Joseph “Joe” Maynard was born in August 1922 in Oakley, Tennessee. He had three brothers and one sister. He was the fourth child. They lived on a farm. Everything they ate, they grew. His father was supposed to serve in World War One [Annotator's Note: World War 1, global war originating in Europe; 28 July 1914 to 11 November 1918], but the war ended before he left. Maynard went to school through the eighth grade. He walked to school every day. There were three or four other people in his graduating class. Before he graduated, he signed up for the service in January 1941. He lost his parents and was living with one of his brothers. He enlisted in the Navy. He went to Norfolk, Virginia for basic training.

Joseph “Joe” Maynard went to Jacksonville, Florida for aviation school for three months. When he finished school, he was sent to Miami [Annotator’s Note: Miami, Florida] where he worked on planes. They had to service the planes every 30 flying hours. He would fly as a passenger. They were treated well by the people in Florida. He grew up with the woman he married. He got married when he was stationed in Florida. He enlisted for six years. He could not get out until 1947. His wife did not mind him being in the Navy. He was paid every month or twice a month. He could feed them off what he was making. He thought he would be flying all the time because he was an engineer. There were some officers that wanted him in their outfits in the Navy.

Joseph “Joe” Maynard was stationed at the Naval Air Station six miles from Miami [Annotator’s Note: Miami, Florida]. He did not want to go to school unless he needed to. He worked in security, then he had an auto shop for 14 years. After he sold the shop, he started building houses. He built some houses in California. He enjoyed his time in the Navy. He was in the Navy for 20 years. The other men in the Navy hated them. Maynard went on the Honor Flight to Washington, DC [Annotator's Note: a national network of independent Hubs working together to honor our nation's veterans with an all-expenses paid trip to the National Mall in Washington, D.C. to visit the war memorials]. He enjoyed the trip. He enjoyed seeing men from his squadron again.