Joseph Thomas Herr was born on June 16, 1930 in Hazleton Pennsylvania to Joseph and Helen (Le Grande) Herr. On Thursday September 16, 2021, Joseph T Herr, passed peacefully in his sleep at the age of 91 in the arms of his wife, Vanda.

An only child, he attended MMI Preparatory School in Freeland, Pennsylvania graduating in 1949. During the last year of high school, Joe and a friend/classmate decided to join the Naval Reserves and sailed to Tunisia.  MMI's Principal did not believe them and upon their return, they had to relate their experiences at a school assembly in order to graduate.

Shortly thereafter, the Korean War broke out and from the lessons he learned in the Naval Reserves, decided that enlisting in the Air Force was a better choice than being violently seasick all the time. After basic training, he was sent to Sculthorpe AFB in Norfolk, England where his Air Force career as a weather forecaster started.

Fast forward to Christmas 1951; Joe went to the seaside town of Great Yarmouth where he stayed in the Star Hotel. It was at that hotel and while attending the holiday dance that he met his future wife, Vanda Loveday. They knew after only three dates they were meant for each other and married the following December 1953.

The following year, 1954, the two sailed for America. Joe decided to stay in the Air Force and was stationed in Baltimore. His friends convinced him to take the test for Officer Candidate School. Of his six friends who took it, it turns out that Joe was the only one who passed.  As he would recount later, it changed his life.  Upon completion of OCS and flight training, he was tapped to fly helicopters and eventually became a Rescue Helicopter Pilot. During the ensuing years, he and his crews were credited with rescuing many civilians and armed forces personnel. Joe earned the Distinguished Fly Cross and other commendations for bravery and heroic actions as just a few highlights in a storied career that spanned 20 years.

Being an Air Force Officer also meant he spent many years apart from his family when duty called. A year in Thule Greenland, 7 months in Iran teaching flying to the Shah's pilots and his last year, 1969 -70 was spent rescuing troops and downed pilots flying out of Pleiku, Vietnam.

During his Air Force career, he and his family traveled extensively and were stationed in Florida, Oklahoma, Texas, New York and three years on the Island of Okinawa.

Joe loved going on vacation and during the early years, took the family on extended road trips all over the United States, using his 30 days of leave all at once. One of the highlights was a trip to the Seattle World's fair from Pennsylvania in 1962, driving a pink and white 56 Pontiac station wagon and pulling a turquoise and white Winnebago travel trailer.

Upon retiring from the Air Force, he worked for an oil company as a product distributor and he was a distributor for the Seattle Post Intelligencer. The next phase included owning a small grocery store in the north end of Tacoma named La Pores. Looking to spend more time with family, he sold the store and purchased a 20 acre farm near Winlock, Washington, and became a gentleman farmer raising cows and pigs. This was before the internet was widely available and he learned everything to do with farming by watching the PBS television series about a travelling veterinarian set in rural 1930's England called "All Creatures Great and Small".

For many years on Father's Day, Joe and Vanda would host a "Pig Roast" for over a hundred guests and friends of the family. There are no doubts still some t-shirts hanging around commemorating these events. After farming for twenty years, they sold everything so he and Vanda could explore America once again.  They spent many years in Olympia, a 5 year adventure in Arizona and eventually settled down in eastern Washington near Spokane.

Joe's can-do attitude and knack for being able to "MacGyver" almost anything stood him in good stead on his many adventures and pursuits both in the Air Force and civilian life.  These traits were passed on to his children who grew up working and helping alongside their Dad and learned by doing. Joseph is survived by his wife of 67 years Vanda, his six children; Joseph (Cheryl), David (Cydney), Christopher (Yvonne), Susan (Mark), Theresa (Susan), and Katherine (James), 13 grandchildren and seven great grandchildren.