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FRAMINGHAM – The Commonwealth of Massachusetts Medal of Liberty was presented to Lieutenant Junior Grade William Warren “Sonny” Lomas on Veterans Day 2022.

In total, 10 medals of Liberty were awarded on Veterans Day in Nevins Hall in the Memorial Building, with five of the Gold Star families in attendance.

Lomas graduated from Framingham High School in 1936.

Lomas enlisted in the Royal Air Force the week of the bombing of Pearl Harbor. He served 3 months with the Royal Canadian Air Force and 14 months with the RAF of which he was a captain of his plane.

In 1942 he transferred to the United States Navy Reserve. Lieutenant Junior Grade Lomas was attached to Bomber Squadron 141 (VB-141).

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On December 22, 1943, VB-141’s Lieutenant Junior Grade Lomas gave the ultimate sacrifice when he and his crew of five were killed in a crash while taking off from Hato Field, Curacao, formerly the British West Indies, on a routine night convoy coverage mission. They crashed into the sea one minute after take-off; the plane bursting into flames 1,000 feet offshore two miles east of the field.

Search on the following date revealed two deflated lifejackets, one body, and parts of another floating 50 feet offshore. Due to heavy seas the body was not recovered.

The City of Framingham will send the Medal of Liberty to his great niece, Faith Lebeau, from Tiverton, Rhode Island.

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By editor

Susan Petroni is the former editor for SOURCE. She is the founder of the former news site, which as of May 1, 2023, is now a self-publishing community bulletin board. The website no longer has a journalist but a webmaster.