Freestone County, Texas Obituaries The Teague Chronicle Feb. 25, 2010 issue EDWARD WATERS A memorial service for Edward Waters, 89, formerly of Houston, Texas, will be held at the Church of Christ, 1001 N. 8th Avenue in Teague on Saturday, February 27, 2010. Edward was born on January 10, 1921, to Willie and Janie Waters near the community of Woodcliff, Georgia, the second of their five children--Warren, Tom, Lester and Zell. Edward enlisted in the Georgia National Guard on September 16, 1940, and his unit was absorbed into the United States Army after December 7, 1941. He subsequently underwent training in Officers Candidate School and joined the Army Air Force after he was commissioned. He was stationed at Bassingbourn, England with the 322nd Squadron of the 91st Bomb Group, 8th Air Force. A B-17 bomber pilot, Ed flew 24 successful missions over Germany and France. On his 25th mission, his plane, The Sleepytime Gal, was shot down on June 21, 1944, in northern Germany on a bombing run en route to Berlin. He was taken prisoner and sent to a POW camp, Stalag Luft 3, near Sagan in then-eastern Germany (today in Poland), and spent the remainder of the war in captivity. He and his fellow prisoners were evacuated by the Germans in the face of the approaching Red Army and marched on foot in the winter of 1945 down into southern Germany where they were eventually liberated by General Patton's Third Army. Like many veterans of his era, Ed did not speak much of his wartime service until much later in life, which only made his family and friends all the prouder of him for what he had done. He received a Purple Heart, an Air Medal with three Oak-Leaf Clusters, an EAME Theater Ribbon with two Bronze Stars, two Overseas Service Bars, an American Defense Ribbon and a Good Conduct Medal. After the war, Ed attended collage at Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia, graduating in 1950. He was the first member of his family to attend college and earn a degree. Thereafter, he worked in sales throughout the Southeast, finally setting in Texas in the early 1960s. He enjoyed reading, television, fishing and cooking, especially barbecue, Texas and Cajun food. In his retirement he enjoyed traveling, visiting family and attending military reunions. He was an active member of the Texas Gulf Coast Chapter of the American Ex-Prisoners of War. Mr. Waters passed away on February 16, 2010, at the Golden Living Center in Morgantown, West Virginia. In addition to his parents and his brothers Warren, Tom and Lester, Ed was preceded in death by his beloved wife of 43 years, Betty Jo Waters, on August 19, 2008. He is survived by his daughter and eldest child Victoria Goodykoontz and husband Jack of Morgantown, West Virginia; his sons Brian Waters and wife Gail, Howard Waters, Phillip Waters and wife Susan, Steven Waters and wife Gerry, Mark Waters, John Waters and wife Angela, James Waters and wife Wendy and Michael Waters; his grandchildren David Goodykoontz and wife Erin, Adam Goodykoontz and wife Erin, Scott Ferguson and wife Sandra, Victoria Ferguson and Ashley Waters and husband Martin; his great grandchildren Kylie Ferguson, Annabelle Goodykoontz and Messiah Waters Lopez; his sister Zell Holland and several nieces and nephews. The dedicated care given him by the Golden Living Center is deeply appreciated. His body was donated to science through the West Virginia University Human Gift Registry.