Born in Canada, Lorna lived in LeRoy, Minnesota. Her father died when she was a pre-teen. During the Great Depression she worked as a maid to help the family. Her mother, Ella Smith, nee Moe, met Gust Wictor who served at Fort Snelling, running Civilian Conservation Corps camps. They married and Gust had his step-family come to Hickam Field in Hawaii. Lorna, her sister Gwen, Ella Wictor and her step-father were there on December 7, 1941, when the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor.
The flight-line at Hickam was a direct line to Pearl Harbor, so the Japanese fighters strafed the airfield as they zoomed in to attack the US Navy ships in the harbor. Lorna, her sister and mother hunkered down in a closet while Gust went to the flight-line.
While at Hickam, Lorna had met Joe Jirik, a tech-sergeant in the US Army Air Corps. Joe went on to flight school to become a pilot and received his commission as a USAAF Lieutenant. Lorna and Joe were married at Eden Lutheran Church in Riverside, and she accompanied him part way on his trip to New York where he was to deploy to England with the 457th Bombardment Group (Heavy), Joe's B-17 bomber was shot-down and his body was recovered after the war.
Lorna, who had settled in Riverside, California, during World War II, eventually met Woody Rich, a prosecutor with the Riverside County District Attorney's office.
According to Lorna, she met Woody at a church event. According to Woody, they met at a bar. But the true (compromise) story is that they met at a YWCA mixer. They wooed, married, and settled down to raise four boys.
As Woody Rich advances in his career to become a Municipal Court Judge and Superior Court Judge, Lorna attains her Master of Library Science degree from USC. Together they found Citrus Belt Law School to serve aspiring law students in the region.
Lorna Beryl Moe-Jirik-Rich survived (indeed, overcame) the death of her father at an early age, the Great Depression, Pearl Harbor, the birth of 4 boys, and colon cancer, Enjoying life, she continues as an inspiration to her boys and the community.
The flight-line at Hickam was a direct line to Pearl Harbor, so the Japanese fighters strafed the airfield as they zoomed in to attack the US Navy ships in the harbor. Lorna, her sister and mother hunkered down in a closet while Gust went to the flight-line.
While at Hickam, Lorna had met Joe Jirik, a tech-sergeant in the US Army Air Corps. Joe went on to flight school to become a pilot and received his commission as a USAAF Lieutenant. Lorna and Joe were married at Eden Lutheran Church in Riverside, and she accompanied him part way on his trip to New York where he was to deploy to England with the 457th Bombardment Group (Heavy), Joe's B-17 bomber was shot-down and his body was recovered after the war.
Lorna, who had settled in Riverside, California, during World War II, eventually met Woody Rich, a prosecutor with the Riverside County District Attorney's office.
According to Lorna, she met Woody at a church event. According to Woody, they met at a bar. But the true (compromise) story is that they met at a YWCA mixer. They wooed, married, and settled down to raise four boys.
As Woody Rich advances in his career to become a Municipal Court Judge and Superior Court Judge, Lorna attains her Master of Library Science degree from USC. Together they found Citrus Belt Law School to serve aspiring law students in the region.
Lorna Beryl Moe-Jirik-Rich survived (indeed, overcame) the death of her father at an early age, the Great Depression, Pearl Harbor, the birth of 4 boys, and colon cancer, Enjoying life, she continues as an inspiration to her boys and the community.
Born in Canada, Lorna lived in LeRoy, Minnesota. Her father died when she was a pre-teen. During the Great Depression she worked as a maid to help the family. Her mother, Ella Smith, nee Moe, met Gust Wictor who served at Fort Snelling, running Civilian Conservation Corps camps. They married and Gust had his step-family come to Hickam Field in Hawaii. Lorna, her sister Gwen, Ella Wictor and her step-father were there on December 7, 1941, when the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor.
The flight-line at Hickam was a direct line to Pearl Harbor, so the Japanese fighters strafed the airfield as they zoomed in to attack the US Navy ships in the harbor. Lorna, her sister and mother hunkered down in a closet while Gust went to the flight-line.
While at Hickam, Lorna had met Joe Jirik, a tech-sergeant in the US Army Air Corps. Joe went on to flight school to become a pilot and received his commission as a USAAF Lieutenant. Lorna and Joe were married at Eden Lutheran Church in Riverside, and she accompanied him part way on his trip to New York where he was to deploy to England with the 457th Bombardment Group (Heavy), Joe's B-17 bomber was shot-down and his body was recovered after the war.
Lorna, who had settled in Riverside, California, during World War II, eventually met Woody Rich, a prosecutor with the Riverside County District Attorney's office.
According to Lorna, she met Woody at a church event. According to Woody, they met at a bar. But the true (compromise) story is that they met at a YWCA mixer. They wooed, married, and settled down to raise four boys.
As Woody Rich advances in his career to become a Municipal Court Judge and Superior Court Judge, Lorna attains her Master of Library Science degree from USC. Together they found Citrus Belt Law School to serve aspiring law students in the region.
Lorna Beryl Moe-Jirik-Rich survived (indeed, overcame) the death of her father at an early age, the Great Depression, Pearl Harbor, the birth of 4 boys, and colon cancer, Enjoying life, she continues as an inspiration to her boys and the community.
The flight-line at Hickam was a direct line to Pearl Harbor, so the Japanese fighters strafed the airfield as they zoomed in to attack the US Navy ships in the harbor. Lorna, her sister and mother hunkered down in a closet while Gust went to the flight-line.
While at Hickam, Lorna had met Joe Jirik, a tech-sergeant in the US Army Air Corps. Joe went on to flight school to become a pilot and received his commission as a USAAF Lieutenant. Lorna and Joe were married at Eden Lutheran Church in Riverside, and she accompanied him part way on his trip to New York where he was to deploy to England with the 457th Bombardment Group (Heavy), Joe's B-17 bomber was shot-down and his body was recovered after the war.
Lorna, who had settled in Riverside, California, during World War II, eventually met Woody Rich, a prosecutor with the Riverside County District Attorney's office.
According to Lorna, she met Woody at a church event. According to Woody, they met at a bar. But the true (compromise) story is that they met at a YWCA mixer. They wooed, married, and settled down to raise four boys.
As Woody Rich advances in his career to become a Municipal Court Judge and Superior Court Judge, Lorna attains her Master of Library Science degree from USC. Together they found Citrus Belt Law School to serve aspiring law students in the region.
Lorna Beryl Moe-Jirik-Rich survived (indeed, overcame) the death of her father at an early age, the Great Depression, Pearl Harbor, the birth of 4 boys, and colon cancer, Enjoying life, she continues as an inspiration to her boys and the community.
Inscription
_ _ _ _ _ _ RICH
ELWOOD M. || LORNA B.
NOV. 20, 1920 || FEB. 11, 1921
JAN. 29, 2015 || JULY 28, 2007
