Legion post honors area WWII veterans

In this first article, we would like to look back at some veterans who served during World War II. With the help of Henry Balsiger and the Gorge Heritage Museum in Bingen, we found some interesting stories.

Pfc. Ulysses S. Famelos, 91st Infantry Division: Famelos, who was from Bingen and a graduate of Columbia Union High School, was awarded an Oak Leaf cluster to the Bronze Star for his actions on Sept. 21, 1944, in Italy.

Pvt. Mitch Quaempts, 335th Infantry, was lost for six days behind enemy lines during the Battle of the Bulge in Belgium and was awarded a Purple Heart and a Bronze Star. He led five other men back safely to Allied lines.

Sgt. Robert D. Gray was awarded a Silver Star for his actions in Styring Wendel, France.

Melvin Maupin, Aviation Radioman First Class, received an Air Medal for participating in 44 flights against the enemy.

Sgt. Nick Surbaugh was with the initial landing party on Nov. 8, 1942, at Casablanca in North Africa. He made the landing in Sicily with the famed 3rd Infantry Division under Gen. Patton, then advanced into Italy where he was later captured by the Germans at Mt. Casino and held as a prisoner for 18 months.

Marine Pfc. Warner Martin participated in the landing and the battle of Iwo Jima.

As anyone who has served his country will tell you, the real heroes are the young men who gave their lives in battle, and like other communities, the White Salmon and Bingen area was not immune in losing some of these young men. Some of those local men still remembered include the following:

Pfc. Jim Dickey, 75th Infantry, was killed in Belgium during the Battle of the Bulge in 1944.

Paratrooper Robert Brown lost his life on D-Day in Normandy.

Frank Kramer, 109th Patrol Bombing Squadron, lost his life while making a low-level attack on a Japanese ship. Anti-aircraft fire was intense and accurate, and his plane was observed to be on fire after passing over the ship. It crashed and exploded. Another plane searched for survivors and none were found.

Bill Becker, a former Columbia Union High School coach, died of wounds on Christmas Day in 1944 in Belgium.

Sgt. J.W. Hunsaker was killed in Belgium in January 1945 during the Battle of the Bulge.

Paratrooper Sgt. Phil Lynch was killed in January 1945 in Belgium.

Sgt. Arthur Balsiger, 155th Infantry Company, saw continuous action in Dutch New Guinea, Dutch East Indies (now Indonesia), and Mindanao P.I. He was killed by Japanese artillery fire.

Herbert Borton lost his life as a member of the crew on the U.S.S Indianapolis when it was torpedoed and sunk in Philippine waters. Herbert had served on the U.S.S Indianapolis since Pearl Harbor, and had been at the front all through the war. (If any of you do not know the story of the U.S.S.Indianapolis, there are several good books with the story, including The Tragic Fate of the U.S.S. Indianapolis and In Harms Way).

As Americans, we all owe a lot to all of our veterans. It is important to remember the sacrifices that have been made, and the sacrifices that continue to be made by those serving today.

Ed LaMotte, who served with the 101st Airborne in Vietnam, is commander of American Legion Evan Childs Post No. 87 in White Salmon.