World War II Honoree

Lester Frank Zobeck

Branch of Service

U.S. Navy

Hometown

Elma, Iowa

Honored By

Orville L. Kline

Rank: Seaman First Class. He was inducted into the United States Navy November 29, 1937 at Des Moines, Iowa, with recruit training at the U.S. Naval Training Station Great Lakes, Illinois. Upon his graduation from boot camp, he was transferred to the USS West Virginia Battleship, BB-48 for duty as an on-the-job trainee, and based at Pearl Harbor, Hawaiian Islands. On Sunday Morning, December 7, 1941 the Emperor of Japan’s Naval Aviators launched a devastating, surprise attack on the U.S. Naval Base and other military installation on Oahu. The Battleship along with her shipmates was moored on Ford Island, when the warship was attacked by five Torpedo Bombers. The torpedo warheads hit the battlewagon on her portside causing severe flooding, and she slowly capsized. The Battle of Pearl Harbor took his life on the day of the attack, and interred in the Oahu Nuuanu Cemetery, Territory of Hawaii. After the cessation of hostilities with Japan, the family of this Seaman received his remains for burial, with interment at the Our Lady of Lourdes Cemetery in Lourdes, Iowa. This American Patriot was awarded the Purple Heart posthumously, for his ultimate sacrifice in defense of his country.