USA > Indiana > Lake County > History Of Veterans Of Foreign Wars (1944) > Part 10
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Born Jan. 8, 1922, in Lafayette, Ind., Sickles attended St. Victor's church and graduated from Thornton Fractional high school in 1940. He enlisted in the coast guard Oct. 22, 1942. Prior to entering service he was employed at the Youngstown Sheet and Tube mill.
Besides his parents, Mr. and Mrs. Frank E. Sickles of 12-155th place, Calumet City, he is survived by three sisters, Mrs. Lucille Sweet, Mrs. Ella Leary, and Miss Laura Sickles, and two half brothers, Charles, in army service in California, and Roy.
Didn't Even Get Feet Wet-
Continued from preceding page |
swim for it, but I never even got wet."
Deeply tanned by wind and sun, the sailor said he went through all of the action in the Pacific without a scratch-although members of his own gun crew were hit in some of the engagements.
Lukomski proudly recalled the Savo Island battle in which Rear Admiral Daniel J. Cal- laghan was killed on the bridge of his light cruiser which engaged and sank a battleship in a Jap task force that "outnumbered us two to one."
That engagement showed us that American gunners can out-shoot anything the Japs have to offer, Lukomski said.
"It was night when we ran smack into the
middle of the enemy's task force. We let go with everything we had when we found our- selves there.
"One of the Jap cruisers turned a search- light on us and our No. 2 gun promptly shot it out. That's accuracy, considering that it was a 5-inch gun."
Although hit and damaged in the action, the destroyer proceeded to Pearl Harbor un- der its own power and was re-fitted for sea duty which was to be climaxed in a channel off Guadalcanal.
As a final tribute to the Aaron Ward, Lu- komski said simply:
"She's down there under water, but every gun on her is loaded."
END SUBMARINE COURSE
R. Smith
T. Kurek
Hammond Times, June 18, 1943.
Robert Edwin Smith, electrician's mate, son of E. A. Smith, 6420 Jackson avenue, Ham- mond, and Chester Thomas Kurek, fireman second class, son of Mr. and Mrs. Kurek, 1204 Lake View street, Whiting, have completed basic training at the submarine school, sub- marine base, New London, and are waiting assignment to duty with out-going fleet of underseas fighters.
Both sailors will be entitled to wear the twin dolphin insignia of the submarine service after further experience aboard a submarine during which they must demonstrate to their commanding officer that they are fully quali- fied to carry out the duties of their rate.
Kurek attended George Rogers Clark high school in Hammond, taking part in football. He has been in the navy since October, 1941, and initial training at Great Lake naval train- ing station and cruiser duty.
Smith attended Hammond Technical high, joined the navy last September and received initial training at Great Lakes also.
Page Ninety-three
IN SOUTH PACIFIC AREA
MEJASKI
John Mejaski, 19, son of Mr. and Mrs. John Mejaski, Sr., 9015 Kennedy avenue, Highland, is pictured in his pith helmet, worn to keep tropical suns off his head while serving as a torpedoman, third class, with the navy in the south Pacific area.
In service nearly a year and a half, Mejaski was graduated from Griffith high school be- fore his enlistment. His older brother, Joseph, 21, is an air cadet at Maxwell Field, Ala.
BAGS THIRD PLANE
Hammond Times, June 20, 1943.
WOLFE
Lt. Fred J. Wolfe of Hammond was cred- ited with shooting down one of the 39 enemy aircraft blasted to earth by Allied planes dur- ing Friday's record aerial battles over Sar- dinia and Sicily. A pilot of a P-38 Lightning, Lt. Wolfe now has bagged "at least three Axis planes," his father, Fred J. Wolfe, Sr., said.
The 23-year-old Wolfe enlisted in the air force in September of 1939. He has been in north Africa since last September and re-
cently escaped without a scratch when his plane was shot down. In Friday's battle he was in a formation of Lightnings escorting Mitchell bombers in a raid on Aranci. Eight Allied planes were lost. Wolfe's parents live at 3915 - 177th street, Hammond. Young Wolf graduated from Griffith high school.
THREE STRIPE MARINE
Hammond Times, June 22, 1943.
Buffington .
Proudly wearing a "No. 1" on his blouse sleeve, Sgt. Chester Buffington, of the second company of marines, is spending a leave with his parents, Mr. and Mrs. H. R. Buffington of Community street, Lansing, Illinois.
The "No. 1" indicates his company made the initial landing on Guadalcanal and was the first unit to engage the Japanese in combat.
Sgt. Buffington, member of a machine gun company, says:
"We mowed 'em down."
As proof he shows emblems from Japanese uniforms and cards with Japanese handwrit- ing.
He also was on combat duty in the battle of Tulagi island. Suffering from malarial fever, he was sent home to rest for 30 days after being away three and a half years, eleven months of which was in overseas duty.
His brother, Pfc. Reed, is stationed at Ma- comb, Ill., and will come home Friday on a week-end leave.
Page Ninety-four
War Hero 'AWOL'
U.S. NAVY
Van Tillburg
Hammond Times, June 24, 1943.
Most, soft-spoken Dick Van Tilburg of Hammond was in the first wave of boats put- ting into Port Loyoce, French Moroco, when the United Nations opened their North Afri- can campaign. A member of the amphibious force, regarded as the most dangerous in the navy, the 22-year-old Hammond hero has been in the thick of considerable fighting. Three times he crossed the Atlantic ocean.
Imagine his astonishment, then, while he was in the Norfolk, Va., naval hospital from injuries he received on his third voyage to learn he had been listed as AWOL for nearly two months - during the entire time of his third trip "over there." A clerical error, the navy explained, was responsible.
"I just knew Dick wasn't a coward," his proud father, Virgil Van Tilburg, 7022 Mon- roe avenue, Hammond, asserted, "but there was that seemingly indisputable evidence from the navy. I've written the war department and demanded that it make and immediate and public apology."
Dick, better known as "Tillie" to friends of his undergraduate days at Hammond high school, expects to return to active duty shortly.
WHITING'S COLONEL
Hammond Times, June 23, 1943. - Editorial -
Lake county has another colonel. He is Col. Ed. Shepherd of Whiting who was graduated from West Point, June 8, 1918. The then Lt. Shepherd was married the following day to Ruth Lesser, a teacher at the Whiting south side school.
Col. Shepherd is now somewhere in the southern Pacific. Lake county has other colonels, including John Ward Wheeler of Crown Point, whose recent assignment was on the building of the highway to Alaska, and William J. Knox, Jr., of the chemical warfare service, who hails from Hammond and East Chicago.
In this war the highest ranking officers in the Calumet region are to be credited to La Porte and Porter counties, respectively. Royal Ingersoll of La Porte is a full admiral - same as a four star general - and is commander- in-chief of the Atlantic fleet. Edward Mar- quardt of Chesterton is a rear admiral assigned to duty on the Atlantic seaboard.
Lake county in the world war had the high- est ranking officer in northwestern Indiana. He was Maj. Gen. William G. Hann of Crown Point who first commanded a division and then a corps in the AEF.
2 HAMMOND MEN NAZI PRISONERS
Hammond Times, June 6, 1943
Two Hammond soldiers, Pvt. Mike Tropcic and Pvt. Sidney G. Gora, are included in 287 U. S. men being held as prisoners of war at Camp Stalag, 5B, Germany, the war depart- ment announced yesterday. Both men were captured in the Feb. 17 north African fight- ing, later listed as missing in action.
Gora is the son of Mr. and Mrs. Stanley Gora, 4331 State Line avenue, while Tropcic's parents are Mr. and Mrs. Mike Tropcic, Sr., 1133 Moss street.
Both Pvt. Gora and Pvt. Tropcic were among the first U. S. troops to land in Africa. A graduate of Hammond Tech, Tropcic en- tered service in October of 1941. Both men were in the infantry and had seen overseas service for several months.
Also listed as Nazi prisoners were Pfc. James V. Valentine, whose brother, Larry, lives at 2420 West 10th place, Gary, and Pvt. George Piossa, whose mother lives on R. R. 2, Gary.
Page Ninety-five
Open 'Smoke For Yanks' Drive
READ THE HAMMONS TIMES
Hammond Times, June 24, 1943.
With five cousins in the armed forces, Dorothy Johnstone, 5, of 7138 Jackson street, was the first contributor today to The Ham- mond Times "Smokes for Yanks" fund cam- paign. She is shown, above, placing a half dollar in the envelope given her by Robert Thomas, R. R. 46, Hammond Times carrier. The three-day campaign, being waged by Hammond Times newsboys today through Saturday, has as its minimum goal a package of cigarettes for the men on the fighting fronts from every resident of Hammond and
the area, man, woman and child. Under gov- ernment regulations cigarettes sent the fight- ing forces with the fund will cost only 5 cents a package and little Dorothy's gift makes pos- sible 10 packages. While her five cousins will not get the packages individually, "Smokes for Yanks" campaigns being wages nation- wide under auspices of the leading newspapers of each area, will assure every Yank an ample supply of "smokes." Contributions can be made at The Hammond Times office by those overlooked by the campaigning newsboys.
Page Ninety-six
Parents, Who Feared Son Was Dead, Overjoyed to Learn He's a Prisoner
Hammond Times, July 1, 1943
The spirit of joy and happiness rules su- preme once again in the home of Mr. and
Pfc. DeRolf
Mrs. DeRolf
Mrs. George DeRolf, 6523 Jefferson avenue, Hammond, after more than 19 months of anxious waiting for news via the newspaper, mail, radio, and American Red Cross regard- ing the fate of their son Pfc. Dell D. DeRolf, of the U. S. marine corps.
The good news has come at last to these parents who never gave up hope. Pfc. DeRolf, feared lost in the Philippine islands since the fall of Bataan, is alive and well.
In a letter received from marine headquar- ters in Washington, D. C., Mr. and Mrs. De- Rolf, learned that their son's name was in- cluded in a recent partial list of American prisoners of war in the Manila bay area re- ceived by the International Red Cross.
"It's almost too good to be true, hearing that my son is still alive," gleamed Mrs. De- Rolf. 'When the letter came late yesterday afternoon, I was almost afraid to open it. Then, after reading it, I was so happy! Well, I just sat down and had a really good cry.
"Only parents who have gone through what we have can appreciate what this news means to us. Where there's life, there's hope, and I just know it won't be long before we'll get to see Dell again."
The report failed to give the exact location of internment, but instructed the parents that they could communicate with Pfc. DeRolf at the following address: U. S. marine corps, interned in the Philippine island, care of the Japanese Red Cross, Tokyo, Japan, via: New York, New York.
Regardless to say Pfc. DeRolf's father, who was completely overcome with joy by the good news, spent long and eagerly awaited for hours last evening in writing to his son and telling him how happy everyone at home is to know he is alive.
The last time Mr. and Mrs. DeRolf have heard from their son was on Nov. 9, 1941, when he wrote that he expected to be trans- ferred from his base with the Fourth U. S. marine in Shanghai. Anxiety over his fate was relieved somewhat by a previous communica- tion from marine headquarters informing them that he had been transferred to the Philippine islands in November of 1941 and had been serving under Gen.'s MacArthur and Wainwright in the defense of Bataan.
Pfc. DeRolf's outfit had been evacuated to Corregidor, but it is unknown whether he reached the island fortress before being taken prisoner.
A graduate of Hammond high school with the class of 1937 and a former carrier for The Hammond Times, Pfc. DeRolf enlisted in the marines on January 3, 1940.
In addition to Dell, the three other sons of Mr. and Mrs. DeRolf are serving with the U. S. army. Herbert, the eldest son, is a ser- geant stationed with quartermaster corps in north Africa; John, at present time home on furlough, is a private first class with the 113th engineers at Camp Livingston, La .; and Gar- lin, the youngest of the boys, is a private in training with a cavalry reconnaissance troop at Camp Blanding, Fla.
Page ninety-seven
Hammond's World War Dead
Hammond Times, May 30, 1943.
A temporary memorial to the 21 Hammond soldiers, sailors and marines who have lost their lives in World war II, will be dedicated today during Memorial day observances. The mem- orial, a large-scale replica of a service flag, was presented to the city by the chamber of
commerce. It will stand at the base of the city hall flag pole for the duration. Later a perma- nent memorial will be erected. The name of each additional Hammond youth to make the supreme sacrifice in this war will be added.
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#5 90
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From October 1940 to May 15, 1943
PFC. PETER BICANIC
1934 Clay Street Died Feb. 8. 1943 in North Africa Graduate of Hammond Tech
WILLIAM F. BIESEN
947 Michigan Street Killed in Tecate, Mex., Dec. 15, 1940 Attended Hammond High two years
* MACHINIST MATE WALTER L. BROWN 1336 North Drive Killed at Miami, Fla., Feb. 27, 1943
STAFF SGT. MAX L. BYBEE, JR. 6412 Monroe Avenue Killed Oct. 15, 1942, near Chicago Munici- pal Airport Graduate of Hammond High school
SGT. ROBERT FRANCIS GARR, JR.
1124 Summer Street Killed in action at Wake Island Withdrew from Hammond High to join Marines
Page Ninety-eight
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SCT. CONRAD KUJAWA 5733 Baring Avenue Died Dec. 7, 1941, during bombing of Hickam Field in Hawaii
* SGT. CHARLES J. MILLER 422 Detroit Street Killed at Columbia or Myrtle Beach, S. C., Nov. 15, 1942 Attended St. Joseph and Catholic Central High
* STAFF SGT. CLARENCE J. NELSON 7212 Jackson Avenue Died Feb. 9, 1943 of meningitis in Panama Canal Zone Graduate of Roosevelt High school in East Chicago
2nd LT. JOHN SEDOR, JR.
1221 - 172nd St. Bombardier U. S. Army Air Force Killed near White City, Kansas, Jan. 6, 1942
Attached to 469th Bombardment Squadron Topeka, Kas.
PFC. LESTER C. SIMKINS 6216 Jefferson Avenue Killed in South Pacific Graduate of Hammond Tech
* STAFF SGT. STEVE SOPP
1025 Ames Street Killed, Sept. 28, 1942 near Lakeland, Fla , in training plane crash Graduate of Hammond High
PVT. WILLIAM S. SPILLY
2048 Atchison Avenue Killed in action in the North African area Graduate of Whiting High school
L. A. C. RICHARD STEELMAN
Royal Canadian Air Force 28 Roselawn Street Killed near Hamilton, Ontario, Canada, Jan. 6, 1943 Graduate of Hammond High
SGT. STEVE TALL
1254 - 169th Street Died at Schofield Barracks, Hawaii of encephalitis, May, 1942 Attended Hammond Tech
CORP. WILLIAM M. TUCKER
441 Highland Street Marine Corps Aircraft Inspector Killed in action somewhere in Pacific theater of war
* PVT. LOUIS TYRKA
4109 Dearborn Avenue
Killed somewhere in Pacific "presumably Solomon Islands," Jan. 14, 1943 Attended St. Casimer's and Hammond Tech, also George Rogers Clark, Awarded Purple Heart
IST LT. JOHN R. VAN DE LESTER
43 Doty Street Killed in Pacific, Dec. 24, 1941 Graduate of Hammond High, 1931 Awarded Purple Heart
STAFF SGT. WILLIAM VONDERHERE
4634 Henry Avenue Died of pneumonia at Yuma, Ariz., Dec. 17, 1942 Graduate of St. John Lutheran school and Hammond High
SGT. JOHN WHITTAKER
4925 Pine Avenue Killed in accident, Needles, Calif., Oct. 29, 1942
PFC. SIGMUND J. ZATORSKI
637 Huehn Street Died March 25, 1943 of bronchial pneu- monia at San Diego, Calif. Graduate of Hammond High, 1936
PVT. GEORGE RODOVICH
1130 Moss Street Drowned May, 14, 1943 at Greenville, Calif.
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Page Ninety-nine
HMAMMOND PETTY OFFICER BRINGS HOME HEAD OF JAP KILLED AT GUADALCANAL
GRABNER AWARDED DISTINGUISHED FLYING CROSS IN PACIFIC AREA
Don Ervin
Hammond Times, June 3, 1943
Although he is only 24 years old, Don Ervin, son of Mrs. Etta Ervin, of 714-165th street, Hammond, has attained the high rank of first class petty officer, and is one of Ham- mond's real heroes of the current war.
Don, home on a furlough after action in the south Pacific, was recently feted by mem- bers of the William G. Haan, VFW post of Hammond, and the Optimist club last Wed- nesday at Woodmar Country club where he was presented a $25 war bond.
Don has seen a lot of service during the three years he has been in the navy. He took part in the heavy fighting of Guadalcanal and other Pacific islands against the Japs and was reported wounded and missing.
His official title is an aerographers mate first class with petty officer rating. His duties call for knowledge of aviation and the Hammond youth can shoot a machine gun on an airplane with the best of them.
The Hammond hero has never been known as a head hunter, but on his furlough here from the islands he brought home the head of a Jap killed on Guadalcanal, pieces of a Zero plane he shot down; a Jap helmet and sou- venirs of money from New Guinea.
The souvenirs he turned over to Mace Roberts, commander of the VFW post at 5719 Calumet avenue. He is a graduate of Hammond high school.
Grabner
Hammond Times, June 3, 1943
"For extraordinary achievement while par- ticipating in aerial flights in the southwest Pacific area from Nov. 4, 1942, to Feb. 3, 1943," Carl Grabner, who made his home in Hammond with his sister, Mrs. Donald Va- lade, 844-175th street, was decorated with the distinguished flying cross.
His commanding officer, in a letter to Grab- ner's mother, Mrs. John Grabner, reported:
"He participated in more than 50 missions, dropping supplies and transporting troops over territory that was continually patrolled by enemy fighter aircraft. Often landings were made on fields which were only a few miles from Jap bases. These operations aided considerably in the recent successes in this theater.
"Almost every hour of the day, your son, and the sons of other American mothers, are doing just such things as that here in the southwest Pacific. Theirs is a very real and tangible contribution to victory and peace.
"I would like to tell you how genuinely proud I am to have such men as your son in my command and how gratified I am to know that young Americans with such courage and resourcefulness are fighting our country's battle against the aggressor nations."
Grabner was employed at the Hubbard Steel company, East Chicago, before entering army service.
Page One Hundred
STATIONED IN ENGLAND
COMMISSIONED, HOME
Jaeger
Hammond Times, June 7, 1943
Tec. Cpl. Edmund J. Jaeger, 23, son of Mr. and Mrs. E. M. Jaeger, 7142 Jefferson avenue, Hammond, is stationed in England in the sig- nal division of the army air forces.
A graduate of Catholic Central high school and a former employe of the Inland Steel company, Indiana Harbor, Jaeger was pro- moted to his present rank at Kansas City, Mo., where he completed his advanced flight train- ing. His basic training was at Camp Crowder, Mo.
His address is the 66th signal co., 1st service group, APO 367, care of postmaster, New York City, N. Y.
G. Sakas
Hammond Times, June 30, 1943
Lt. Gabriel Sakas of Hammond now is home for his first leave since he was inducted into the army in September, 1941. He received his basic training at Fort Warren, Wyo., after which he was stationed in the Panama Canal zone for 13 months.
Sakas received his lieutenant's commission last Friday at Camp Lee, Va., and will leave soon for his new assignment in the quarter- master corps at Fort Riley, Kas. A graduate of Hammond high school, Sakas attended Indiana State Teacher's college at Terre Haute before his induction. He is the son of Mr. and Mrs. Gabriel Sakas, who have owned and op- erated the grocery store at 1257 Summer street, Hammond, for 23 years.
RECEIVES PROMOTION OVERSEAS
Hammond Times, June 30, 1943
1. Lypka
Joseph Lypka, 20, son of Mr. and Mrs. Steve Lypka, 104 Mulberry street, Hammond, was promoted to first clas seaman serving with the navy somewhere in the Pacific area.
Lypka enlisted in August last, formerly was employed at the United States Gypsum com- pany, East Chicago, and was a student at Hammond Technical high school.
WILL TRAIN OVERSEAS
E. P. Bonchik
Hammond Times, June 30, 1943
Staff Sgt. Edward P. Bonchik, son of Mr. and Mrs. John Bonchik, 2043 Lincoln avenue, Robertsdale, stationed at base general depot, San Bernardino, Calif., was accepted for officer training school after passing necessary tests with high scores. He will receive his training on arrival at his "overseas" destina- tion. On completing the course, he will be commissioned a second lieutenant.
Page One Hundred and one
PROMOTED IN AFRICA
BLACK OAK HERO SHOOTS DOWN TWO AXIS PLANES IN RAID ON MESSINA
Hammond Times, June 30, 1943
Stationed in the North African theater of operations, Joseph A. Macnak, son of Mr. and Mrs. Andrew Macnak 1632 Stanton avenue, Whiting, was promoted from first lieutenant to captain by command of General Eisen- hower. Capt. Macnak, whose wife, Mary, is living at 2007 Indianapolis boulevard, Whit- ing, has seen active duty in North Africa since the first of March.
In service since July, 1941, the young com- missioned officer was stationed for basic army training at Fort Eustis, Va., and Fort Bliss, Tex., from where he was transferred overseas. He was employed at the Youngstown Sheet and Tube company before armed service.
WHITING BROTHERS UNITED
Hammond Times, June 30, 1943
Separated when they were inducted into the armed forces, two Whiting brothers recently were re-united in North Africa when the companies to which each have been assigned landed on that continent.
They are Pfc. Victor H. Simon and Pvt. Arthur A. Simon, sons of Mr. and Mrs. Nick Simon, 943 Myrtle street, Whiting. The Sim- ons have two other brothers in service, Pvt. Clarence R. Simon, now stationed in Loredo, Texas, and Pvt. George F. Simon, now sta- tioned in Nashville, Tennessee.
MEDAL AWARDED ED A. SWANSON
Hammond Times, July 4, 1943
Pvt. Edward A. Swanson, 556 Forsythe avenue, Calumet City, was decorated with the Purple Heart in the United States naval hos- pital at Great Lakes naval training station Friday.
Swanson of the U. S. marines was wounded by shrapnel on Guadalcanal last Nov. 3. The award of the medal was made by Capt. W. E. Eaton, commander of the hospital, who also honored three other wounded veterans with the decoration.
Gene W. Royse
Hammond Times, June 30, 1943
Allied headquarters in north Africa this week announced that Gene W. Royse, 23, son of Mr. and Mrs. Frank Royse, 2645 Fairbanks street, Black Oak, shot down two German Focke, Wulf 190's in last Friday's "Flying Fortress" raid on the battered port of Messina, military lifeline of the beseiged island of Sicily.
Royse alone accounted for two of the 25 enemy fighter planes shot down by the Amer- icans during the raid.
His shooting mark was considered the more outstanding because Royse, in addition to his duties as a forward gunner on the "Fortress," also serves as flying engineer and is responsible for the mechanical operation of the ship.
Proud as Mrs. Royse was of her son's ex- ploit, she said the news also served to reassure her of his safety, since she has not received a letter from him in six weeks.
Royse received his army air force training at a Nevada air field and now is a technical sergeant, following a promotion from staff sergeant.
Before he enlisted a year ago, Royse had served a two-year apprenticeship as a ma- chinist in the Continental Roll and Steel foun- dry's Hubbard plant in East Chicago. His father is a worker in the Hubbard roll shop.
A graduate of Roosevelt high school, East Chicago, Royse has a brother, Jack, 21, who is stationed with the infantry in Texas.
Page One Hundred and two
JACK CEARING A CORPORAL
Hammond Times, July 4, 1943
Jack Cearing, son of Mr. and Mrs. Lloyd Cearing, 1038 Highland street, Hammond, was promoted from corporal to the rank of aviation cadet on June 28, his second promo- tion in three days, since on June 25 he was promoted from private to corporal. Entering the army in March this year, Cearing is sta- tioned in San Antonio, Tex. He formerly was employed at the Standard Railway Equipment manufacturing company, Hammond, and was graduated from Hammond high school in June, 1942.
John F. Rzepski, son of Mr. and Mrs. J. J. Rzepmski, 1313 West 142nd street, East Chi- cago, is stationed in Alaska. Before entering service, he was employed at the Superheater company, Hammond.
GRIFFITH PARENTS RECEIVE PURPLE HEART FOR HERO SON WHO IS MISSING IN ACTION
Hammond Times, July 4, 1943
Mr. and Mrs. C. E. Riehl, of this com- munity, yesterday were informed by Secretary of War Stimson that a Purple Heart has been posthumously awarded to their son, Pvt. George M. Riehl, who is missing.
The soldier's father is a past commander of the American Legion and an instructor in the Whiting schools.
The 22-year-old gunner was officially listed as missing in action last Aug. 8. He was aboard an airplane that left Oahu island, Territory of Hawaii, on a special mission March 22, 1942. Contact with the plane was lost March 25 "somewhere in the Pacific."
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