Leon Gabriel Mehring

LEON GABRIEL MEHRING

Cedar Rapids

On May 23, 2022, we lost our family patriarch and true hero, Leon Gabriel Mehring. A visitation will be held from 4 to 6 p.m. on Tuesday, May 31, at the Cedar Memorial Chapel Stateroom. A funeral Mass will be held at All Saints Catholic Church on Wednesday, June 1, starting at 10 a.m. A graveside service will follow the service and will be held at Cedar Memorial Park Cemetery.

Leon was born Oct. 29, 1925, to Roy and Esmeralda (LaChaine) Mehring in Butte, Mont. He was one of six children. At the age of 17, he volunteered to serve his country in WWII in the Army Air Corps. He started active duty on Nov. 27, 1943. After basic training, he was sent to Dyersburg, Tenn., at Nellis Air Force Base. After graduation he was assigned

to flight crew as left waist gunner on a B-17 Bomber and would be stationed in England with the 305th Bomb Group, 364th Squadron. He started flying missions on Feb. 20, 1945, over Germany, Holland and France. Many of those missions were under dangerous conditions; frostbite, oxygen tanks freezing up, and enemy fire were just a few of the threats faced on every mission.

Fortunately, while on leave at a British Legion dance, he met his future wife of 76 years, the love of his life, Vera Frances Handshaw. She was a beautiful, charming woman from Rushden, England. They fell in love and married on Oct. 20, 1945, just outside of London. Leon was 19 years old and Vera was 17 years old.

After WWII ended, the 305th Bomb Group was ordered to stay in England to take aerial photographs of Europe to update U.S. government maps. It was called the Casey Program. Leon was assigned to photograph from the underside of the B-17 in the ball turret. The assignment took 13 months and Leon was finally discharged on April 23, 1946, and moved to his family home in Butte, Mont. His wife, Vera, was heading over to America on a hospital ship which took 13 days to cross the Atlantic Ocean and docked at the Statue of Liberty in New York City on July 3, 1946. They settled in Leon's hometown of Anaconda, Mont., and he worked for the Butte/Anaconda Railroad for 13 years. Eventually, Leon started working at Cuna Mutual Insurance Co. and he eventually became the manager for Penick & Ford Credit Union and then the SW Cedar Rapids Community Federal Credit Union until his retirement in 1989.

They loved to camp and fish every weekend and made frequent family vacations back to Montana where his family lived. Leon and Vera traveled back to England many times, also Hawaii, Guam and Montana. Leon remained very active in the 305th Bomb Group where he was president for two years, and the Iowa Chapter of the Mighty 8th Air Force Historical Society where he was president for five years and treasurer for 21 years. Leon has donated much of his WWII memorabilia to museums across the country. Leon was a lifetime member of the VFW Post 788, a member of the American Legion Post 298, and a lifetime member of the Mighty 8th Air Force Historical Society. In 2010 Leon was able to travel on the Honor Flight with his son, David, to Washington, D.C. It was a very emotional trip for all the veterans on the flight, a trip he was grateful to be able to take. Leon was also a dedicated member of All Saints Catholic Church, and his faith was very important to him.

He is survived by his loving wife, Vera Mehring; children, David (Pam) Mehring, Stephen (Melissa) Mehring, Leon P. (Vicki) Mehring, Denise (Jerry) Vander Sanden and daughter-in-law, Wilma (Dan) Rodgers, siblings, LeRoy Mehring and Elaine Baum (Ralph Schmoldt); along with 13 grandchildren, 12 great-grandchildren (with one on the way), and two great-great-grandchildren.

Leon was preceded in death by his parents; his oldest son, James Mehring; an infant son, Stephen Patrick; grandsons, Micah and Joshua Mehring; his siblings, Marcel, Paul and Jeanine; and special sister-in-law, Rose Bartosh.

Leon's legacy will live on in his family, and we know he will be watching over us all until we meet again.

We would like to thank all the special caregivers from Hospice of Mercy and the Dennis & Donna Oldorf Hospice House who took such great care of Leon in body and spirit. They all treated him with respect, kindness and compassion. Our family will be forever grateful.

In lieu of flowers, if you wish to honor Leon, please send memorials to Hospice of Mercy or the Dennis and Donna Oldorf Hospice House.

Online condolences may be directed to the family at www.cedarmemorial.com under Obituaries.