or later his interests drew him to American history and especially to American military history. Many of his articles can be found on renowned portals like the New York Times, Washingtonpost or Wikipedia.

Reviewed by: Michael Howard