Carbondale native and WWII pilot who shuttled Nazi commander to surrender dies at 101

Jan. 12—In his 101 years, Pastor John T. "Jack" Race flew into history when he shuttled a Nazi high commander to France to sign the surrender of the Third Reich.

It was his gentle nature, though, where the Carbondale native earned his wings, family members said. Race, "Poppy" to family members, died Saturday at Clarks Summit Senior Living.

Enamored with flight at an early age, Race flew planes in World War II, then as a pilot for Pan American Airways and later as chief pilot for ORBIS International, a nonprofit aimed at fighting blindness.

A stalwart humanitarian, Race became a licensed lay pastor and served in several local Baptist churches in retirement.

"The highest compliment he could give to someone was 'What a guy,'" said his granddaughter, Wendy Hartman. "That's what I said of my grandfather: What a guy."

His desire to take to the skies began when he listened to the May 20, 1927, radio broadcast of Charles Lindbergh's first solo transatlantic flight from New York to Paris. He was just 6 at the time.

The idea of aviation "took hold of me," Race said in a 2010 interview. He got a job in 1942 working for the Air Transport Command Ferrying Division and was commissioned as a second lieutenant in the Army Air Corps.

"Aviation was more than just his job," said grandson Joshua Race, 51, of St. Augustine, Florida. "He identified with it in a way that was like a calling."

During the war, Race flew planes to and from bases. Occasionally, he flew American generals to meetings.

He became part of history May 7, 1945, when he was tasked with flying to Lüneburg, Germany, to transport German Wehrmacht Chief of Staff Alfred Jodl to Reims, France, to sign terms of unconditional surrender, ending the war in Europe.

Among family, Race held court with a rapt audience while he told stories, "but he was always very humble," Hartman said.

In 1950, he began a 32-year career with Pan Am. Until he retired, Joshua Race spent time with him maybe once a year because his grandfather so frequently traveled. They also kept in touch through the mail. Postcards came in from all over the world.

"It always felt special," he said.

Pilots were treated like rock stars at the time but Race never swaggered.

"He was laid back, nothing bothered him," said grandson Teddy DeNike. "He was always willing, ready and able to help everybody."

In March 1970, his flight journey came full circle with a routine route from San Francisco to New York City. In the cockpit of a cargo plane, Race learned he had one passenger: Lindbergh.

"It was huge for him," Hartman said.

The weather was cloudy. Race relied entirely on his flight instruments, according to Hartman, 59, of Greenfield Twp. The landing was smooth and uneventful.

"Very nice landing, captain," Lindbergh told him, according to Race's memoirs.

Race had a gentle nature and a spiritual side. After he retired from Pan Am, he became a lay minister and served as interim pastor at the Clifford Baptist, First Baptist of Abington and Trinity Baptist of Scranton. He delivered Meals on Wheels well into his 80s, often stopping in to see the people he visited, family said.

Joshua Race recalled games of chess with his grandfather, along with spirited debates on philosophy and humanity's purpose. War need not be an inevitable part of life, he believed.

"'What a guy' is right," said his daughter, Jacqueline DeNike.

Contact the writer: jkohut@timesshamrock.com, 570-348-9100, x5187; @jkohutTT on Twitter.