Bethel Middlehurst Hulme
Dec. 18, 1922-Dec. 30, 2024
Pleasanton, California
Bethel Middlehurst Hulme of the greatest generation passed away peacefully at home in Pleasanton, December 30, 2024 at the age of 102. He was diagnosed with Breast Cancer in his final year. He approached this diagnosis with the same attitude he had all his life when it came to unalterable situations, accept and adapt. Bethel was born December 18,1922 in Central Falls, Rhode Island. His parents Frank and Annie Hulme (nee Middlehurst) emigrated from Lancashire, England through Ellis Island. Bethel was named after his father's good friend. Bethel’s childhood was not an easy one, his young life was disrupted at the age of 4 when his mother died unexpectedly. This left Frank to raise his only child alone. All the more difficult was the fact his father worked as a salesman in the textile industry and required traveling away from home for days at a time. Fortunately, Bethel had a close relationship with his father's sister and her husband, Aunt Lily and Uncle Jack who was a highly skilled carpenter. As a result of his father’s travels Bethel was left in the care of Lily and Jack much of the time. This is where at a young age he developed his interest in woodworking and mechanical devices. The latter of which would serve him well when he became a Naval Aviator during WWll. Born 4 years after WW1 and 7 years before the great depression, additionally prohibition was in force at the time as well. All these events in this young man's formative years caused him to develop a self-reliant attitude towards life, as well as to always be respectful of other people's thoughts and take nothing for granted. Having graduated from Central Falls High School he worked briefly as a bookkeeper for the local Railroad. WWII was the most important event of the time and Bethel knew he was going to be called to serve, an advertisement at the time caught his eye, a poster with the words "Win Your Wings of Gold” was meant to encourage young men to join the Navy. Thus began his career as a Naval Aviator specifically a Navy Fighter Pilot. Bethel like so many at the time had to pass an initial month-long civilian flight training program which he began in March of 1943. He successfully completed the civilian program after which he was accepted as a cadet in the Navy. In 1943 Bethel was commissioned a Naval Officer and began two years of flight training at various bases including aircraft carrier qualifications both day and night landings and takeoffs. During his 20-year career he amassed 2650 hrs. of flight time in 46 different models of airplanes and served on 7 different aircraft carriers and even qualified in a Jet at one point while common place today he was of the propeller age. He was Classified as a Navy Fighter Pilot and Landing Signal Officer (LSO). As an LSO he would stand at the aft section of the aircraft carrier, port side with paddles in hand and guide pilots to a safe landing on the carrier. Later the Fresnel Lens Optical Landing System and radio communication between the LSO and Pilot replaced the LSO’s paddles. While serving on the various carriers he visited many countries around the world.
He even tried skiing in the Alps while on leave at one point. A few memorable close calls happened during his 20 years. In 1955 the USS Intrepid aircraft carrier was on a training exercise near Cuba the squadrons were assigned to overnight at the Guantanamo Naval Base. Bethel assisted with the planes departing the carrier he then caught a flight as a passenger with another pilot they were the last plane to leave the ship. Guantanamo Bay was known to have heavy crosswinds making landing somewhat difficult. As it happened that issue arose when they attempted to land, a crosswind turned the plane almost 90 degrees towards the water, the pilot applied full throttle but could not achieve the needed altitude and they crashed into the ocean, both survived but the result was a broken arm for Bethel.
Years later while stationed at Glenview Naval Air Station outside of Chicago Bethel attempted to land a twin engine Grumman S2F but discovered the landing gear would not descend. A decision was made a wheels up landing was the only option. Bethel circled the field in order to use up the remaining fuel onboard, meanwhile the crash crew foamed the runway. Upon landing the plane suffered minimal damage Bethel and the copilot walked away unscathed. It was later discovered a loose bolt had blocked the landing gears descent. In 1960 the family moved from Wheeling, Illinois to Castro Valley, CA. close to the Alameda Naval Air station which would be Bethel’s final duty station. He was promoted to the rank of Commander and he was getting ready to retire which he did in 1963. He then went to work at John Hancock Life Insurance for the next 15 years. Bethel began as a salesman later became the office Manager. He commuted daily from the family home in Castro Valley to Oakland, it was an enjoyable 7 years in Castro Valley. However, in 1967 the family moved to their dream home in Pleasanton, California. Bethel continued to commute to Oakland then in 1978 a decision was made, the 3 children were grown and he wanted to work closer to home. He decided to terminate with John Hancock Life Insurance and later went to work at American Home Shield in Pleasanton. David Smith (AHS partner) and his mother worked in a rented space and Bethel was the 3rd employee. He sorted the mail, operated a forklift, and performed various other tasks. He enjoyed the job as he liked the manual labor and it didn’t require taking work home. Being so close to home he could stop in after work and visit with friends at the Pastime Pool Hall or have a meal at La Rochelle restaurant. He worked at AHS for 10 years and retired completely at age 67.
In 1948 Bethel was introduced to Betty Lou Darnelle they married that same year. The couple had 3 children beginning in 1952. During that year the family moved from Florida to Virginia then a few years later to Illinois then to California. Betty was a wonderful Navy wife and kept things orderly while Bethel was on his cruises for months at a time. Life was never boring she would say. Bethel had a wonderful disposition about him and a classic reserved sense of humor. He loved gadgets and was a woodworking hobbyist and built as well as refurbished many things. He enjoyed his evening Martini and a good meal while watching the news and Lawrence Welk. He was an avid reader and enjoyed working with various programs on his computer. People would often ask what's the secret to your long life, he would reply simply, “don’t die”, then he would say keep your mind active, eat well and exercise. When he retired, he began walking with his good friends Bob Kline, Lee and Colleen O’Neal. They walked through much of the town and the fairgrounds, this was before closed gates and security guards. Stopping and visiting with Esther at the Stable Café was part of their routine as well as a stopover with friends at Peets Coffee in town. In his final year he was witness to his grandson’s wedding in Santa Barbara and was able to attend the Tailhook Convention in Reno with 3400 fellow carrier qualified pilots. He received a standing ovation from the hundreds of pilots in attendance for being the oldest pilot at the convention at the age of 101.Bethel is dearly missed by son Peter, daughter Suzanne Lehner, Grandson Daniel Lehner and wife Claire, step granddaughter Chandra, siblings Robert, Brenda and Katherine and their families and his many friends. His wonderful caregiver Denise was with him until his final day. He was preceded in Death by wife Betty and son Steven. Bethel was laid to rest at the San Joaquin Valley National Cemetery in Santa Nella, California.
Tags: veteran
