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A Lifetime of Serving His Country
Written by
Katie Lawson
, Staff Writer, Redcross.org
Thursday, November 10, 2005 — Veterans Day affords us all an opportunity to take a moment to recognize and thank those men and women who have served our country. Formerly known as Armistice Day to honor veterans of the First World War, and later changed Veterans day, this national holiday is a day of remembrance to honor the servicemen and women.
After serving in Italy during World War II, decorated veteran Enso V. Bighinatti served the American public for 43 years while working and volunteering for the American Red Cross.
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One man who stands out is a decorated World War II Air Force pilot and 43-year member of the American Red Cross. Enso Bighinatti, born in 1922, is a man who made serving his country his entire life’s mission
Bighinatti served as a radioman and gunner with the 15th Army Air Force in Italy during World War II on a B24 Liberator Bomber. The only man in his 10-man crew communicating to the airfield, Bighi (pronounced “Biggy”) as he was affectionately called, was the first to notify command that their plane was on fire after being hit and was going down over Munich on July 7, 1944. He was captured and sent to Stalag Luft IV, a prison camp near the Baltic Sea.
Bighi credited his survival to the Red Cross parcels he received while in the prison camp.
“We were permitted to receive POW parcels made up by Red Cross. Now, obviously there were logistic problems,” said Bighinatti. “So we’d get, maybe, one parcel to split up equally with four people.”
Bighinatti went on to explain that the POWs would have to make it last for a week, two or up to a month.
“As a matter of fact, we’d draw straws for the person to take the crumbs that were left after you split the crackers and everything out on the table,” said Bighinatti who also pointed out that cigarettes came with the parcels back then and “became the most valuable thing in a prison camp” because they could be used like money in the camps.
“I mean, even making deals with the guards,” he said, “cigarettes helped save our lives, frankly, in those days.”
After being held prisoner for nearly a year, Bighinatti escaped and was discovered by British troops. After a short hospitalization, he was awarded the Purple Heart upon returning to the United States. In 1951, during a trip to Washington, D.C., many years later, Bighinatti and his wife, Mildred, passed the America Red Cross national headquarters. Mildred thought it would be a great idea for him to stop in and apply for a job. From his days in the war, Bighinatti had an admiration for the organization that had helped him in his darkest hour.
A telegram from the Red Cross signaled the beginning of his long career with the organization. His first position was as an assistant field director for Red Cross disaster services out of its national headquarters. He also served as the national director of disaster services (1970 to 1975) and was the assistant to the President. During his 43-year tenure, Bighinatti further served his countrymen by working on nearly every major disaster relief operation in the country between 1951 and 1984. Even after he retired in 1984, Bighinatti continued on as a volunteer to the Red Cross for another decade.
In addition, Bighinatti worked under the Secretary General of the League of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies – now known as the International Federation of Red Cross/Red Crescent Societies – in Geneva, Switzerland. He also went on to found and was the first chairman of National Voluntary Organizations Active in Disaster (NVOAD).
“Working for the Red Cross for over forty years is the greatest thing that happened to me,” said Bighinatti. “I saw all of the U.S. and most of the world, and I had the privilege of working with the most dedicated and wonderful people, both volunteers and staff.”
Although Bighinatti passed away in Washington, D.C., on June 14, 2004, unlike so many veterans of that war, he lived long enough to see his country build the National World War II Memorial. The memorial honors the sacrifices of brave men and women like Enso Bighinatti – a man who served his country not only in the armed forces during the war but as a humanitarian and proud member of the American Red Cross.
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