The North Texas Fallen Warrior Portrait Project recently presented portraits of five Collin County men who lost their lives while serving our country during a ceremony held on Nov. 11, 2024, at the Russell A. Steindam Courts Building.
These portraits brought the total number of installations in the "Hall of Heroes" to 105. Since 2013, the portraits have been displayed in the first-floor hallways of the courthouse.
The portraits include:
Maurice Johnson
United States Air Force, major with the 61st Troop Carrier Squadron, 314th Troop Carrier Group
Johnson was a World War II veteran who earned a Distinguished Flying Cross. During the Korean War, on March 29, 1951, while flying a mission, the right engine of his C-119 (tail number 8345) detached in flight. He ordered his crew to bail out, staying with the plane. Johnson was killed when the plane crash-landed near Hongchon, Korea. He is buried in Restland Cemetery in Dallas.
Vernon W. Woody
United States Army, corporal with the 2nd Battalion, 34th Armored Regiment
Woods was on a mission as part of Operation Cliff Dweller in Tay Ninh Province, South Vietnam, on January 30, 1970. While navigating the rugged, steep terrain of Black Virgin Mountain, he was hit by an armored vehicle. Woody was married and became the father of a daughter who never had the chance to know him. He is buried in Ridgeview Memorial Park in Allen.
Nimrod S. Shipp
United States Merchant Marines, cook first class
He served aboard the SS Gulfbelle, transporting fuel from an East Coast refinery toward the Panama Canal, destined for the Pacific Theater. Traveling under the cover of night with no navigation lights — an essential precaution against Nazi U-boats active in the area — the Gulfbelle collided with the SS Gulfland off the coast of Palm Beach, Florida. Civilians along the shore heard cries for help as both fuel-laden ships burst into flames. Shipp was among the 44 sailors who perished on the Gulfbelle, and his remains were never recovered.
Louis F. Bass
Eighth Army Air Force, 2nd lieutenant with the 577th Squadron of the 392nd Bomb Group
Bass took off with his group from Wendling Airfield in Norfolk, England, on April 21, 1944. The squadron encountered severe icing at high altitude, forcing more than 40 aircraft to abandon the mission and return to base. His B-24, nicknamed "Kentucky Girl," suffered catastrophic damage, leading to an explosion. Bass was unable to bail out and is among the eight crew members from Kentucky Girl commemorated at a memorial near the crash site by the village of North Tottenham near Norwich, England. He is buried in Altoga Cemetery.
Ray W. Henslee
US Army Air Force, 1st lieutenant with the 439th Bomb Squadron of the 319th Bomb Group
Henslee served as a navigator on the B-26 Marauder. He had recently arrived in England when, on Nov. 12, 1942, his B-26 (41-17777), named “Boogie Woogie,” was shot down by a Nazi ME-109 near Cherbourg, France. His bomb group was transitioning to Algeria to participate in Operation Torch. The commander of the Bomb Group was also aboard Henslee's aircraft. A memorial was later erected in Les Pieuz, France, to honor Henslee and his crew. He is buried in the Cambridge American Cemetery in Cambridge, England.
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