Petersham WWII vet, fresh off 100th birthday, headed to DC for Memorial Day parade

Craig S. Semon, Worcester Telegram & Gazette
World War II pilot Vincent “Bill” J. Purple is photographed in his Petersham home Tuesday. Behind him is a painting based on a photograph of Purple with one of the B-17s he flew in the war. The 2013 painting is by artist Chris Demarest.
World War II pilot Vincent “Bill” J. Purple is photographed in his Petersham home Tuesday. Behind him is a painting based on a photograph of Purple with one of the B-17s he flew in the war. The 2013 painting is by artist Chris Demarest.

PETERSHAM — World War II pilot Vincent “Bill” J. Purple of Petersham, who turned 100 earlier this month, will spend the weekend in Washington, where he will serve as one of several grand marshals of the National Memorial Day Parade.

Purple, the longtime owner of L.P. Athol Corp., flew 35 missions in a B-17 bomber. At 19, he was assigned to the Eighth Air Force, 379th Bomb Group, based in Kimbolton, England.

A photograph shows Vincent "Bill" J. Purple's B-17 crew in late 1944. Purple is kneeling on the left.
A photograph shows Vincent "Bill" J. Purple's B-17 crew in late 1944. Purple is kneeling on the left.

The parade, which is the largest Memorial Day event in the nation, will be held at 2 p.m. Monday on Constitution Avenue. It will be streamed live on Facebook and YouTube. (Information at americanveteranscenter.org.)

According to his daughter, Cindy Hartwell, Purple is one of 19 World War II veterans who are serving as grand marshals for the parade.

The theme of the lead float is inspired by “Masters of the Air,” the 2024 miniseries about the 100th Bomb Group, a Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress heavy bomber unit in the Eighth Air Force in Eastern England during World War II. Boeing is sponsoring the parade.

Although Purple wasn’t a member of the 100th Bomb Group, he and six of the other grand marshals did serve in the Eighth Air Force. Those seven will be riding in the lead float, Hartwell said.

Purple, who turned 100 Friday, flew 20 missions with his original crew, circling in the sky anywhere from five to 40 minutes, depending on the target. In a 2017 interview with the Telegram & Gazette, he said he would listen to “good music from Glenn Miller” to help pass the time, all the while looking around on alert making sure planes in his squadron did not run into each other while they were waiting to drop the bombs.

The hat worn by bomber pilot Vincent “Bill” J. Purple during the war.
The hat worn by bomber pilot Vincent “Bill” J. Purple during the war.

After the war ended, Purple would stay on in the Reserves and National Guard until 1946. Unbelievably, his only “war injury” came when his high school class ring got caught on one of the planes as he was exiting. It dug into his finger, cutting him, he said.

In 1998, Purple, Connie A. Zani of Athol and Alan W. Bowers of Royalston formed the nonprofit Athol Veterans Park Development Corp., which raised money to build the veterans park in Athol.

In 2013, Purple was awarded France’s highest award, the Legion of Honor Medal, for his service in World War II in defense of France.

This article originally appeared on Telegram & Gazette: National Memorial Day Parade: Bill Purple, Petersham WWII vet, off to DC

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