12/10/2025 9:00:00 AM
Major Clemeunt (Clem) Douglass’ desire to serve started early in life, with a role model Marine father who played the trumpet at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier and a personal Air Force ROTC college experience, where a trip on a C-47 plane made a very strong impression on him. As a young man, Clem also earned the rank of Eagle Scout (the highest level in Boy Scouts), an achievement that required demonstrated leadership, teamwork, discipline, a strong work ethic and a commitment to service. In addition, he lived in India and attended Woodstock School, located in Mussoorie, India for his junior and senior high school years while his father built dams. It was a time during which he learned how to get along with people from all walks of life.
With this combination of skills, background and characteristics, Clem ultimately decided to join the Air Force. He was nominated for admission to the Air Force Academy in Colorado by Alabama Congressman Armistead I. Selden Jr., with whom Clem corresponded for many years thereafter. Clem graduated from the Academy in 1960 (the second graduating class in its history), was stationed at Wright-Patterson AFB in Ohio and Patrick AFB in Florida and then was deployed to Vietnam as a pilot.
Time spent in Vietnam featured many life-changing incidents and—like many Veterans of his era—Clem does not talk a lot about specific incidents. However, he does share that every time he flew a mission in his L-19/0-1 Bird Dog, he would be fired upon by the enemy. His crew would patch up the bullet holes and refuel his plane, and he would take off again. This routine was repeated over and over, without exception, and he was fortunate to be able to return home after his service ended. He later also served in the Army National Guard Reserves as a Warrant Officer pilot.
His wife Rachel recalls a different type of incident related to Clem’s service—one that occurred when he was back in the United States. It was a time when soldiers returning from Vietnam often walked into unexpected, hostile situations in the course of their now daily civilian lives.
“Clem told me that once he was going to speak at a high school when a group of boys attacked him, tearing off his uniform’s insignia and stealing his hat. It was hard for him to be disrespected like that, when he was so proud to serve his country and he so loved being a pilot.” Despite that, Clem believes that all young people should enlist for military service. In fact, he feels mandatory military service would be a great idea.
The flying skills (including managing complex maneuvers and scenarios), achievement of mission-specific objectives, expansion of leadership abilities and growth of personal discipline that Clem experienced in the military set him up for success in the commercial airline industry.
He worked many years as a pilot for both Western and Delta Airlines and also served as a Delta Pilots’ Union Representative, helping focus the company’s attention on safety. He retired from the industry in the late 1990s.
Clem spent more than 35 happy years with his beloved wife Brenda, who ultimately passed away from cancer. But he knew that life still held opportunities for him to find new joys and so, in 2019, at the age of 83, he met his present wife Rachel online.
“He was so kind, sweet and very social with a great sense of humor,” Rachel says. “An example of that is that his family had a tradition of naming their dogs after different kinds of bourbon! I saw how easily he could connect with people; we mutually understood right away what it was like to be married and what it was like to be alone.”
In 2020, Clem and Rachel married. They spent five years traveling everywhere together—a true adventure and magical time for Rachel, who had never flown much up to that point and who appreciated Clem’s love of visiting new places. Those travel adventures ended when Clem became a Resident in the Fergus Falls Veterans Home’s Memory Care Unit in October 2025. However, in the month before his admission, they drove to Colorado Springs for the 65th reunion of Clem’s Air Force Academy graduating class. Clem was part of a handful of surviving comrades excited to attend and reminisce about days gone by.
Jonathan VanDeBogart, Recreation Program Assistant, Fergus Falls Veterans Home, interacts with Clem on a daily basis and has come to know him quite well since he began living there this fall. “What stands out most about Clem is his positive attitude and overall good nature,” says Jonathan. “He is simply charming and delightful to converse with. Most of our conversations are focused not on the past but on the present day, such as upcoming activities he may be interested in, or his current well-being.”
Jonathan shares that in the short time he’s been a Resident, Clem has enjoyed a wide range of activities, from breakfast and lunch outings to bowling and bingo. Wife Rachel encourages Clem to write about his late spouse and the happy times they spent together, revisiting those fond memories as often as possible and committing them to paper.
