Mt. Pleasant, IA- The Fellowship Hall at the First Presbyterian Church will be showing “Jerry’s Last Mission” on Monday, June 19th, from 7 pm to 9 pm. The film will be the first in their Matthew 25 Summer Film Series.
“Jerry’s Last Mission” is a documentary about Jerry Yellin, a Fairfield resident, detailing his time in the military during World War II as a P-51 fighter pilot who flew combat missions in over Iwo Jima and Japan. The story pivots to his life after the military and the post-traumatic stress that followed fighting in the war. Yellin dealt with survivor’s guilt and thoughts of suicide in his return to civilian life.
Yellin worked to overcome his PTSD when his son moved to Japan and married the daughter of a Kamikaze pilot, who survived the war due to being sent off to another assignment in China. Despite the perceived differences, the two became friends after realizing they had more similarities. Working through his adversity, Yellin would travel and talk about his experiences and becoming a man who urges peace.
Yellin met Jim Belilove, the Executive Director, in Fairfield along with Louisa Merino, who was working for David Lynch Foundation Television when she was interested in making his story become film. The film was shown at Dubuque’s Film Festival in late April of this year.
Belilove will be in attendance to have a one-hour discussion about the film. The First Presbyterian Church is located at 902 S Walnut Street, Mt. Pleasant.