At the age of 21, Joliet native Ray Keenan was drafted into WWII. He was a nose gunner and bombardier in the 9th Bomb Squadron, 7th Bomb Group, 10th Air Force, flying bombing missions out of India in a B-24 Bomber. A patch of the 9th “Flying Cobras” Bomber Squadron sits on the left side of the jacket, the China-Burma India Theater insignia on the left arm, and the Army Air Forces insignia on the upper right arm. Sewn into the coat lining is a silk "blood chit," a cloth bearing an American flag and a message in English, Urdu, Chinese, Sanskrit, Khmer, Burmese, Vietnamese, Arabic, and other south Asian languages, requesting assistance for a downed flyer. Keenan represents the men and women of Joliet who have felt the call of their county to join the military.

Donated to JAHM by Mardell Keenan.