“For every American word we used, they docked us 1 cent from our 15-cent allowance,” he said. The son of German immigrants, Hessemer says his parents insisted he and his siblings be bilingual. It’s a narrative highlighted by moments he calls unique experiences – the blind date on which he met his wife, the Boca Raton palace in which he was billeted as an officer, a wedding feast served on metal mess-hall trays. The Rehoboth Beach resident recounts his life in great detail.
He’s had the kind of luck that left him the only survivor of a World War II squadron, but he’s also had the kind of luck he calls the meeting of preparation and opportunity. If you ask Fritz Hessemer about his life, he says he’s been lucky – lucky in two ways.
