Two Great Stories - both true!
 STORY NUMBER ONE
 
 
 Many years ago, Al Capone virtually owned Chicago.
 Capone wasn't famous for anything heroic. He was notorious for enmeshing
 the windy city in everything from boot-legged booze and prostitution
 to murder.

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Capone had a lawyer nicknamed "Easy Eddie." He was
 Capone's lawyer for a good reason. Eddie was very good! In fact, Eddie's> skill at legal maneuvering kept Big Al out of jail for a long time.
 
 
 To show his appreciation, Capone paid him very well.
 Not only was the money big, but also, Eddie got special dividends.
 For instance, he and his family occupied a fenced-in mansion with live-in
 help and all of the conveniences of the day. The estate was so large
 that it filled an entire Chicago City block.
 
 
 Eddie lived the high life of the Chicago mob and
 gave little consideration to the atrocity that went on around
 him.
 
 Eddie did have one soft spot, however. He had a son
 that he loved dearly. Eddie saw to it that his young son had
 clothes, cars, and a good education. Nothing was withheld. Price was no
 object.
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 And, despite his involvement with organized crime,
 Eddie even tried to teach him right from wrong. Eddie wanted his son to
 be a better man than he was.
 
 
 Yet, with all his wealth and influence, there were
 two things he couldn't give his son; he couldn't pass on a good
 name or a good example.
 
 
 One day, Easy Eddie reached a difficult decision.
 Easy Eddie wanted to rectify wrongs he had done.
 
 
 He decided he would go to the authorities and tell
 the truth about Al "Scarface" Capone, clean up his tarnished name, and
 offer his son some semblance of integrity. To do this, he would have to
 testify against The Mob, and he knew that the cost would be great.
 
 
 So, he testified.
 
 
 Within the year, Easy Eddie's life ended in a blaze
 of gunfire on a lonely Chicago Street.
 
 
 But in his eyes, he had given his son the greatest
 gift he had to offer, at the greatest price he could ever pay.
 Police removed from his pockets a rosary, a crucifix, a religious medallion,
 and a poem clipped from a magazine.
 
 
 The poem read:
 
 
 "The clock of life is wound but once,
 
 
 And no man has the power to tell
 
 
 Just when the hands will stop
 
 
 At late or early hour.
 
 
 Now is the only time you own.
 
 
 Live, love, toil with a will.
 
 
 Place no faith in time.
 

 For the clock may soon be still.
 

                                                                                     
 
 
 
 STORY NUMBER TWO

 World War II produced many heroes. One such <o:p></o:p>

man was Lieutenant Commander Butch O'Hare.
 
 
He was a fighter pilot assigned to the aircraft
carrier Lexington in the South Pacific.
 
 
One day his entire squadron was sent on a mission.
After he was airborne, he looked at his fuel gauge and realized
that someone had forgotten to top off his fuel tank.
 
 
He would not have enough fuel to complete his
mission and get back to his ship.
 
 
His flight leader told him to return to the carrier.
Reluctantly, he dropped out of formation and headed back to the
fleet.
 
 
As he was returning to the mother ship he saw<o:p></o:p>

something that turned his blood cold: <o:p></o:p>

a squadron of Japanese aircraft was
speeding its way toward the American fleet.
 
 
The American fighters were gone on a sortie, and the<o:p></o:p>

fleet was all but defenseless. He couldn't reach his squadron and
bring them back in time to save the fleet. Nor could he warn the fleet of
the approaching danger. There was only one thing to do. He must
somehow divert them from the fleet.
 
 
Laying aside all thoughts of personal safety, he
dove into the formation of Japanese planes. Wing-mounted 50
caliber’s blazed as he charged in, attacking one surprised enemy plane and
then another. Butch wove in and out of the now-broken formation and
fired at as many planes as possible until all his ammunition was finally
spent.
 
 
Undaunted, he continued the assault. He dove at the
planes, trying to clip a wing or tail in hopes of damaging as many
enemy planes as possible and rendering them unfit to fly.
 
 
Finally, the exasperated Japanese squadron took off
in another direction.
 
 
Deeply relieved, Butch O'Hare and his tattered fighter limped back to
the carrier.
 
 
Upon arrival, he reported in and related the event
surrounding his return. The film from the gun-camera mounted on his
plane told the tale. It showed the extent of Butch's daring
attempt to protect his fleet.


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He had, in fact, destroyed five enemy aircraft.
 
 
 This took place on February 20, 1942, and for that
 action Butch became the Navy's first Ace of W.W.II, and the first Naval
 Aviator to win the Congressional Medal of Honor.
 
 
 A year later Butch was killed in aerial combat at
 the age of 29. His home town would not allow the memory of this WW II
 hero to fade, and today, O'Hare Airport in Chicago is named in tribute
 to the courage of this great man.
 
 
 So, the next time you find yourself at O'Hare
 International, give some thought to visiting Butch's memorial displaying his
 statue and his Medal of Honor. It's located between Terminals 1
 and 2.
 
 
 SO WHAT DO THESE TWO STORIES HAVE TO DO WITH EACH
 OTHER?
 
 Butch O'Hare was "Easy Eddie's" son.
 
 (Pretty cool, huh?)<o:p></o:p>

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