On Memorial Day, we pay our respects to those who gave, in the words of President Abraham Lincoln, “the last full measure of devotion.”
It is thus fitting to recognize names and history.
In October 1918, the deadliest month of World War I for U.S. servicemen as battles raged on the Western Front and disease ran rampant among the troops, The Seattle Daily Times on Oct. 2 ran the headline: “16 Washington Men in List of Casualties.”
Among the fallen were Privates Walter E. Drissler, George Kalknarf, Frank Gaddis, James Webster and Andrew Copeman.
During World War I, 1,642 Washingtonians died from combat, wounds, accident and disease, according to HistoryLink.org. We remember them today.
The War to End All Wars was not to be. A particularly deadly month for American forces in World War II was December 1944, as Hitler made one final push in the Battle of the Bulge. The Dec. 13 edition of The Seattle Daily Times carried the headline: “NAZIS SEND IN NEW PANZER ARMY.”
Inside the paper, readers learned that Pfc. Willard J. Robinson, 33, had been killed in action. A car salesman, he was born in Pullman and came to Seattle in 1935. He left a wife, 2-year-old daughter and 4-year-old son.
We remember him and the nearly 4,000 others from Washington who gave their lives.
In the Korean War, November 1950 was one of the most difficult months for U.S. armed forces. On Dec. 4, 1950, this newspaper noted that Corp. Russell R. Miller, 23, of Seattle had been listed as killed in action by the Defense Department. His mother hoped it was mistaken identity.
“Twice before some of his personal effects were stolen, and I just wonder if his dog-tags might not have been replaced,” she told the paper.
An estimated 122,000 Washingtonians fought in Korea; 472 never returned. We remember them.
In May 1968, the North Vietnamese launched a spring offensive which became the deadliest month for the U.S. in that conflict. Inside the May 21 edition of The Seattle Times, a short article with the headline “Seattle Man Killed in War” carried news that Army Capt. Vesa Alakulppi, previously listed as missing, was killed in Vietnam. Survivors included his wife and two children.
The Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Olympia is inscribed with the names of 1,124 state residents killed or missing. Today, we remember them.
By many estimates, the worst month for U.S. armed services in the Iraq War was November 2004. On Dec. 9, Chief Warrant Officer Patrick Leach, 39, of Federal Way was killed when his AH-64 Apache helicopter collided with a UH-60 Black Hawk in northern Iraq. He was survived by his wife and five children.
“I’m just proud of how he ran his life,” his father, Bruce Leach, told The Times. “He was a very honorable person, and he was really a good father.”
From 2003-2010, 89 Washingtonians died in Operation Iraqi Freedom. We remember them.
The costliest month in Afghanistan for those fighting in Operation Enduring Freedom was August 2011 when the Taliban shot down a CH-47 Chinook helicopter, killing 30 service members. One of them was Sgt. Alexander Bennett, 24, who grew up in Tacoma and attended local schools. He previously served in Iraq.
It is believed 58 Washingtonians died in Operation Enduring Freedom, which spanned from 2001-2014. Today, we remember them.
As Lincoln said at Gettysburg, words cannot capture the enormity of the nation’s sacrifices nor the immensity of its gratitude.
On Memorial Day, we remember.
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