Andree Chappaz - Mickey Strand - Veterans Series

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The Veterans Portrait Series

Mickey is a retired Navy Photographers Mate, Chief Petty Officer, and was the Leading Chief of the Navy's elite Combat Camera Group Pacific. Mickey's current focus is the Veterans Portrait Series, which documents veterans' stories of service. He is focused on our Worlds' Greatest Generation. The veterans of World War II. 

Mickey interviews each Veteran, collecting and writing their service stories, archiving these notable historic figures and their stories for generations to come. Mickey has collected and displayed images and stories from over 100 warriors that at one point, signed the dotted line when our country needed their sacrifice of service most.  Mickey continues to collect Veterans from all services for the Veterans Portrait Series. In 2019 this body of work was displayed at the Palm Beach Photographic Centre Museum from Nov 11, 2019 — to March 1, 2020.

Mickey and the project were in the national spotlight, featured on the Sunday Today Show with Harry Smith Today Show Link to YouTube.  See the Google 360 Virtual walk through from the Palm Beach Museum Exhibit. Enjoy, and thank you for your help with this project. In 2022 Mickey has photographed over 25 more WW2 Veterans and will be hosting a print show in San Diego in November with an open house on Veterans Day.

Featured Veteran

Richard H. Wehmeyer
US Army Air Corps
First Lieutenant
World War II

 Richard H. Wehmeyer was born in Saint Louis, Missouri, on February 3, 1923. After graduating from Beaumont High School in January of 1941, he attended Columbia University in New York. Richard hoped to join the Army Air Corp (AAC) and enter the pilot training pipeline. He finished two years of credits at Columbia by attending classes full time, including summer and breaks, accelerating his completion the minimum requirements to qualify for the Flying/Aviation Cadet Pilot Training Program.
 In March 1943, he reported to Grand Central Station in New York City for induction to begin pilot training. He passed his medical screening and boarded a Pullman car bound for Kessler Field in Biloxi, Mississippi, to attend Army Boot Camp. Now a Cadet, he was paid $50 base pay & $25 flight pay, the same as a Private. Cadet Wehmeyer reported to Elon College in North Carolina for 30 training days. He continued to Nashville for the Pilot Program, followed by Montgomery, Alabama, for classroom training, followed by Basic Flight at Clarksdale, Mississippi, flying two-seat training single-engine PT-23 Fairchilds, with his first flight on Sep 4, 1943.
 Richard reported to Basic Flying School at Greenville Army Airfield, Mississippi. His first flight was on November 9th, 1943, training in the BTa-13 Valiant. He flew many missions, planning and filing flight plans for the first time. In the 90-day course, they learned acrobatics, instruments, and how to fly with other aircraft in groups. Richard was then selected for multi-engine flight training at George Field, Illinois, flying the Beechcraft AT-10 Wichita. On April 15th, Richard graduated and was commissioned as a second lieutenant. He married his wife, Dorthy, on April 19th, whom he had met at Columbia University.
 They reported to Maxwell Field, Alabama, where he learned to fly the B-24 Liberator for a few months. After that, he reported to crew assignment and trained with his flight crew. In November, Richard and his crew sailed to England for 12 days, reporting to England for combat operations, but they were reassigned to a B-17 Flying Fortress squadron with the 92d Bomb Group.
 Being reassigned to a new aircraft type, Richard flew his first combat mission as a co-pilot on Jan 8th over France, assigned to hit a road junction. Richard still reads from his flight mission logs, cataloging his 30 combat missions, including targets in Berlin. He was assigned to the pilot seat and reunited with his crew for his 9th mission, targeting the rail yards at Fulda. On the sixth mission, the enemy fire took out two engines, forcing them to land the wounded B-17 north of Paris.
 Richard and his crew flew 30 combat missions, their last on April 25th, as the lead low element of the squadron. They made four runs through intense enemy fire and targeted an armament plant in Pilsen, Czechoslovakia. The plane was heavily damaged with holes all through it and the loss of the #3 engine, as well as wounding the radio operator. This was the last combat mission for the 92nd Bomb Group. Richards’s 30 combat missions totaled over 640 flying hours.
 Richard finished his time in Europe after VE day, flying for the green project. This project included installing benches in B-17s to transport soldiers to Casablanca to board ships bringing them home. 

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

Where can I donate?

I have created a way to accept donations to grow the project, use the WWII Veterans Portrait Series
  Go Fund Me.

Where are you located?

I live in the San Diego area but have traveled to many locations to interview and photograph Veterans.


How Long is an Appointment?

Appointments usually last 1 hour. But please free up time for Mickey to set up lights and cameras, hold the interview, and take some photographs for the project.

Do you accept reservations?

Yes is the simple answer to the question.  Each appointment is set up as an individual session. Group sessions have been set up when I visited a senior living facility or many of the California Veterans Homes.

US Army T4 World War 2 Andree Chappaz was born in the United States on September 14, 1925. His early years saw his family relocate to France when he was four years old. Andree’s formative years were spent in France, where his father found employment at an aircraft factory near Paris. With the growing turmoil in France and the looming threat of war, the Chappaz family decided to return to the United States on Thanksgiving Day, 1937. After graduating high school, Andree pursued his passion for the arts by attending the California School of Fine Arts in San Francisco. His life took an unexpected turn when a military captain arrived to recruit personnel for a headquarters unit, specifically needing graphic artists. Andree eagerly awaited his 18th birthday, which arrived in September 1943, marking his induction into the U.S. Army. However, Andree was not assigned to the graphics unit as initially expected; instead, he found himself with the Engineers at March Field. Subsequently, he was transferred to the 1885th Aviation Engineering Battalion. This unit’s primary responsibility was to construct airfields for heavy bombers as the war front advanced, ensuring these bombers remained within range as the front lines shifted from island to island. Andree’s journey took him to Bushnell Army Airfield in Florida, where he underwent rigorous training in tropical conditions. The unit’s destination was Guam, where they were tasked with building three crucial airfields: Hammond Air Field, Anderson Field, and an outlaying landing field. Hammond Air Field, in particular, became the headquarters for the XXI Bomber Command, operating the new B-29 Superfortress, which brought the Japanese homeland into striking distance. Remarkably, this airfield was constructed in just 54 days, with Andree and his fellow soldiers working day and night. It is important to note that even after the Marines secured Guam, many Japanese soldiers remained on the island, occasionally interfering with construction projects. Andree and his fellow soldiers participated in patrols to maintain the security of the airfields. One of their initial tasks was to clear the airfield construction zone of mines and unexploded ordnance left behind by both sides during the conflict. During one such patrol, Andree discovered a mine rigged to a bomb on the beach, a situation that had to be carefully handled. Like many others in his unit, Andree had been issued the wool uniform (commonly referred to as “woolies”), which indicated preparations for the impending landings on the Japanese mainland. It was during this time that the news broke of the bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, bringing an end to the war in the Pacific, a relief to all soldiers who had anxiously wondered when the conflict would conclude. Before the war’s conclusion, Andree was promoted to Technician in Fifth Grade. In February 1946, Andree was honorably demobilized and returned to the San Francisco area. After his military service, he resumed his education at the Art Institute, although after a year, he decided to leave school. Subsequently, he worked in the silk-screening industry for the Army at the Presidio for several years.
Veteran,NIK,WW2
Andree Chappaz - Mickey Strand - Veterans Series
US Army T4 World War 2 Andree Chappaz was born in the United States on September 14, 1925. His early years saw his family relocate to France when he was four years old. Andree’s formative years were spent in France, where his father found employment at an aircraft factory near Paris. With the growing turmoil in France and the looming threat of war, the Chappaz family decided to return to the United States on Thanksgiving Day, 1937. After graduating high school, Andree pursued his passion for the arts by attending the California School of Fine Arts in San Francisco. His life took an unexpected turn when a military captain arrived to recruit personnel for a headquarters unit, specifically needing graphic artists. Andree eagerly awaited his 18th birthday, which arrived in September 1943, marking his induction into the U.S. Army. However, Andree was not assigned to the graphics unit as initially expected; instead, he found himself with the Engineers at March Field. Subsequently, he was transferred to the 1885th Aviation Engineering Battalion. This unit’s primary responsibility was to construct airfields for heavy bombers as the war front advanced, ensuring these bombers remained within range as the front lines shifted from island to island. Andree’s journey took him to Bushnell Army Airfield in Florida, where he underwent rigorous training in tropical conditions. The unit’s destination was Guam, where they were tasked with building three crucial airfields: Hammond Air Field, Anderson Field, and an outlaying landing field. Hammond Air Field, in particular, became the headquarters for the XXI Bomber Command, operating the new B-29 Superfortress, which brought the Japanese homeland into striking distance. Remarkably, this airfield was constructed in just 54 days, with Andree and his fellow soldiers working day and night. It is important to note that even after the Marines secured Guam, many Japanese soldiers remained on the island, occasionally interfering with construction projects. Andree and his fellow soldiers participated in patrols to maintain the security of the airfields. One of their initial tasks was to clear the airfield construction zone of mines and unexploded ordnance left behind by both sides during the conflict. During one such patrol, Andree discovered a mine rigged to a bomb on the beach, a situation that had to be carefully handled. Like many others in his unit, Andree had been issued the wool uniform (commonly referred to as “woolies”), which indicated preparations for the impending landings on the Japanese mainland. It was during this time that the news broke of the bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, bringing an end to the war in the Pacific, a relief to all soldiers who had anxiously wondered when the conflict would conclude. Before the war’s conclusion, Andree was promoted to Technician in Fifth Grade. In February 1946, Andree was honorably demobilized and returned to the San Francisco area. After his military service, he resumed his education at the Art Institute, although after a year, he decided to leave school. Subsequently, he worked in the silk-screening industry for the Army at the Presidio for several years.