William S. Randles

I am blessed to have been a part of Bill’s childhood growing up in Ogdensburg, NY and later, as adults, we joined the US Air Force.

In Bill’s childhood, he was called “Buddy” and I looked up to him as my hero. Buddy was multitalented, having a natural talent for painting landscapes on canvas, in oil paints. We spent family summers at our grandfather’s camp situated on St. Elmo’s Island, in the St. Lawrence River, close to Ogdensburg, NY and Cardinal Ont.

Bill Randles was a very strong young man and enjoyed fishing and was an excellent swimmer. He had an independent nature and spent a good deal of time on the island exploring the dense woods covering the island. He was a natural outdoorsman and loved to build tree houses out of the local sumac growth. I must have been a pain in Buddy’s butt as I was always tagging along when he went out on woodland hikes or oil painting landscapes. As you may have figured out, he preferred being with adults, rather than younger kids.

Soon enough, children grow into teens and the Saint Lawrence SEAWAY construction began in or around 1952. Officials with the US and Canada came to visit our islands. They informed our friends and family that the U.S. will purchase these islands and demolish all buildings/camps. This was to straighten a deep water channel between Canada and the United States by dredging and raising the water level from Lake Ontario outlet to the St. Lawrence Bay beyond Montreal. We lost our favorite spot in the whole word, our little bit of heaven. Today, these islands have been molded into one, single, long island created out of many smaller islands. It started at Ogdensberg International Bridge, down river to just below our old St. Elmo’s and renamed Gallop Island.

By now, Bill had graduated high school and joined the USAF to fly B-49’s and Air Tankers, as a Loading Specialist/boom operator. Next time we got back together, I was in my twenties out of college, and joined the Air Force in 1961. I was assigned duty on CAPE COD at Otis Air Base. Much to my surprise, after receiving my permanent orders to Otis Air Base, that cousin Staff Sgt. Bill Randles had remained

on active duty, stationed at Otis Air Base, Cape Cod, Mass. as a KC97 Refueling Plane- Boom Operator, refueling B-52’s, Lockheed radar planes and F101, 102 and 104 interceptors. The beautiful Lockheed Radar trackers were covering possible enemy (Russian bombers incursions over the arctic circle). He mentioned on occasion it was a White Knuckles job with long hours. When we met again, he introduced me to his wife, Frieda, a real Georgia Peach, and their 5 children, living on base. At this point I’d ask for a moment of silent prayer for Cousin Frieda. Recently she passed on January 24, 2024. Bill has always loved her deeply, and was his guiding light throughout life. Bill lost Frieda and never recovered from her passing. He found life was not something he desired without Frieda, his One Love.

During our mutual stay at Otis, we enjoyed home-cooked meals from Frieda’s kitchen and opened their home to my family and future bride, Peggy Amerman.

Bill retired from the Air Force while serving at McCoy AF Base in Orlando FL. It was here they lived out their remaining years. Bill’s final job, as a commercial painter for DisneyWorld. May God bless & keep them in the palm of his hand.