James Mather was born in February 1923 in Caddo, Texas. His father was in the oil business by maintaining the oil wells and was often away when he was young. His mother raised him and his three siblings. His family eventually moved to Kansa. During the Great Depression [Annotator's Note: the Great Depression was a global economic depression that lasted from 1929 through 1939 in the United States], he felt that his community grew closer together and there was a cohesiveness. He was friends with kids poorer or wealthier than his family was. He also befriended friends of all different races. His parents never owned a car or a phone. His mother was very intelligent and an athlete. She taught herself to play the piano so she could perform during silent films. He missed his kindergarten year because he fell ill to pneumonia [Annotator's Note: an infection of one or both lungs]. As he got older, he admitted that he was the school bully. He was often paddled by the teacher and then again by his mother. Mather's brother was an officer in the Navy and after the attack on Pearl Harbor [Annotator's Note: The Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, Hawaii on 7 December 1941], Mather became bitter towards to Japanese officials who had just visited Washington D.C. He had just graduated high school in December 1941. Mather decided that he wanted to join the Navy and eventually fly planes. He went to Wichita [Annotator's Note: Wichita, Kansas] and joined the Naval Aviation Cadets. He was sent to Kansas City, Missouri for tests. He passed his and was sworn into the V-5 Program [Annotator's Note: V-5 US Navy Aviation Cadet Program, 1939 to 1943] and became a Naval Aviation Cadet. Mather is grateful for his experience in the Navy because it taught him about respect, obedience, and being a man.

James Mather joined the V-5 Program [Annotator's Note: V-5 US Navy Aviation Cadet Program, 1939 to 1943] and became a Naval Aviation Cadet. He started his training at the University of Kansas City [Annotator's Note: now University of Missouri-Kansas City in Kansas City, Missouri] for academics and preliminary flying. He had a strict flight instructor. After he passed his preliminary training, he was sent to Emporia State Teachers College [Annotator's Note: now Emporia State University in Emporia, Kansas], and then went to Perdue University [Annotator's Note: in West Lafayette, Indiana] where he flew a large two-wing aircraft. During the winter, he was flying, and the engine froze. He was taught to dip the stick [Annotator's Note: push the control stick forward to lose altitude], which he did. He began looking for a field to land in. When he found one, he made his descent only to notice sheep in his way. He for sure there was going to be a slaughter, but thankfully the sheep got out of the way. His plane stopped about 100 yards from a farmer's house. He used the farmer's phone to let Perdue know his location. After his training at Perdue, he was sent to Wilmore, Kentucky for more academics, then to Naval Air Station Grosse Ile [Annotator's Note: in Grosse Ile, Michigan] and flew Stearman trainer planes [Annotator's Note: Boeing-Stearman Model 75 Kaydet primary trainer aircraft]. He developed an earache due to the equipment he had to wear while in flight. He ended up have a mastoidectomy [Annotator's Note: a surgical procedure to remove air bubbles near the skull]. He was worried that he would be washed out of the V-5 program, but the doctor that performed his surgery made sure that could continue. Mather's recovery did delay his progress. After he recovered, he was sent to University of Iowa [Annotator's Note: in Iowa City, Iowa] to train on a sextant [Annotator's Note: piece of navigation equipment], and then to Corpus Corpus Christi [Annotator's Note: Corpus Christi, Texas] to train on an SBD dive bomber [Annotator's Note: Douglass SBD Dauntless naval scout plane and dive bomber] and the F4F Wildcat [Annotator's Note: Grumman F4F Wildcat carrier-based fighter aircraft].

James Mather joined the V-5 Program [Annotator's Note: V-5 US Navy Aviation Cadet Program, 1939 to 1943] and flew several kinds of planes including F6F [Annotator's Note: Grumman F6F Hellcat carrier-based fighter aircraft]. He spent three and half years in service and then joined the Naval Reserves as a weekend warrior continued to fly for 17 years. He began as an ensign officer and retired as a ground commander in the Naval Reserves. Mather was boarding an air carrier at Norfolk [Annotator's Note: Norfolk, Virginia] when the Navy announced VE-Day [Annotator's Note: Victory in Europe Day, 8 May 1945]. He was upset because he knew that he would not be going into combat. He was then given orders to ferry aircraft to several different bases in postwar. The most difficult part of his training was the math. He believes God got him through all the answers. He was so worried about failing that he was very intense about learning and training. His fellow cadets called him "eager Mather." [Annotator's Note: Video break at 0:48:51.000.] After the war, he was stationed at Naval Air Station Grosse Ile [Annotator's Note: in Grosse Ile, Michigan] until he retired from the Navy and began the active Reserves. Mather participated in Nimitz Day [Annotator's Note: On October 5, 1945, which had been officially designated as "Nimitz Day" in Washington D.C.] where he led a flight squadron from Colorado to Washington D.C. to join a thousand other aircraft for the celebration. While he was at Corpus Christi [Annotator's Note: Corpus Christi, Texas], he made his first take off in F6F, and as he ascends, his windshield was covered with some colored material. He communicated with the towers help him remove the substance and land.

James Mather's most memorable experience of World War 2 was learning about the Pearl Harbor attack [Annotator's Note: the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, Hawaii on 7 December 1941]. The war changed his life because he went into the military, which shaped his future. He was also very fond of his mother who had shaped his life as well. Our country [Annotator's Note: the US] should defend ourselves but also promote peace and help rebuild enemy's cities. People hardly remember World War 2 today. There should be institutions like the National WWII Museum [Annotator's Note: The National WWII Museum in New Orleans, Louisiana], and they should continue to teach World War 2 to future generations. Mather believes in the constitution and the Bible scriptures. He is worried that organizations will not be able to speak subjects to future generations. Mather is eternally grateful to the Navy by taking him on as a young pilot, spending thousands of dollars in training, and turning him into a gentleman.