Rolland “Shotbag” McGinn survived jumping out of airplanes in World War II and the Korean War. His exploits earned him numerous military honors, including the Purple Heart and Bronze Star.
But he earned his nickname from a mistake he made, said his wife, Ella McGinn of Omaha.
When he was packing a parachute, McGinn forgot to remove the shotbag, used to weigh down the parachute’s folds. He didn’t realize the shotbag still was in his chute until he jumped. The parachute opened and McGinn survived, and was known from then on as “Shotbag’’ McGinn.
The master parachutist, who trained other paratroopers for the Army, was remembered as a war hero at his funeral Monday.
He died last Thursday at age 91 at Skyline Retirement Community, Ella McGinn said. His health had declined after he fell and broke his hip in July, she said.
Rolland McGinn, a Colon, Neb., native, enlisted in the Army in 1939. As a member of the original Parachute Test Platoon, he was a pioneer among paratroopers. He was stationed in Panama when the United States entered World War II. He served 44 months in the South Pacific.
He earned the rank of sergeant and after the war served as an Army jump instructor. Then he returned to battle for the Korean War. He amassed about a dozen military honors for his service in the two wars.
McGinn worked as a military recruiter in Omaha from 1953 to 1959, drawing 818 people into service during his tenure, his wife said.
He retired from the Army in 1959 and began working for the U.S. Postal Service. He moved to Southern California with his first wife, Marie, to improve her ailing health.
After her death, he returned to Nebraska and about a year later married Ella. He retired from the Postal Service in 1974.
His survivors include a stepdaughter, Sharon Dillard of Vancouver, Wash.; two stepgrandchildren; and two step-great-grandchildren.
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