Honoring Our Family Veterans Part 2: Marvin Leo Gregoire

Marvin Gregoire in his Army Air Force uniform.

early years

Marvin “Marv” Leo Gregoire was born in Marshall, Minnesota to Robert and Lillian (Grandpre) Gregoire, both of French Canadian descent. For more stories about this French Canadian family click here. Growing up on the Gregoire farm taught Marvin hard work and at the age of 17, he left school for the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC). This New Deal program established by President Roosevelt offered employment to young men who struggled to find work during the Great Depression. As part of the CCC, he would have improved the national and state park systems by constructing trails, shelters, wildlife refuges, and planting trees.

In 1938 Marvin married Agnes Conlin in Poplar, Montana. Rather than returning to the Gregoire farm, Marv and Agnes decided to move to Great Falls and join Marvin’s uncle George in the oil distribution business.

military service

In September of 1942, Marvin enlisted in the Army Air Force in San Francisco, California and began work at an aviation plant in Inglewood, CA building airframes. In the rush to manufacture planes quickly, safety was often ignored which conflicted with Marvin’s thoughtful nature. After witnessing a grisly accident where two of his fellow workers were sliced in half by a piece of the metal frame, Marv transferred to the school’s mechanic training program and eventually completed training in Deming, New Mexico.

After training, Marvin was deployed in the Asiatic-Pacific theater as an aviation engineer. The speedy production of planes was not only dangerous for those involved in construction, but aircrews also had staggering fatality and loss rates with an average of 6,600 deaths per month (220 per day.) Throughout the war, nearly 1,000 AAF planes disappeared en route to foreign locations. B-24’s were so heavy, difficult to fly and prone to mechanical problems that they were dubbed “flying coffins”. At one point Marvin’s plane was shot down, but the crew managed to survive. That frightening event left him with shrapnel in his leg that he carried the rest of his life. Despite the dangers, Marvin loved flying and went on to earn a private pilots license, buying a small plane after the war.

Marv and Agnes had their first son, Marvin Jr., amidst the war, in 1944. With Jr’s father gone fighting, Agnes showed him dad’s photo every night before bed in hopes that he would remember his father. Marvin Sr. served through the rest of WWII, rising to the rank of Staff Sergeant, and was honorably discharged in February of 1946. He was awarded an American Theater Service Medal, Asiatic-Pacific Theater Service Medal, and Good Conduct Medal. Returning home in 1946 Marvin Sr. was finally able to reconnect with his son, but when Agnes asked Marv Jr. to give his dad a kiss, he ran and kissed the photo he had come to know as “daddy.” An example of how the war stole years away from the brave soldiers.

family life

After the war, Marv and Agnes returned to the oil business in Great Falls until accepting Texaco oil distribution consignments in Newport and Ephrata, Washington, where the family, which had grown with the addition of three more kids, finally settled. Marvin was a respected businessman and was never afraid to jump in and help out with manual tasks at their Texaco bulk plant. His kids remember the beautiful shells he brought back from the shores of Saipan and fashioned into jewelry while reflecting on his time in the Pacific.

“Bumps”, as the grandkids called him, loved to cook for his family and could always be found at the helm preparing holiday meals. Many great memories were made around the Gregoire’s dining room table. He returned to his farming roots during retirement tending his well-manicured garden. He also loved to hunt and fish. Marvin died in November of 2003, followed a few months later by wife, Agnes.

Sources

For more information about the life and military service of Marvin Gregoire, please see his Ancestry profile by clicking below: