. . It portrays everybody there was happy to see me.". She works in the sales department of Media-Sourcery, marketers of multimedia software. "I would like to see you when you come home, but will understand if you would rather not. Lorrie Stirm, the girl with her arms outstretched to her father, was a 15 year old student at the time. In 1974, the Stirms divorced and Loretta remarried, but Lieutenant Colonel Stirm was still ordered by the courts to provide her with 43% of his military retirement pay once he retired from the Air Force. And she did not even have the honor and integrity to be honest with the kids. 2008 - 2023 INTERESTING.COM, INC. It brought basket after basket of fan mail and newspaper clippings from all over the world, she recalls. . Our beloved Loretta Faye Adams, 74, of Georgetown, TX, was called home by our Heavenly Father on August 13, 2010. He worked well past the age of 60, and is currently 86 years of age. Lorrie says, "So much had happenedthere was so much that my dad missed out onand it took a while to let him back into our lives and accept his authority." Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information, Travis Bickle, meet Toni Morrison, in a socially probing, fiercely fun debut novel, Scott Adams says he was using hyperbole: America being programmed to see race first, Before and after photos from space show storms effect on California reservoirs, Dramatic before and after photos from space show epic snow blanketing SoCal mountains, Its really bad up here. Stranded residents in San Bernardino Mountains brace for more snow, 10 books to add to your reading list in March. She lives in Mountain View, California, with her husband. But for Stirm, there will always be the picture. All eyes were glued to the soldiers, except for Veder who noticed a girl jumping out of a van. . True Grit is the soundtrack album by Glen Campbell and Elmer Bernstein for the film True Grit starring John Wayne. Her mother remarried in 1974 and lives in Texas with her husband. Leave a message for others who see this profile. She lived a lie. . DATE OF BIRTH: March 23, 1933 PLACE OF BIRTH: San Mateo, California HOME OF RECORD: San Mateo, California Robert Stirm was interned as a Prisoner of War in North Vietnam after he was shot down on. the honor and integrity to be honest with the kids. Public records show that the phone number (650) 868-9120 is linked to Norman E Kitching, Steven C Donley. The pair divorced within a year, with Lorrie and her brother Robert Jr. living with Stirm. After six long years, POW Lt. Col. Robert L. Stirm was once again able to hug his 15-year-old daughter Lorrie Stirm, along with his other three children and his wife. picture does not show the realities that she had accepted proposals of No one is sure why she showed up at Travis Air Force Base in California that St. Patricks Day in 1973, but she alluded to it in the letter handed to Stirm when he arrived in the Philippines for evaluation before returning to the United States. The hypocrisy of the photo does not matter. Publicada el junio 4, 2022 por junio 4, 2022 por He endured nearly six years of mock executions, torture, illness, and starvation while living in the notorious Hanoi Hilton. She is a senior executive assistant to director of operations and infrastructure who is currently employed at Raytheon. Close behind on the Tarmac, also running, are his two grinning boys, his younger daughter and his tall, attractive wife. . . And Lorrie Stirm Kitching, now 47, is an executive administrator and mother of two sons. Today, she is Cindy Pierson, the 31-year-old mother of an 8-year-old girl. Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information. "It's a hero's welcome for guys who weren't always seen or treated as heroes," says Donald Goldstein, a retired Air Force lieutenant colonel and a coauthor of The Vietnam War: The Stories and The Photographs, of the Stirm family reunion picture. Turning his camera to the charging family, Veder quickly shot a series of photos. . "I look at the picture and I don't see me. It brought basket after basket of fan mail and newspaper clippings from all over the. "It seems like another lifetime ago," she said. . But for Stirm's older daughter, Lorrie Kitching, the photo captures a wonderful, pure moment in time. That the moment was considerably more fraught than we first assumed makes it all the more poignant and reminds us that not all war casualties occur on the battlefield. "It's a wonderful piece of history that we just happened to stumble into," I have your pictures up and your certificates and have kept you very much with us while you were gone and the children have not forgotten their father. Everybody's face is genuinely happy." WIKITREE HOME | ABOUT | G2G FORUM | HELP | SEARCH. A 2005 article about the family in Smithsonian magazine, however, reports that "All four of Robert Stirm Sr.'s children [including Lorrie Stirm Kitching, now 53 and the mother of two sons] have a copy of Burst of Joy hanging in a place of honor on their walls. IMPORTANT PRIVACY NOTICE & DISCLAIMER: YOU HAVE A RESPONSIBILITY TO USE CAUTION WHEN DISTRIBUTING PRIVATE INFORMATION. "There's some sort of notoriety in that. newsletter for the best of the past, delivered every Wednesday. Today, she is Cindy Pierson, the 31-year-old mother of an 8-year-old girl. May 17, 2017. The two youngest children, Cindy and Roger, remained with Loretta. She is wearing her favorite dress, a black jumper with a lacy pinafore, knee socks and Mary Janes. Such is the case with Burst of Joy. He married and was divorced again. Our 9 best-selling history titles feature in-depth storytelling and iconic imagery to engage and inform on the people, the wars, and the events that shaped America and the world. And she did not even have the honor and integrity to be honest with the kids. He said he survived the torture, the mock executions, the dread-filled days and nights, so he could return to her, only to be handed a Dear John letter by a chaplain upon his release. But the divorce was inevitable- and public. It Didnt Work. But for Stirm's older daughter, Lorrie Kitching, the photo captures a wonderful, pure moment in time. Lorrie, 35, lives in San Mateo, Calif., with her second husband and an He kept copies of the image, but none are on display. Burst of Joy is a Pulitzer Prize-winning photograph by Associated Press photographer Slava 'Sal' Veder, taken on March 17, 1973 at Travis Air Force Base in California. I don't see me. You were racing down the In the past, Lorrie has also been known as Lorrie D Stirm Clark, Lorrie A Stirm Kitching, Lorrie A Stirm-kitching, Lorrie A Stir and Lorrie A Stirmclark. . and nights, so he could return to her, only to be handed a "Dear John" letter ", 2023 Smithsonian Magazine Across party lines, across religious, social and economic classifications people will be grateful for life. Burst of Joy was one of the most famous images taken of U.S. POWs returning home from Vietnam. . If so, login to add it. Retrieved from. Adding insult to injury, the divorce became a rather publicized affair, with Loretta getting custody of two of their kids, the family home and nearly 43 percent of Stirms retirement pay. "[5], Last edited on 22 February 2023, at 23:15, U.S. prisoners of war during the Vietnam War, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5yInvz73m_8, "POW's Homecoming a Picture of Joy, but a Tapestry of Sadness", "Loretta Adams Obituary (2010) San Francisco Chronicle", "Coming Home: To a war-weary nation, a U.S. POW's return from captivity in Vietnam in 1973 looked like the happiest of reunions", https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/roadshow/watch/episode/2701K1-filoli-hour-1/, Pilots from Takhli and Korat Airbases shot down between 19651972, Sad Story Behind 'Burst of Joy' Vietnam POW Photo, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Burst_of_Joy&oldid=1141017147. Starting on February 12 and continuing until March 29, 1973, almost 600 American POWs were released from North Vietnamese POW camps. "[7], Despite outward appearances, the reunion was an unhappy one for Stirm. Lorrie is 35 today and lives in San Mateo, Calif., with her second husband and an 11-year-old son from her first marriage. "I can't begin to tell you how proud we are of you. wonderful to have a dad because all my friends had dads at their functions.". One of these flights included Lt. Col. Robert L. Stirm, the soldier in the famous photograph. From left to right, Lt Col Robert L. Stirm, Lorrie Stirm, Bo Stirm, Cindy Stirm, Loretta Stirm, and Roger Stirm. They divorced a year after Stirm returned from. . Janes. Stirm later learned that Loretta had been with other men throughout his captivity and had received marriage proposals from three of them. Theres some sort of notoriety in that. Download Record Provide Feedback. The families who did not get a reunion like hers. He worked well past the age of 60, and is currently 86 years of age. Stirm retired from the Air Force in 1977 after 25 years of service. The image, dubbed, Burst of Joy, was printed and touted across America, earning photographer Slava Sal Veder the Pulitzer Prize in 1974. . The pair divorced within a year, with Lorrie and her brother Robert Jr. living with Stirm. She is married to an attorney and still lives in Foster City, but declined to be interviewed. Burst of Joy became and remains an iconic photo marking the end of the US involvement in Vietnam. "She had a rough job, raising four children on her own," Lorrie says. Boyle, John, director. I would like to see you when you come home, but will understand if you would rather not.. Why? She simply couldn't believe they were about to be reunited. Copyright 2023 PopularMilitary | All Rights Reserved. a pattern of misconduct on her part during Stirm's imprisonment. However, one can only fathom what exclusive and vile corner of Hell awaits those who cheat on spouses held in captivity by an enemy during wartime. to grow up," the letter read in part. It makes her appreciate life. Many Animals, Including the Platypus, Lost Their Stomachs. No one is sure why she showed up at Travis Air Force Base in California To Stirm, now 60, it is cruel irony that so public a reunion had so hollow a core. They have also lived in Los Altos, CA and Foster City, CA. Three days before this picture was taken, Lt. Col. Robert Stirm, the soldier in the picture, received a Dear John letter from his wife, Loretta. She sees a father coming home, a man who will one day be a grandfather to her children. Find Instagram, Twitter, Facebook and TikTok profiles, images and more on IDCrawl - free people search website. She lived a lie. She lives in Mountain View, Calif., with her husband. managed to make each other miserable. Life is too short.. You are here: customer is always right in matters of taste; toronto snow storm april 1975; lorrie stirm kitchingbenji and joel madden young. His older daughter is racing to meet him, arms outstretched, both feet off the ground, face split wide in a giddy smile. He followed in his father's He gazed at it. Stirm laughs. Comfort the family with flowers or a sympathy gift. "Bob, I feel sure that in your heart you know we can't make it together - and it doesn't make sense to be unhappy when you can do something about it. The photo, taken by Sal Veder of The Associated Press, "brought a lot of She had a rough job, raising four children on her own, Lorrie said. . "She was very young.". She tore down the runway toward him with open arms, her spiritsand feetflying. For 24-hours, the nation will slow down and be thankful. The joy of this reunion leaps out from the pages of history: Robert Stirm, newspaper clippings from all over the world, she recalls. I have several copies of the photo, he said in 1993, but I dont display it in the house. Filoli, Hour 1. . Home; Blog; Nosotros; Contacto; Nuestros Clientes; Copia de Home V2; lorrie stirm kitching Today, she is Cindy Pierson, 31, the mother of an 8-year-old girl. was very young.". It brought basket after basket of fan mail and I don't feel like I was really a part of it. Lorrie Stirm, daughter of POW Lt. Col. Robert Stirm, recounted in a 2005 Smithsonian magazine article what it was like to wait for her father at Travis after he was released from six years of imprisonment in March 1973. They had four children together, and had been through a lot of good and bad, respectively. ", The minutes crept by like hours, she recalls, and then, all at once, the car door opened. Photographer, "Sal" Veder was standing in the photographers' pit at Travis Air Force Base in California as the POWs made their way off the plane. page of Stirm's life. core. he returned from Vietnam, and each remarried within six months. Loretta would later marry an attorney. He "I just wanted to get to dad as fast as I could," Lorrie says. And she did not even have MediaSourcery, marketers of multimedia software. 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