Values of ‘greatest generation’ live
on
It was supposed to be just another bombing run over Germany in World War
II. The bomber crew of Charles F. Kain had orders to destroy a soccer
stadium in Stuttgart. Kain objected that his conscience, informed by Catholic
teaching, prohibited the planned slaughter of thousands of innocent civilians.
He would not participate. He risked court martial for his protest, but
his principles prevailed and the mission was canceled.
Charley Kain of Havertown, who died last month at the age of 91, might
have followed his orders and completed the mission, saying he was only
doing his duty. Many men faced moral dilemmas as they went about their
military duty; there are no easy jobs in war.
In those times and these, the Catholic Church can offer clear guidance
in an unsure world.
Kain grew up in the Fairmount section of Philadelphia. Developing his
gifted mind and physical prowess at St. Francis Xavier Parish and Roman
Catholic High School, Kain entered Villanova University on a scholarship
at the age of 15. On the way to earning an engineering degree, he excelled
at crew. He won eight national rowing championships and was chosen to
represent his country in the 1940 Olympics. But at the outbreak of hostilities
and the cancellation of the games, Kain took to the sky. He enlisted in
the U.S. Army Air Force and served as a navigator on B-17 bombers.
After the war, like so many of his fellow servicemen and women, Kain returned
home to the quiet life of raising a family with his wife, Helene. He did
his duty by using his gifts in sports, in battle, at home, in his profession
and in the many Church and civic associations that he was known to enjoy.
He was one of the generation we call the greatest, but they would say
they were merely doing their duty.
It is sometimes tempting to think that the values of Kain and his era
have passed into history. Far from it. Men and women today work hard every
day, raise families, enhance the civic life of their communities and,
when necessary, courageously stand up for human life and liberty when
it is inconvenient and difficult.
Good people from all walks of life know that their reward is in doing
their duty as best they can. Theirs is the hope that was Charley Kain’s
— that on the last day they will hear the words of our Lord in heaven:
“Well done, good and faithful servant.”