Roger Romine

Originally from Oakland, Roger Romine attended Oakland Technical High School and Salinas Junior College before transferring to San Jose State College, which he attended from 1941-1942. He was active in track, and as Chairman of the college YWCA-sponsored Cosmopolitan Club. He studied both Architectural Drawing and Bacteriology, as well as taking civilian pilot training classes. Romine left school to serve in World War II as a First Lieutenant in the Army Air Force, and was one of the first Black officers commissioned from Oakland. He received his training at Tuskegee Institute in Alabama, making him a member of the famed Tuskegee Airmen. While serving, he was a member of the first all-Black fighter group in the AAF, and was credited with destroying three Nazi aircraft. Romine passed away in an accident while serving, on November 16, 1944. He was the first member of his Negro Mustang Fighter group to receive a posthumous award of the Distinguished Flying Cross.