June 21, 1921-February 13, 2017

Myles Milton Walker, Sr., 95, of Bedford, NH, died peacefully on February 13, 2017, at the Genesis Healthcare Ridgewood Center, after a short illness.

Born on June 21, 1921 in Clinton, MA, Myles was the eleventh and youngest child of Grace Luella Montgomery Walker and James Edward Henry “Harry” Walker. He was educated in Clinton schools, graduating from Clinton High School with the class of 1940. During World War II, Myles volunteered initially with the U.S. Navy, then transferred to the U.S. Army Air Corps, where he became a B-29 pilot in the Pacific theater, serving with the 19th Bombardment Group of the 28th Bombardment Squadron of the XXI Bomber Command.

While attending pre-flight school in Chapel Hill, NC, Myles met and married Verna Mae Riggan, originally of Littleton, NC. Myles began flight training on the B-29 bomber in Clovis, NM, soon after their wedding on March 1, 1945. Subsequently stationed at North Field in Guam, he completed several bombing missions prior to the Japanese surrender in August, 1945. He later recorded his experience of the final bombing sortie of the war in an essay entitled, “The Last Bomb.” This became the basis of a speech he would deliver to various civic groups, on numerous occasions over the ensuing decades. A video of Myles’ remembrances of his wartime experiences appears on the website of the Experimental Aircraft Association at the URL eaavideo.org/video.aspx?v=83397855001.

Following his return from his wartime service in 1946, Myles and Verna moved to Boston, where he graduated in 1949 from Boston University with a degree in Advertising. Myles’ business career included posts at Raytheon, Chapman Valve, Douglas Aircraft, and other high-tech companies on the east and west coasts. The family lived in Wayland and Springfield, MA; Pacific Palisades and Newport Beach, CA; and finally, Bedford, NH. Myles eventually started his own business, H.E.A.R. Inc., in Bedford, which he ran for nearly 40 years.

Myles’ hobbies included painting, sculpture and woodworking. For some years, he was a member of the Manchester Artists Association. He will be remembered for his artistic creations, his intelligence and his sharp wit.

Myles was predeceased by his beloved wife, Verna, in 2013, after 68 years of marriage. He was additionally predeceased by his infant son Jeffrey, by all ten of his brothers and sisters and their spouses, and by his son-in-law Peter Stebbins. He is survived by his son Myles, Jr. of Bedford, NH; his daughter Ellen Walker of Hollis, NH; numerous nieces, nephews and friends, and his granddog Andy.

A memorial service is to be scheduled for mid-year.

Those wishing to make memorial donations in Myles’ name may wish to consider the Manchester Artists Association, the Experimental Aircraft Association, or the Friends of the National World War II Memorial, Inc.