Uploaded June 2021 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
A funny thing happened at the airshow. I photograph interested veterans with their favorite WarBird or machine. This year one of the guest veterans was a tank gunner. Clarence Smoyer.
On Saturday evening I was photographing another veteran when Clarence’s friend Ron Rabenold said to me, “Mr. Clarence Smoyer is here. He just signed his signature on that #Shermantank today!” I said oh, would he like to be photographed?
So Ron and I traded phone numbers and off we went to the Hanger dance festivities.
I did a quick search on Clarence Smoyer, 97, and found this info.
Corporal, USA, 32nd Armor Regiment, 3rd Armored Division, an M26 Pershing Tank Gunner “The Hero of Cologne" Clarence saw action in: Normandy, Northern France, Battle of the Bulge, and the Rhineland Campaigns.
From World War II Magazine, April 2019.
“Smoyer is the subject of a new book by Adam Makos, Spearhead: An American Tank Gunner, His Enemy, and a Collision of Lives in World War II, and still attends reunions of his unit, the 3rd Armored—or “Spearhead”—Division,”
That got my attention. I started texting Ron early Sunday morning. He said that they would be at the show later in the morning and that Clarence was excited for his photo shoot!Great. Can’t wait.
Many of us attending Saturday’s show experienced dehydration and heat exhaustion, regardless of how much water you drank and Clarence was just one more person effected by the extreme heat that weekend.
I see Ron about 11:00am as he is loading in all the display goods for Clarence’s booth. We chat and I suggest noonish at the tank. Ok
I go out to the Tanks to inform them of our desires, they are thrilled and excited. Al says to me, one of the tank reenactors, we will be here, we’re ready. Fantastic, I will see you soon!
At noon I see the tanks pulling out, the Germans were counter attacking … again.
So I go see Ron in the hanger and inform him of the situation and we plan our next window of opportunity, 1 pm now and Clarence will need a way to get from the hanger to the tank, which is about 75 yards. I said OK, I will make that happen.
The day before I grabbed security in their golf carts to help me with another veteran get to a Warbird, no problem. Well today I couldn’t find them. It is now 12:45, tanks have moved back to there positions, they will be there for the rest of the day.
OK , great, Clarence is coming soon. I texted Ron and said be ready, I am working on a ride. Ok
Off on my search, who can I get to help me with this?? I find a couple Jeep jockeys to help, but then I realize that Clarence would never be able to get into a Jeep, it is a high step-up, even difficult for me. Thanks anyway, next.
Still no security in site, I need a golf cart. It is now , 1:10 pm and I am drenched from sweat, come on, who’s going to help me here! It was then that I realized, after seeing a veteran cruising around on a scooter �, that a scooter would be my only option. Alright, let me go see if I can get a scooter for a half hour.
“Hey Wendall, I have a veteran I need to get from the hanger to that Tank, 75 yards, that’s it.” At first Wendall does not realize I am talking about a 97 year young veteran of WWII. We chat back and forth for a minute or two when I show him a couple images of what I do. Wendall pulls out the paperwork, I give him my ID, and he says, “the scooter is on me!”
With in 2 minutes I am driving the scooter over to Clarence. I see Ron’s face light up when I enter the hanger and signal that I have a scooter! The video tells the next 5 minutes, a photo shoot with Clarence Smoyer, a Sherman tank and all the tank reenactors. This was a great moment, not to be forgotten by anyone who was involved. Thanks to all the teamwork that made this happen. Video by friend Jack Craft of Endless Mountains War Memorial Museum in Sonestown, PA.
#mconferphoto #maam #wwiiveterans
#ClarenceSmoyer #3rdarmoreddivision
#m4Sherman
#M4ShermanTank
#Spearheadbook
#SpearHead
#WWII
#midatlanticairmuseum #wwii_weekendatmaam #adammakos
#spearhead
#EndlessMountains #EndlessMountainsmuseum #JackCraft
@wwii_weekendatmaam @midatlanticairmuseum
@adammakos
@EndlessMountainsMuseum
A funny thing happened at the airshow. I photograph interested veterans with their favorite WarBird or machine. This year one of the guest veterans was a tank gunner. Clarence Smoyer.
On Saturday evening I was photographing another veteran when Clarence’s friend Ron Rabenold said to me, “Mr. Clarence Smoyer is here. He just signed his signature on that #Shermantank today!” I said oh, would he like to be photographed?
So Ron and I traded phone numbers and off we went to the Hanger dance festivities.
I did a quick search on Clarence Smoyer, 97, and found this info.
Corporal, USA, 32nd Armor Regiment, 3rd Armored Division, an M26 Pershing Tank Gunner “The Hero of Cologne" Clarence saw action in: Normandy, Northern France, Battle of the Bulge, and the Rhineland Campaigns.
From World War II Magazine, April 2019.
“Smoyer is the subject of a new book by Adam Makos, Spearhead: An American Tank Gunner, His Enemy, and a Collision of Lives in World War II, and still attends reunions of his unit, the 3rd Armored—or “Spearhead”—Division,”
That got my attention. I started texting Ron early Sunday morning. He said that they would be at the show later in the morning and that Clarence was excited for his photo shoot!Great. Can’t wait.
Many of us attending Saturday’s show experienced dehydration and heat exhaustion, regardless of how much water you drank and Clarence was just one more person effected by the extreme heat that weekend.
I see Ron about 11:00am as he is loading in all the display goods for Clarence’s booth. We chat and I suggest noonish at the tank. Ok
I go out to the Tanks to inform them of our desires, they are thrilled and excited. Al says to me, one of the tank reenactors, we will be here, we’re ready. Fantastic, I will see you soon!
At noon I see the tanks pulling out, the Germans were counter attacking … again.
So I go see Ron in the hanger and inform him of the situation and we plan our next window of opportunity, 1 pm now and Clarence will need a way to get from the hanger to the tank, which is about 75 yards. I said OK, I will make that happen.
The day before I grabbed security in their golf carts to help me with another veteran get to a Warbird, no problem. Well today I couldn’t find them. It is now 12:45, tanks have moved back to there positions, they will be there for the rest of the day.
OK , great, Clarence is coming soon. I texted Ron and said be ready, I am working on a ride. Ok
Off on my search, who can I get to help me with this?? I find a couple Jeep jockeys to help, but then I realize that Clarence would never be able to get into a Jeep, it is a high step-up, even difficult for me. Thanks anyway, next.
Still no security in site, I need a golf cart. It is now , 1:10 pm and I am drenched from sweat, come on, who’s going to help me here! It was then that I realized, after seeing a veteran cruising around on a scooter �, that a scooter would be my only option. Alright, let me go see if I can get a scooter for a half hour.
“Hey Wendall, I have a veteran I need to get from the hanger to that Tank, 75 yards, that’s it.” At first Wendall does not realize I am talking about a 97 year young veteran of WWII. We chat back and forth for a minute or two when I show him a couple images of what I do. Wendall pulls out the paperwork, I give him my ID, and he says, “the scooter is on me!”
With in 2 minutes I am driving the scooter over to Clarence. I see Ron’s face light up when I enter the hanger and signal that I have a scooter! The video tells the next 5 minutes, a photo shoot with Clarence Smoyer, a Sherman tank and all the tank reenactors. This was a great moment, not to be forgotten by anyone who was involved. Thanks to all the teamwork that made this happen. Video by friend Jack Craft of Endless Mountains War Memorial Museum in Sonestown, PA.
#mconferphoto #maam #wwiiveterans
#ClarenceSmoyer #3rdarmoreddivision
#m4Sherman
#M4ShermanTank
#Spearheadbook
#SpearHead
#WWII
#midatlanticairmuseum #wwii_weekendatmaam #adammakos
#spearhead
#EndlessMountains #EndlessMountainsmuseum #JackCraft
@wwii_weekendatmaam @midatlanticairmuseum
@adammakos
@EndlessMountainsMuseum
