Biography Of The Late
Captain James Franklin Fitzgerald, M.D. U.S. Army Medical Corp Written by his Son in Law, Attorney Wilson A. Copeland, II Dr. James Franklin Fitzgerald was born in February,1919 to James and Lillian Fitzgerald and lived in Wilmington, Delaware from his birth through high school graduation. His undergraduate life was spent at Pennsylvania’s Lincoln University, where he became a member of the Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, followed by what proved to be his inadvertent path to a most memorable military experience, matriculation at Meharry Medical College in Nashville, Tennessee, where he received his M.D. degree. Like all other American medical schools, Meharry was taken over by the United States Army during the Second World War due to the pressing need for physicians, dentists, and nurses in the Armed Forces. This situation resulted in the students essentially being conscripted, with their tuition being paid by the government, going to class in uniform, attending school year round, with graduations being conducted three times a year and culminating in reporting for duty following a one year internship. March of 1944 proved to be a busy month for James Franklin Fitzgerald; graduating from Meharry on the 19th, marrying Fisk University graduate, Alberta Price on the 26th, and establishing a new home for his bride and himself in Washington, D.C., where he would spend his next year as an intern at Howard University’s Freedom Hospital. While at Freedman’s, a pyrrhic victory of sorts occurred when a letter from the Army arrived advising him that the ebbing World War had resulted in a reduction of the need for health care professionals and he needn’t report for duty. Thus, upon completion of his internship, he headed for Detroit, Michigan to begin his practice and, where believing himself to be in the Army Reserve, he gave short shift to the letters from the U.S. Navy that arrived in the late 1940’s, believing them to be recruitment efforts and knowing the Navy was the least receptive of all the Armed Services about President Truman’s 1948 desegregation orders. The onset of hostilities in Korea were the precursor to a visit to his office from the two FBI agents who arrested him for failing to report for induction; it seems those ‘recruiting letters’ were in fact notices advising him that he had been transferred to the Naval Reserve. He was released from a federal detention cell that evening with the understanding he was to report for duty the next day. He did, entering the office of the Naval Recruiting Center that morning, the officer on duty took one look at him, asked with some degree of chagrin and incredulity, “You’re James Franklin Fitzgerald?” and receiving the affirmative reply, immediately blurted out, “There must be some mistake, just go home and we’ll contact you sometime in the future.” It seems the name James Franklin Fitzgerald fit someone ‘From the Old Sod’ – his skin color, however, did not – and the Navy realized there had indeed been a mistake. Over the next few months, an administrative transfer back to the Army took place and Captain James Franklin Fitzgerald, M.D. found himself in a MASH unit in Korea, where he served with distinction from 1952 to 1954. During the course of his service in Korea, Captain Fitzgerald was awarded three Purple Hearts. One coming as a result of assisting in a surgical procedure on a wounded GI and together with the rest of the surgical team, continuing the operation, despite incoming artillery shells, for this act the Purple Heart he was given for the injuries caused by those shells was accompanied by the Bronze Star. Returning to Detroit after completing his service to his country, Dr. Fitzgerald practiced medicine until his untimely death from an untreatable abdominal infection on Thanksgiving Day 1960 at the age of 41. He was survived by his wife, Alberta and their daughter, Deborah Fitzgerald Copeland. ==================== Deborah Fitzgerald Copeland will fly in from her home in Detroit, Michigan to received the Black History Month award on behalf of her late Father. Special Thanks to JET BLUE AIRLINES, who are Breakfast Sponsors and responsible for Mrs. Copeland's travel arrangements. =================== The Black History Month Breakfast will be held on Thursday March 3, 2016 at the Boston Colonnade Hotel from 8:30 am to 11:00 am.
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By Carole Copeland Thomas, MBA, CDMP, CITM You are cordially invited to attend the March 3, 2016 Black History Breakfast that will honor African Americans in the Military Past and Present. This is our most ambitious Breakfast since its creation in the year 2000, and it will indeed become our best yet. This is our 23rd Breakfast and we are partnering again with the Boston Colonnade Hotel to host a meaningful tribute to our men and women who have protected and defended the United States through the years. Particular emphasis will highlight those African Americans who have served from World War II to our present day forces. However, we will salute the African American presence in the Armed Forces since the American Revolution.
This event is expected to SELL OUT quickly. We encourage you to buy your tickets and tables in December and reserve your space! Register Online Here Click Here For Complete Breakfast Details Our guest keynote speaker will be Ernest Washington, Jr. He is a well respected Vietnam Veteran, Purple Heart Recipient, Entrepreneur and Co-Founder of Concerned Black Men of Massachusetts. Ernest has been actively involved in veteran affairs for many years and will deliver a compelling message designed to inspire us all. Confirmed Honorees include the following: Mr. Willie Shellman -Past President New England Chapter Tuskegee Airmen Inc. The Boston Area Tuskegee Airmen 1st Sargeant Michael C. Wiltz - Iraq Veteran Patricia Odom - First Black Female Military Recruiter In Massachusetts Revs. Sandra & Ken Whitley - Career Air Force Veterans and AME Ministers Mary Tuitt - Military Veteran and Chief of Staff To Massachusetts Representative Gloria Fox Rev. Dr. Carlita Cotton - Retired Military, AME Minister and College Professor Ernest Washington, Jr. -Vietnam Veteran, Purple Heart Recipient & Entrepreneur And Other African Americans In The Military From World War II To The Present And A Special Family Tribute To: The Late 2nd Lieutenant Wilson A. Copeland - Tuskegee Airmen & US Diplomat The Late Dr. James Fitzgerald - Korean War Physician - Purple Heart Recipient -MASH Unit It’s the Black History Breakfast you won’t want to miss! Come and celebrate all of our African Americans in the military during this exciting upcoming event. This event is expected to SELL OUT quickly. We encourage you to buy your tickets and tables in December and reserve your space! Click Here For Complete Details. |
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