 |
| 151st Infantry Regiment in action on Caraboa Island the month before Pvt. Garten was killed. http://www.ww2online.org/image/company-1st-battalion-151st-infantry-carabao-island-philippines-16-april-1945 |
Donald F. Garten could have been 100 years old today.
He was born on April 17, 1917 in Indiana. His father was also born in Indiana and his mother was born in Illinois. His father was a master woodworker. Donald had one older brother, plus a younger brother and sister. By 1930 the Great Depression hit the Gartens especially hard. His father was unemployed and Donald was sent to the St. Vincents Orphanage in Vincennes, Indiana,
Donald joined the Indiana National Guard on January 17, 1941. Prior to that he had completed three years of high school and was working as a clerk. After the war started Donald became a private in Company M, 151st Infantry Regiment, 38th Infantry Division.
The 38th Division landed and fought in Leyte in December 1944 and then Luzon in January 1945. It cleared the Japanese out of the Bataan Peninsula and Corregidor Island in February. By late May the Japanese had for the most part been eradicated in and around Manila. However, Pvt. Garten was killed by a hold-out Japanese sniper near Manila on May 22, 1945.
His remains were returned to be buried at Arlington National Cemetery.
 |
| https://cs.billiongraves.com/grave/Donald-F-Garten/12140490 |
On behalf of the fallen, if you would like to see more people become aware of this project to honor the WW2 fallen, be sure to share with others on Twitter, Facebook, etc. Thanks for your interest!
Follow on Twitter @ww2fallen100
Join the public Facebook group WW2 Fallen 100
No comments:
Post a Comment