Alvin Cozelle Manire

He was born March 22, 1923 in Munday, Texas to James Alton Manire and Ocie Ida Cavitt.

Early Years
"Al" was 1 of 5 surviving children. He had a sister named Peggy Marie Manire who was born in 1930.She died 21 days after her birth.

In 1930, 6 year old Alvin was in Justice Precinct 4, Motley County, Texas with his parents according to the census.

In 1940, 17 year old Cozell was in Precinct 4, Munday, Knox County, Texas with his parents. He had a 7th grade education at the time, but was still in school.

Military
Al signed up for the Army March 10, 1943, when he was 20 years old. He went off to Training in Miami, Florida. He ended up in the Air Corp. He took on the job classification of AM Mech/Electrical. He worked on planes. He went to AM school in Gulfport, Mississippi. He went to Electrical school in Chanute Field, Illinois.

By May of 1943 he was a Pvt. 1st Class. By 1944 he was a Corporal. On January 15, 1944 he became part of the Division 877th Bomb Squad. He got married February 1, 1944 to H. J. Batiz. By October of 1944 he was a Buck Sargeant. This was also when he was sent to Hamilton Field in Saipan. He was still in Saipan when they bombed Hiroshima and Nagasaki in August of 1945. He returned to Fort McArthur December 21, 1945. He was discharged from World War II when he returned.

He was still in the Military during the Korean War. He didn't go overseas though. By May of 1951 he was a Staff Sargeant. He was discharged from the Korean War December 15, 1951.

Later Years
Worked for the NASA Apollo program until the 1970's.

He and his wife moved to Oregon and retired. He built a house where he lived up until his death in 2005. He was a member of the VFW (Veterans of Foreign Wars) and even served as a commander for the Shady Cove chapter. He was a member of the Rogue Valley Leather Guild. He was also a member of the Senior Bowling League. He loved bowling. He liked John Wayne movies and reading Louis L'Amour books.

He had been battling Lung cancer and brain tumors since 2004. He had fallen and hit his head. He was rushed to Providence Hospital where he died on October 19, 2005. His sister, Mada, and only sibling left had died a few weeks eariler from Lung Cancer.

Family Links
5th Great Grandson of John Manire.

Maternal Grandpa to CeCeBeth (a Manire Family Researcher).