Branch of Service
U.S. Marine Corps
Hometown
Yonkers, New York
Honored By
Orville L. Kline
Rank: Private First Class. On March 12, 1942, he was inducted into the United States Marine Corps from New York. His boot camp training took place with the Sixth Recruit Battalion, Training Regiment; Marine Corps Base in San Diego, California. Later he completed his Marine Combat Training at Camp Pendleton in Oceanside, California. Served as a Rifleman with the Second Marine Division in the Central Pacific Theater of Operations, assigned to Bravo Company and Eighth Marine Regiment. His division participated in the amphibious assault against the Imperial Japanese forces in the Battle of Tarawa. The combat engagement took place on the Island of Betio, located on the Tarawa Atoll, Gilbert Islands Code Name: Operation Galvanic. Killed in action Saturday, November 20, 1943 on the first day of the invasion, and buried in the Lone Palm battlefield cemetery, Betio Island. After the cessation of hostilities with Japan, the family of this Marine received his remains for burial. He was laid to rest at the Saint Mary’s Cemetery in Yonkers, New York. This American Patriot was awarded the Purple Heart posthumously, for his ultimate sacrifice in defense of his country.