Sgt Joe Vernon Gartman

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Sgt Joe Vernon Gartman

Birth
Death
18 Aug 2002 (aged 88)
Burial
Citronelle, Mobile County, Alabama, USA Add to Map
Memorial ID
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Joe Vernon Gartman was one of nine children born to Miles Tunney Gartman and Viola Boothe Gartman. He was born near the Mobile-Washington County line in what is now known as the Charity Chapel area.

He married Lois Marie Farris and they had seven children:
1. Cona Jean
2. David Leon
3. Glenda Lea
4. Joseph Paul
5. Juanita Fern
6. Ronald Grady
7. Rufus Miles

He served his country during World War II as a Tech Sergeant in the United States Air Force. He suffered a partial hearing loss as a result of the war.Even with hearing aids, he couldn't hear well at all and you would have to yell to get him to hear what you were saying.

He was my Uncle Joe, my Grandma Mamie's brother. I grew up living not far from him and Aunt Lois. They moved from Oregon into the house where he was born at the county line not long after Grandma Viola died and a few years later, Grandma bought some land from him that adjoined his property and we moved there from Louisiana.
He always planted a large garden with alot of watermelon and made sure that he planted a couple of rows of the "yellow meated" ones that I liked.

My Grandma used to tell me stories about when she was growing up and got into mischief and they usually involved Uncle Joe. For instance, once when they were kids they were fighting over who was going to get a pan of water that was heating on the stove to bathe with and they some how had picked up a paring knife laying on the kitchen table and she had "accidentally" cut his finger down to the bone. She said it had bled pretty bad but when their mother came into the room to see what was going on, they acted like everything was fine because they didn't want to get a whipping from their Papa. She said that he could not wear a ring on that finger even after he was grown. They both laughed about it when the story was told, so I guess there had been no hard feelings.
Another story she told was how during a cholera epidemic among the swine, it was her and Joe's job to go look for all of the pigs who had died and bury them. The pigs were not in a pen, but were roaming through the woods and they would have to go out every day or so and bury the dead ones. (If you are an animal activist, you may want to quit reading now.) One day when they were out making their rounds, they came upon a mama pig who had died and had a bunch of little ones who were still alive. They knew the baby ones would die before long and they would have to come back again, so she said that when they dug the hole, they shoved them in with the mother pig and buried them all. I said, You buried them alive? I was shocked but she just laughed about it. She said, They were going to die anyway and we didn't want to bury them later, so yeah we did. I know, I was shocked too, but she told that story many times and laughed every time she told it.
Uncle Joe was one of the kindest, gentlest, sweetest men I have ever known. He and my Grandma really enjoyed each other's company and he was fun to be around.I still miss him.

Joe Vernon Gartman was one of nine children born to Miles Tunney Gartman and Viola Boothe Gartman. He was born near the Mobile-Washington County line in what is now known as the Charity Chapel area.

He married Lois Marie Farris and they had seven children:
1. Cona Jean
2. David Leon
3. Glenda Lea
4. Joseph Paul
5. Juanita Fern
6. Ronald Grady
7. Rufus Miles

He served his country during World War II as a Tech Sergeant in the United States Air Force. He suffered a partial hearing loss as a result of the war.Even with hearing aids, he couldn't hear well at all and you would have to yell to get him to hear what you were saying.

He was my Uncle Joe, my Grandma Mamie's brother. I grew up living not far from him and Aunt Lois. They moved from Oregon into the house where he was born at the county line not long after Grandma Viola died and a few years later, Grandma bought some land from him that adjoined his property and we moved there from Louisiana.
He always planted a large garden with alot of watermelon and made sure that he planted a couple of rows of the "yellow meated" ones that I liked.

My Grandma used to tell me stories about when she was growing up and got into mischief and they usually involved Uncle Joe. For instance, once when they were kids they were fighting over who was going to get a pan of water that was heating on the stove to bathe with and they some how had picked up a paring knife laying on the kitchen table and she had "accidentally" cut his finger down to the bone. She said it had bled pretty bad but when their mother came into the room to see what was going on, they acted like everything was fine because they didn't want to get a whipping from their Papa. She said that he could not wear a ring on that finger even after he was grown. They both laughed about it when the story was told, so I guess there had been no hard feelings.
Another story she told was how during a cholera epidemic among the swine, it was her and Joe's job to go look for all of the pigs who had died and bury them. The pigs were not in a pen, but were roaming through the woods and they would have to go out every day or so and bury the dead ones. (If you are an animal activist, you may want to quit reading now.) One day when they were out making their rounds, they came upon a mama pig who had died and had a bunch of little ones who were still alive. They knew the baby ones would die before long and they would have to come back again, so she said that when they dug the hole, they shoved them in with the mother pig and buried them all. I said, You buried them alive? I was shocked but she just laughed about it. She said, They were going to die anyway and we didn't want to bury them later, so yeah we did. I know, I was shocked too, but she told that story many times and laughed every time she told it.
Uncle Joe was one of the kindest, gentlest, sweetest men I have ever known. He and my Grandma really enjoyed each other's company and he was fun to be around.I still miss him.


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TSGT US AIR FORCE WWII