It would seem that his fate was sealed at that point, but the German who shot him down went to school in America and only returned to Germany as part of his native country's draft program. The man was an American sympathizer, and after downing the plane, he not only coordinated the crew's rescue via the French fishermen, but promised to make sure they were treated well. He kept that promise.

 

Mr. Rosener survived his captivity and the rest of the war. He married, settled in Harlingen, and in 1977 he started Chem-Green, Inc., which he ran very successfully for over twenty years. Toward the end of those two decades, in 1999, Jimmy Wilson was finishing his degree in Agronomy and Turfgrass Management at Texas A&M University.

 

He resolved that he didn't want an office job, and accepted a position as superintendent at a Harlingen golf course in 2001. When the course lost its water rights & the superintendency fell through, Jimmy decided to start his own company maintaining lawns with the same precision and excellence he had learned for golf courses and athletic fields. LawnPros was the result, and Jimmy began servicing lawns in 2002.

 

Nearly two years later, Mr. Rosener and Jimmy met and discussed the former's desire to retire and the latter's desire to expand his business. Jimmy Wilson formally bought Chem-Green, Inc in 2003 and merged it with LawnPros, Inc.

 

Over 20 years later, the business is thriving, and Jimmy continues to be sought after by homeowners as well as local lawn-care companies who trust his expertise to diagnose and prescribe treatment for pests and diseases in lawns. He maintains his and Mr. Rosener's shared commitment to excellence to this day.