Great Park Honors its Heritage at El Toro Homecoming

A Tribute to the Voices of El Toro’s Past

OCTOBER 2, 2008 – IRVINE, California – Dozens of men and women who once served or worked at the historic Marine Corps Air Station, El Toro returned to the site of the former base today to be honored by the Orange County Great Park Corporation at the El Toro Homecoming. The El Toro Homecoming paid tribute to those who shared and documented their El Toro life memories through the Great Park Oral History Program, a collaboration with California State University Fullerton’s Center for Oral and Public History. More than 150 interviews were completed.

The program began when Orange County Great Park Corporation Chair Larry Agran invited each narrator to stand one at a time and share their name, when they were at El Toro, their rank and role when they served there and where they are currently living for all in attendance. Guests then heard actual oral histories from two individuals interviewed for the program. They were:

• Corporal Patricia Young, served at El Toro as part of the United States Marine Corps Women’s Reserve. Though her time on the base was short, Young recalled, “My Marine career lasted a little over two years (1944-1945). Two years out of eighty-four is nothing. But it was a big part of my life, [an] important part of my life, and I’m glad I had that experience.”
• Staff Sergeant Donald Burhmann enlisted in the Marine Corps in 1942. He was sent to El Toro after serving a tour in the Pacific Theatre. He remembers his time on the base as “heaven on earth” and spent time in nearby Santa Ana with his wife June. At that time the city had a population of about fifty thousand people, “about the same population as our hometown Aurora, [Illinois].”

“The El Toro Homecoming was an opportunity to remember, acknowledge and honor the people who made El Toro one of the finest air stations in the country,” said Agran. “The Great Park Oral History Program bridges the past, present and the future of the El Toro Marine Corps Air Station as the site transitions to the Orange County Great Park.”

Homecoming honorees enjoyed guided shuttle tours of the former air station, exhibits including photo displays of some of the oral history participants, vintage aircraft models, and flight suits, and reminisced with old friends over dinner in Hangar 244.

“Memories and friendships of many years ago were rekindled tonight by many at the El Toro Homecoming,” said Lt. Col. William Kogerman (ret.). El Toro Homecoming master of ceremonies and Great Park Director. “These preserved oral histories will be enjoyed by generations to come.”

El Toro was established in 1943 because the military needed a new base to train young men going off to war. While many of the stories documented as part of the Oral History Project are positive, there are many more that address the real cost and sacrifice of war. Many Marines trained at Marine Corps Air Station El Toro and served their country in the Pacific Theater. Most came home, but many saw their comrades make the ultimate sacrifice.
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“The individual experience is priceless,” said Kira Gentry, Acting Director Oral History Project. “Whether seen through the eyes of military personnel, their families, or local farmers, this project preserves a part of history that could easily be forgotten.”

The Orange County Great Park will be a major metropolitan park and the focal point of the redevelopment of the 4,700-acre former Marine Corps Air Station at El Toro. Visitors to the Great Park can now enjoy the 27.5-acre Preview Park and flights in the iconic Great Park Balloon. The Great Park will include extensive natural areas and open space in addition to recreational and cultural uses.

Press Contacts:
Steve Larsen
Clerk of the Board / Interim PIO
Orange County Great Park Corporation
(949) 724-7414