Tuskegee Airman lights up South Jersey senior center

At age 90, former Tuskegee Airman Melvin Frisby arrives at a South Jersey senior center hours before lunch.

He shows up early not to get in line, but to serve meals to his peers. Frisby also occasionally serves up stories about his service in the legendary Tuskegee group, the first black pilots in American military history, who overcame racial barriers and discrimination to serve the country with distinction.

Frisby, of Sicklerville, New Jersey, lived out a childhood dream that began on his family farm in western Pennsylvania, near Pittsburgh, where he learned how to fly. He later became a member of the elite group of aviators and served in the Army Air Force and Air Force from 1946 to 1962.

For years, Frisby seldom spoke about his experiences among the seniors, who meet twice a week for lunch at the Michael J. DiPiero Center in Blackwood, where Camden County provides senior services. Many were surprised when his story emerged two years ago, when he was awarded a county Military Service Medal.

Since then, the soft-spoken Frisby has become popular at the center, where seniors gather on Tuesdays and Thursdays for lunch, fellowship, and bingo.

“I think it’s wonderful what he did — a war hero,” said Marie Beres, 76, of Sicklerville. “He’s a great man. We love Mel.”

Frisby, the second-oldest of five children, grew up on a dairy farm in Aliquippa, a small Pennsylvania town on the Ohio River. He didn’t like school and thought about dropping out, but a neighbor who owned several airplanes promised to teach him how to fly if he graduated.

After months of training, Frisby finally got a chance to climb into the cockpit of an old mail plane. He can still remember the thrill of the aircraft moving down the runway, picking up speed.

“I could feel the plane start to lift up. I wasn’t earthbound anymore,” he said.

The neighbor suggested that Frisby continue his training at Tuskegee Army Air Field in Alabama. He arrived in 1946, a few months after the war ended.

Frisby credits the World War II pilots who came before him, such as Benjamin O. Davis Jr., who later became the first black general in the Air Force. They dispelled myths about black pilots and helped pave the way for President Harry Truman to issue an executive order to integrate the armed services in 1948.

Nearly 1,000 black pilots received their wings at Tuskegee.

“Those are the men who got their foot in the door. They kept it open,” Frisby said. “They did a good job.”

COURTESY CAMDEN COUNTY / TNS Melvin Frisby acknowledges attendees after receiving a plaque and medal for his service as a member of the Tuskegee Airmen.