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Obituary:
- Hugh Allen Stafford, 68, a former Cambridge resident and a Navy fighter pilot who spent five and a half years as a prisoner of war in North Vietnam, died Dec. 28, 2003.
Beginning in 1964, Lt. Cmdr. Stafford did three tours in Vietnam, one flying bombing missions from aircraft carriers, another as a forward air observer directing air strikes from the ground in South Vietnam, and a third as an advisor to the surface fleet from aboard amphibious vessels. Of all of his tours of duty, he preferred flying.
He spent the first years of life in North Carolina with his grandparents, Mr. and Mrs. Hugh Allen. When he was 10, he joined his brother, Emory and his mother and stepfather, Fannie Greene Daane and Arnold Daane in Cambridge. (The Daanes were former owners of The Daily Banner). He graduated from Cambridge High School with the class of 1953.
It was in Cambridge where he developed a lifelong passion for sailing. His love of the sea and desire to fly airplanes enticed him to join the Navy in September 1955. In 1960 he separated from the Navy to attend Washington College. He returned to active duty in August 1962.
Cmdr. Stafford's Skyhawk single-engine plane was shot down over the port city of Hai Phong Aug. 31, 1967. Despite barbaric treatment, he and his fellow captors survived by their wits.
With the end of the War, Cmdr. Stafford was released Mach 15, 1973, and began the road to recovery. He served out the remainder of his Navy career in Pensacola, commanding a survival school there. Mr. Stafford who had studied at St. John's College in Annapolis and at Washington College before returning to active duty, finished his college degree in sociological disciplines at the University of West Pensacola. He bought a sailboat and an old pick up truck - pursuits he had dreamed of while in captivity.
Throughout his retirement he and his wife, Sheryl, made several voyages to the Bahamas aboard "Fiddler's Green." Over the years, he represented the Pensacola Navy Yacht Club in countless races and was well-known by area sailors.
In addition to his wife and brother, Cmdr. Stafford is survived by his son, Jeffrey; his stepdaughter, Amani and a brotherhood of former POWs
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1935 - 2003 (68 years)
