Documented Original Tuskegee Airman (DOTA) , Preston Jowers, of the Detroit Chapter of Tuskegee Airmen will celebrate his 103rd birthday this Saturday at the Golden Corral, on Warren Avenue in Westland.
Preston was born in Douglas, Georgia in March 1915. His mother had him when she was 15 years old. As a cook, she moved to Michigan to find work.
When of age, Preston worked at a meat market where he delivered meat which was a very significant part of his growing up. He was told that “whenever you go to work, to do your best”, this has stuck with him his entire life and that is his guide.
Preston was drafted into the Army in 1942. and completed his basic training in Denver, Colorado. He then trained as an airplane mechanic in Lincoln, Nebraska. Afterward training, he was assigned as a mechanic, responsible for five planes, to Tuskegee Army Air Field (TAAF), where everyone that served on base and supported teh segregated Army Air Corp there, history considers to be a Documented Tuskegee Airman. He was there for three (3) years and only served stateside.
He was not aware of the significance the “Tuskegee Airmen” contributed to history and never thought he would live to see a black President. He loved growing up where there was a community and neighbors that cared.
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