Saturday, March 31, 2018

WW2 Fallen - Medal of Honor hero Jack Pendleton, 30th Infantry Division

Staff Sergeant Jack Pendleton earned the Medal of Honor in urban fighting
similar to these men from the 30th Infantry Division.
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/8059698/jack-james-pendleton
https://www.eucmh.be 
Jack James Pendleton never had a chance to reach 100 years old today. Instead, he sacrificed his life for our freedom.

He was born on March 31, 1918 in North Dakota. His parents Grover and Dora were born in Minnesota and Iowa, respectively. His father worked as a farmer and later, after moving to Washington, as a ice plant laborer. He died in 1931. Jack had one older brother and one younger sister. By 1940 Jack had completed six years of education and was living at home while working as a clerk for a sawmill.

He was drafted into the army on July 7, 1942. He became a staff sergeant in Company I, 3rd Battalion, 120th Infantry Regiment, 30th Infantry Division. The 30th ID arrived in Normandy on D+5. It help lead the breakout from Normandy and the drive across France. It reached Germany and attacked Aachen in October 1944. During this battle Sgt. Pendleton's actions would result in a posthumous Medal of Honor. 

Sgt. Pendleton's Medal of Honor citation reads as follows:

For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty on 12 October 1944. 

When Company I was advancing on the town of Bardenberg, Germany, they reached a point approximately two-thirds of the distance through the town when they were pinned down by fire from a nest of enemy machineguns. 

This enemy strong point was protected by a lone machinegun strategically placed at an intersection and firing down a street which offered little or no cover or concealment for the advancing troops. The elimination of this protecting machinegun was imperative in order that the stronger position it protected could be neutralized. 

After repeated and unsuccessful attempts had been made to knock out this position, S/Sgt. Pendleton volunteered to lead his squad in an attempt to neutralize this strongpoint. S/Sgt. Pendleton started his squad slowly forward, crawling about 10 yards in front of his men in the advance toward the enemy gun. After advancing approximately 130 yards under the withering fire, S/Sgt. Pendleton was seriously wounded in the leg by a burst from the gun he was assaulting. 

Disregarding his grievous wound, he ordered his men to remain where they were, and with a supply of handgrenades he slowly and painfully worked his way forward alone. With no hope of surviving the veritable hail of machinegun fire which he deliberately drew onto himself, he succeeded in advancing to within 10 yards of the enemy position when he was instantly killed by a burst from the enemy gun. 

By deliberately diverting the attention of the enemy machine gunners upon himself, a second squad was able to advance, undetected, and with the help of S/Sgt. Pendleton's squad, neutralized the lone machinegun, while another platoon of his company advanced up the intersecting street and knocked out the machinegun nest which the first gun had been covering. 

S/Sgt. Pendleton's sacrifice enabled the entire company to continue the advance and complete their mission at a critical phase of the action.

His grave is at Tahoma Cemetery in Yakima, Washington.

Thank you Jack for your sacrifice. Let's Earn It for Jack.

Last year on this date I profiled army sergeant Harold Shoe. You can read about Harold here.

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!

I created this video to explain why I started this project: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vXt8QA481lY.

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Friday, March 30, 2018

WW2 Leyte Fallen - Dale Dotts, Sixth Army HQ

Master Sgt. Dale Dotts served in the 6th Army HQ with Lt. Gen. Walter Krueger,
shown here four days before Sgt. Dotts was killed.
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/64847770/dale-dotts
http://www.alamoscouts.com/photo_archives/020_039.htm 
Dale H. Dotts never had a chance to reach 100 years old today. Instead, he sacrificed his life for our freedom.

He was born on March 30, 1918 in Iowa. His parents George and Ruth were also both born in Iowa. His father worked as a farmer. Dale had one younger brother. Dale helped out with the family farm.

He was drafted into the army on April 21, 1941. He became a master sergeant in the Sixth Army headquarters. The Sixth Army was under the command of Walter Krueger. It was the Sixth Army that Douglas MacArthur sent to take the island of Leyte in the fall of 1944. It lost more than 3,500 men defeating the Japanese and the battle was declared over on December 26, 1944. Sgt. Dotts was killed on January 1, 1945 after mopping up operations were turned over to the Eighth Army. I don't know the circumstances of his death.

His grave is at Highland Memorial Gardens Cemetery in Des Moines, Iowa.

Thank you Dale for your sacrifice. Let's Earn It for Dale.

Last year on this date I profiled Leo Plude, USS Houston. You can read about Leo here.

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!

I created this video to explain why I started this project: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vXt8QA481lY.

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Thursday, March 29, 2018

WW2 D-Day Fallen - Norman Nuckols, 29th Infantry Division + Sam Walton

Sgt. Norman Nuckols landed on Omaha Beach on D-Day with the HQ Company of the 116th Infantry Regiment headed by Colonel Charles Canham, depicted in this painting by Howard Gerrard.
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/24293576/norman-edward-nuckols
https://ospreypublishing.com/blog/D-Day_2017/ 
Norman Edward Nuckols never had a chance to reach 100 years old today. Instead, he sacrificed his life for our freedom.

This profile has been updated to include corrected information provided by Joe Balkowski.

He was born on March 29, 1918 in Virginia. His parents Martin and Mary were also both born in Virginia. His father worked as a farmer. Norman had four older brothers, two older sisters, one younger brother, and two younger sisters. At least three of his brothers served in the military during WW2.

Prior to joining the army, Norman had completed four years of high school and was working as a gas station attendant. He was drafted on April 21, 1941. He became a staff sergeant in the HQ company, 3rd Battalion, 116th Infantry Regiment, 29th Infantry Division. It was given the assignment of being the first troops, along with the 1st Infantry Division, to land on Omaha Beach on D-Day.

It is likely he was killed on the landing craft occupied by the 3rd Battalion's commander, Lt. Col. Lawrence Meeks, when that craft hit a mine a few hundred yards off Omaha Beach. Many of the troops were still pinned down when the regimental commander Colonel Charles Canham motivated the men to move across the dangerous beach to the relative safety of the shingle. Companies suffered as high as 90% casualties.

Sgt. Nuckols' gravestone lists his date of death as June 9, 1944. This was a company clerk error. He is one of the D-Day fallen.

His grave is at Woodland Cemetery in Ashland, Virginia.

Thank you Norman for your sacrifice. Let's Earn It for Norman.

Sam Walton

Born on the same day as Norman was Samuel Walton who would go on to found the Walmart empire. Sam was born in Oklahoma. He developed strong work habits as a youth and worked his way through college at the University of Missouri and graduated with a degree in economics. He joined the army in the US Army Intelligence Corps where he supervised security at stateside aircraft plants and POW camps. He finished the war with the rank of captain.


https://www.walmartmuseum.com
Walton started his first store in 1945. By the time of his death in 1992 his company had nearly 2,000 stores and employed 380,000 people.

We will never know if Norman Nuckols or the other WW2 fallen may have achieved similar achievements.

Last year on this date I profiled Navy Cross hero Harold Taylor who was a marine on Guadalcanal. You can read about Harold here.

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!

I created this video to explain why I started this project: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vXt8QA481lY.

Follow on Twitter @ww2fallen100
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Wednesday, March 28, 2018

WW2 D-Day Fallen - Bedford Boy Nick Gillaspie, 29th Infantry Division

Pfc. Nick Gillaspie, 29th Infantry Division, was in the first wave to land on Omaha Beach.
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/56644878
http://www.strijdbewijs.nl/omaha/attack.htm 
Nick Napoleon Gillaspie never had a chance to reach 100 years old today. Instead, he sacrificed his life for our freedom.

He was born on March 28, 1918 in Bedford, Virginia. His parents Charles and Ella were also both born in Virginia. His father died when Nick was eight months old. Nick had four older brothers and one younger brother. By 1930 Nick's mother had remarried and her husband Christopher worked as a farmer. By 1940 Nick had completed six years of schooling and worked on the family farm.

He enlisted in the army on February 3, 1941 when his Virginia Army National Guard unit was mobilized into the regular army. He became a private first class in Company A, 1st Battalion, 116th Infantry Regiment, 29th Infantry Division. 34 other men from Bedford were also in the 1st Battalion, most of them in Company A.

The 29th Infantry Division arrived in England at the early date of September 1942. While other units were sent to fight in North Africa, Sicily, and Italy, the 29th Infantry Division stayed in England, training for 21 months and then being selected to be the first to land on Omaha Beach on D-Day at section Dog Green, June 6, 1944. Company A was the tip of the spear -- its men went in on the very first wave divided among seven landing craft.

Pfc. Gillaspie was likely on the same landing craft with Company A commander Captain Taylor Fellers (also from Bedford), a total of 30 men. As soon as the ramp went down Pfc. Gillaspie and the others surged for the beach. The pre-landing bombing and naval bombardment did nothing to take out the enemy in this sector, nor were there any shell holes they expected to be there to use for cover. They faced at least three German MG-42 machine guns that fired more than 1,000 rounds per minute and at least two dozen snipers. All 30 men, including Pfc. Gillaspie, were killed within yards of each other.

By the end of D-Day only 18 of Company A's 230 men were unhurt. 

Pfc. Gillespie was a frequent letter writer, so when the letters stopped coming after the invasion, his family had to be worried. It would be a month before official word got back home. At the Bedford Western Union telegraph office on July 17 the notices kept coming, one right after the other. Towns folks divvied up the telegrams to take the bad news to families.

The small 3,200 strong community of Bedford lost 22 men in Normandy, 19 on D-Day. It was the greatest loss per size of home town from all of the war. The National D-Day Memorial in Bedford commemorates this sacrifice.

I had the opportunity to visit The National D-Day Memorial earlier this year.
Here is the monument to the Bedford Boys with Nick Gillaspie's name circled.
His grave is at the Normandy American Cemetery and Memorial at Colleville-sur-Mer, France.

An excellent book on this subject is The Bedford Boys, by Alex Kershaw. Highly recommended. It is also available for Kindle or Audiobook.

Thank you Nick for your sacrifice. Let's Earn It for Nick.

Last year on this date I profiled P-47 pilot Hugh Wallace who served in India. You can read about Hugh here.

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!

I created this video to explain why I started this project: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vXt8QA481lY.

Follow on Twitter @ww2fallen100
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Tuesday, March 27, 2018

WW2 Fallen - Jeff Corley, 1st Armored Division

Lt. Jeff Corley, 1st Armored Division, was killed near where this photo was taken.
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/10620038/jeff-t-corley
https://www.pinterest.com/pin/844776842574432470/ 
Jeff T. Corley never had a chance to reach 100 years old today. Instead, he sacrificed his life for our freedom.

He was born on March 27, 1918 in Texas. His parents Owen and Mattie were born in Tennessee and Texas, respectively. His father worked as a farmer. Jeff had one older sister and four older brothers. One of his brothers earn a Purple Heart fighting in the Pacific.

Jeff completed two years of college, and worked as a financial clerk at a Dallas Bank. He married Alice Stone.

He enlisted in the army on March 21, 1941. He became a first lieutenant in Company B, 1st Battalion, 6th Armored Infantry Regiment, 1st Armored Division. He left for North Africa in November 1943. Once there he was assigned as a replacement in the 1st Armored Division which was sent to fight the enemy in Italy just north of Naples. Next it took part in the invasion at Anzio.

In early June the 1st AD helped liberate Rome from the Germans. Towards the end of June it was sent to fight in the mountains north of Grosetto. Lt. Corley was killed in action on June 23, 1944 when the 1st AD was facing superior Tiger tanks in mountainous terrain that was difficult for tanks tasked with advancing.

His grave is at Mills Cemetery in Garland, Texas. I don't know what happened to his widow.

Thank you Jeff for your sacrifice. Let's Earn It for Jeff.

Last year on this date I profiled Frank Winterling who served with the Cactus Air Force on Guadalcanal. He was the second of two brothers killed in the war. What his father did after the death of his boys is amazing. You can read about the Winterling family here.

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!

I created this video to explain why I started this project: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vXt8QA481lY.

Follow on Twitter @ww2fallen100
Please consider joining the public Facebook group to increase the exposure of this project. Go to: WW2 Fallen 100

WW2 Fallen 100 is supported by

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“Where Every Day is Memorial Day”

Monday, March 26, 2018

WW2 Fallen - B-25 Bombardier Patrick Griffin

Lt. Patrick Grffin served in the same unit as these men from the 446th Bombardment Squadron.
He was killed when his B-25 crash landed on the island of Pianosa.
http://www.warwingsart.com/12thAirForce/wwilliams00.html
https://ca.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pianosa 
Patrick A. Griffin never had a chance to reach 100 years old today. Instead, he sacrificed his life for our freedom.

He was born on March 26, 1918 in New Jersey. His parents Patrick and Mary were both born in Ireland. His father worked as a building poster and later as a gardener. Patrick had two older brothers and one younger sister. By 1940 Patrick was living at home in White Plains, New York and had completed four years of high school. He was probably attending college.

He enlisted in the Army Air Forces in May 1942. He became a second lieutenant and bombardier in the 446th Bombardment Squadron, 321st Bombardment Group, 12th Air Force which was equipped with B-25 Mitchells. The 321st BG began flying missions in March 1943 from its base in Algeria. By spring 1944 it was based in Corsica.

The mission on May 15, 1944 was to bomb the railroad bridge at Orvieto Station in Italy. Lt Griffin's plane was heavily damaged by flak over the target. One engine was knocked out and the other one damaged. It made a belly landing on an airfield on the island of Pianosa which is situated between Italy and Corsica. Lt. Griffin was either killed by flak or the crash landing. The other five men were captured and made POWs.

His grave is at Mt. Calvary Cemetery in White Plains, New York.

Thank you Patrick for your sacrifice. Let's Earn It for Patrick.

Last year on this date I profiled P-40 pilot John Sauber. You can read about John here.

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!

I created this video to explain why I started this project: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vXt8QA481lY.

Follow on Twitter @ww2fallen100
Please consider joining the public Facebook group to increase the exposure of this project. Go to: WW2 Fallen 100

WW2 Fallen 100 is supported by

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“Where Every Day is Memorial Day”

Sunday, March 25, 2018

WW2 Fallen - Nurse Martha Thurmond, 3rd General Hospital, Tunisia

Lt. Martha Thurmond was a nurse in the 3rd General Hospital in Tunis, Tunisia.
https://www.ancestry.com/family-tree/person/tree/41080840/person/28100909473/facts?_phsrc=djx1&_phstart=successSource
http://icahn.mssm.edu/about/ait/archives/collection/general-hospital
Martha E. Thurmond never had a chance to reach 100 years old today. Instead, she sacrificed her life for our freedom.

She was born on March 25, 1918 in West Virginia. Her mother Mary had two daughters from a prior marriage that ended when her husband died in 1897.  She remarried Martha's father Henry in 1915. Both of Martha's parents were also born in West Virginia. Mother Mary was 44 years old when Martha was born. She died when Martha was 10 months old. After that she was raised by her oldest half-sister who was 25 years older than Martha. Martha grew up with twin nieces who were three years younger than she was. Her father, who never remarried, worked as a bookkeeper and later as an assistant postmaster. By 1940 Martha was a student nurse at St. Francis Hospital in Charleston, West Virginia.

Martha accepted an appointment as a 2nd lieutenant in the army nurses corps and reported for duty on September 1, 1942. She served in the 3rd General Hospital, which was based in Tunisia by August 1943. It treated more than 5,000 wounded soldiers there.

Lt. Thurmond was killed in a vehicle crash in Tunis, Tunisia on August 10, 1943. 

Her grave is at Sunset Memorial Park in Beckley, West Virginia.

Thank you Martha for your sacrifice. Let's Earn It for Martha.

Lt. Thurmond is only the second woman I have discovered during my research so far. The other one was  Marian Gillis. Her story was told in Mitchell Zuckoff's best selling book Lost in Shangri-La. You can read about Marian here.

Last year on this date I profiled William Pallesen, 2nd Marine Raiders and POW. As of this writing, his story is the fourth most popular of the nearly 450 written so far. You can read about William here.

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!

I created this video to explain why I started this project: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vXt8QA481lY.

Follow on Twitter @ww2fallen100
Please consider joining the public Facebook group to increase the exposure of this project. Go to: WW2 Fallen 100

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Saturday, March 24, 2018

WW2 Hurtgen Forest Fallen - Joy Mouser, 9th Infantry Division

Pfc. Joy Mouser served in the 9th Infantry Division.
The above photo was taken four days after Mouser was killed.
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/162243128/joy-e-mouser
http://www.criba.be/pics/7_20131119145726.jpg 
Joy Earl Mouser never had a chance to reach 100 years old today. Instead, he sacrificed his life for our freedom.

He was born on March 24, 1918 in Missouri. His parents David and Marie were also both born in Missouri. His father worked as a railroad fireman and later a locomotive engineer. Joy had one older brother. By 1940 Maurice had completed four years of high school and was still living with his parents and working as an ice company truck driver.

He enlisted in the army on December 23, 1940. He became a private first class in Company F, 2nd Battalion, 60th Infantry Regiment, 9th Infantry Division. It spearheaded the American invasion of North Africa in November 1942. After fighting in North Africa, it moved on to the Sicilian Campaign. Pfc. Mouser likely joined his unit at this time as a replacement. He left behind a wife and daughter.

He landed on Utah Beach at D+4. After the Normandy Campaign the 60th IR advanced across France and fought in the Hurtgen Forest. 

The hard fighting in the Hurtgen Forest began in mid-September and Pfc. Mouser survived nearly three months of combat before his unit was pulled out and send to a quite area in the Ardennes. He was killed on December 10, 1944. This was a week before the Battle of the Bulge. I don't know the circumstances of his death. (see comment below for update)

His grave is at Cape County Memorial Park Cemetery in Cape Girardeau, Missouri. I don't know what happened to his widow or daughter.

Thank you Maurice for your sacrifice. Let's Earn It for Maurice.

Last year on this date I profiled John Mazzone, who served on the destroyer USS Nelson. You can read about John here.

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!

I created this video to explain why I started this project: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vXt8QA481lY.

Follow on Twitter @ww2fallen100
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Friday, March 23, 2018

WW2 Fallen - B-25 bombardier Maurice Granger and his Navy flyer brother Albert

Sgt.Maurice Granger was a B-25 bombardier in the 486th Bombardment Squadron.
His bomber "The Devil's Helper" has been recreated at warwingsart.com.
https://www.fold3.com/page/85518041-maurice-granger/photos
http://57thbombwing.com/340th_History/340thHistory.php
http://www.warwingsart.com/57thWing/340thBG/486BS/index.htm
Maurice Granger never had a chance to reach 100 years old today. Instead, he sacrificed his life for our freedom.

He was born on March 23, 1918 in Vermont. His parents Joseph and Yvonne were both born in French speaking Canada. His father worked as a farmer and later as a shoe-maker. Still later he worked in the lumber industry. Maurice had three older brothers, four older sisters, two younger brothers, and three younger sisters. Four of the five brothers served in the armed forces during the war. By 1940 he had completed six years of schooling and worked as a machinist. He and his wife Ruth lived in Massachusetts. 

He was drafted into the army on August 4, 1942 and volunteered to serve in the Army Air Forces. He became a staff sergeant and bombardier in the 486th Bombardment Squadron, 340th Bombardment Group, Twelfth Air Force which was equipped with B-25 Mitchells. It began flying missions in the Mediterranean Theater in March 1943. It specialized in destroying bridges. No doubt, Sgt. Granger joined the unit as a replacement. 

While Maurice was serving in the Army Air Forces, brother Albert, five years his junior, was an airman flying TBM-1C Avenger torpedo bombers on the USS Cabot. His plane went missing during the Battle of Leyte Gulf on October 25, 1944. He remains missing in action.

On March 20, 1945 Sgt. Granger was the bombardier on The Devil's Helper with a mission to bomb the Vipiteno railroad bridge at Campo, Italy near the Austrian border. As it neared the target the bomber took a direct hit from an 88 mm shell, taking it down. Only the pilot survived. Sgt. Granger was one of the five men who did not make it.

His grave is at St Patricks Cemetery in Newport, New Hampshire. I don't know what happened to his widow.

Thank you Maurice and Albert for your sacrifice. Let's Earn It for the Granger brothers.

Last year on this date I profiled Walter Sowinski, 35th Infantry Division, who was also a POW. You can read about Walter here.

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!

I created this video to explain why I started this project: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vXt8QA481lY.

Follow on Twitter @ww2fallen100
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Thursday, March 22, 2018

WW2 Okinawa Fallen - Dwight Elder, 7th Infantry Division

Sgt. Dwight Elder served in the 7th Infantry Division for 26 months, ending in Okinawa.
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/110984721/dwight-w-elder
https://www.theblaze.com/stories/2015/05/31/unbelievable-video-lays-out-the-stark-statistics-about-world-war-ii 
Dwight W. Elder never had a chance to reach 100 years old today. Instead, he sacrificed his life for our freedom.

He was born on March 22, 1918 in California. His parents Harold and Flora were born in California and Kentucky, respectively. His father worked as a farm laborer and later as a general store merchant. Still later he worked as a truck driver. Dwight had an older brother and sister, two younger brothers (both became WW2 vets), and two younger sisters. By 1940 Dwight had completed four years of high school. He was living with his family and worked as a gas station attendant.

He was drafted into the army on January 21, 1941. He became a sergeant in Company K, 3rd Battalion, 17th Infantry Regiment, 7th Infantry Division. Elder's unit first saw action in Attu Island, Alaska in May 1943. It next fought on Kwajalein in the Marshall Islands in February 1944. From November 1944 through March 1945 it fought in the Philippines.

Sgt. Elder's final battle was on Okinawa. His united landed on April 1, 1945. After 39 days of continuous action and heavy casualties, the 7th ID was pulled off the line and sent to the reserves. Back on the line with fresh replacements, the 7th ID made slow progress against a well concealed enemy that sometimes gave up no more than 300 yards a day. It was during this period of difficult fighting that Sgt. Elder was killed on June 15, 1945.

His grave is at Mountain View Cemetery in Reno, Nevada.

Thank you Dwight for your sacrifice. Let's Earn It for Dwight.

Last year on this date I profiled Leroy Cooper, 26th Infantry Division. You can read about Leroy here.

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!

I created this video to explain why I started this project: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vXt8QA481lY.

Follow on Twitter @ww2fallen100
Please consider joining the public Facebook group to increase the exposure of this project. Go to: WW2 Fallen 100

WW2 Fallen 100 is supported by

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“Where Every Day is Memorial Day”

Wednesday, March 21, 2018

WW2 China Fallen - Clarence Snyder, 21st Photo Recon Squadron

Lt. Clarence Snyder served in China with the 21st Photo Recon Squadron.
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/28629856/clarence-zelore-snyder
http://www.flyingtigerantiques.com/mm5/merchant.mvc?Screen=PROD&Store_Code=fta&Product_Code=z99afsq901021ph&Category_Code=03afsq3
Clarence Z. "Sonny" Snyder never had a chance to reach 100 years old today. Instead, he sacrificed his life for our freedom.

He was born on March 21, 1918 in Washington. His parents Clarence and Bessie were born in Kansas and Washington, respectively. His father worked as a farmer and later as a dairy farm laborer. Still later he was a city park caretaker. Clarence had three younger sisters. By 1940 Clarence had completed four years of high school and still lived at home working as a school bus driver.

He enlisted in the Army Air Forces on May 21, 1941. In all likelihood, Sonny attended flight school where he became a first lieutenant and pilot in the 21st Photo Recon Squadron, 14th Air Force. It was sent to China in June 1943. The 21st PRS was tasked with taking photographs needed due to inadequate maps of China. Lt. Snyder was most likely a specially equipped P-51 pilot.

There was a C-47 that crashed on March 20 in China. I don't know if Lt. Snyder was on this plane or if he died in an unrecorded crash or from some other cause. He died on March 21, 1945.

His grave is at Vineland Cemetery, Clarkston, Washington.

Thank you Clarence for your sacrifice. Let's Earn It for Clarence.

Last year on this date I profiled Harrison Wittee, a B-29 Bombardier who became a POW. You can read about Harrison here.

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!

I created this video to explain why I started this project: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vXt8QA481lY.

Follow on Twitter @ww2fallen100
Please consider joining the public Facebook group to increase the exposure of this project. Go to: WW2 Fallen 100

WW2 Fallen 100 is supported by

The Greatest GENERATIONS Foundation

“Where Every Day is Memorial Day”