East Tennessee Veterans Memorial Association

*Indicates that soldier's name will be inscribed on the East Tennessee Veterans Memorial

William M. Bennett*
Clifford D. Carden
David Clowers
James David Connell Jr.
Forrest Mitchell Cook*
Alexander S. Coulter*
Owen Guy Cox II*
Luther E. (Gene) Davis*
General P. Douglas*
Norman Draper*
Wallace Herbert Dunbar*
Gary Lee Edwards*
Dalmos Eldridge*
Delbert J. Fellers
Harold Cecil Fox*
Paul Owen Gunter*
George Daniel Harrison*
Travis F. Haslip*
Ryan E. Haupt*
Charles Williston Hayes*
Earl O. Henry*
Gregory B. Hicks*
Owen E. Hoover*
Bill (NMI) Jones
Richard Jones
Stephen C. Kennedy*
John Perry Keys*
Larry D. Leamon*
Victoir Lieurance*
Earl C. McCoy*
Troy Elmer Mitchell*
Donald Max Morris
Riley Oliver Murphy*
Albert K. Murrian*
Joseph W. Overholser*
John Carol Owen Jr.*
Daniel Parrott
John Parrott Sr.
Willie Partin*
John Henry Pate Jr.*
John McCoy Patrick*
William L. Phibbs*
Kenneth R. Pickell*
Elbert Ford Price Jr.
James W. Price*
Brandon M. Read*
Earl L. J. Rhyne*
Robert L. Ridge*
Michael J. Rodriguez*
Will Ed Rudder
Mack Eugene Sanders*
Gary D. Smith*
Paul W. Thomason III*
Alex Van Aalten*
Glenn A. Watson*
Christopher E. Watts*
James Dennis West*
Tommy Chance Young*

The Green Berets normally work in the shadows. On Saturday morning a few stepped forward under a brilliant late summer sun to show their emotions. Master Sgt. Jeff Mason and Sgt. 1st Class Vince Makela had to pause and hold tears back from mist-filled eyes as they spoke about Sgt. 1st Class William M. Bennett. "He was the most determined, fierce-competitor, competent Special Forces soldier that I have ever had the pleasure of serving with," Mason said as beads of perspiration collected under his green beret.

Bennett, a 35-year-old father and Special Forces veteran, was gunned down last Friday in a pre-dawn raid roughly 75 miles east of Baghdad. Military officials say his team was in pursuit of "suspected bad guys." On Saturday morning Bennett was laid to rest outside the same red brick church where he attended youth group as a child and where he married his wife Allison 14 years ago. More than 100 people gathered in the foothills of the Smoky Mountains at the Oak View Baptist Church to pay their final respects to a local boy who had grown into a war hero and ultimately gave his life for America. American flags lined the road that led to the church and residents lowered their flags to half-staff across the rural East Tennessee hamlet.

Bennett was a 1986 Heritage High School graduate, the senior medic on a 12-man group that specialized in Middle East operations, and the father of an 8-year-old son. "He has all the same characteristics as his dad," Makela said of Bennett's son, Seth. "He's brave and has a strong character, and now he will help Allison a lot." Bennett joined the Army for the G.I. Bill benefits soon after graduating from high school but quickly decided to make a career out of the Army. "He joined wanting to earn money for college, and it just grabbed him," said Bennett's aunt, Karolyn Wood. Wood and her husband Michael cared for Bennett while he was in high school. "Even before this, I said he was my hero," Michael Wood said.

His Special Forces comrades knew Bennett as a "gym rat" who always could find a place to work out. His dedication to physical fitness and love of soldiering led him to the Special Forces. He ascended to become the senior medic in his group and learned Arabic for assignments in the Middle East.

He was a veteran of Operation Just Cause in Panama, Operation Desert Storm and Operation Enduring Freedom, where he linked up with the Northern Alliance in Afghanistan to oust the Taliban from power. "He's been all over the world, but he loved to come here and be with these people he loved," Michael Wood said. The raid also claimed the live of Master Sgt. Kevin N. Morehead, 33, of Little Rock, Ark., and injured seven others. Makela was one of the injured soldiers. "He came over to see if I was all right, and I was great compared to other injuries," Makela said. "From there he led to the fight."

Mason recalled the two soldiers sharing cigars not long ago in Baghdad and Bennett anticipating a trip home to Blount County. "He loved the outdoors and wanted to come home to go kayaking and climbing mountains," Mason said. His group, based at Fort Campbell, Ky., was two weeks away from completing its eight-month tour. Both Bennett and Morehead have been recommended for the Silver Star, a medal reserved for extreme acts of bravery, military officials said. "Tennessee lost a great son and America lost a great soldier," Makela said.
By Bryan Mitchell, Knoxville News Sentinel, September 21, 2003
Copyright 2003, KnoxNews. All Rights Reserved.

A great lesson from a WWII Veteran  In our Sunday School class last week, we discussed the word “Honor” and its interpretation to most people today. Our class members are all 50ish, and I think the definition of “honor” has a different meaning for us as it does for the younger generation today. When our teacher asked us to define “honor” my thoughts went immediately to so many of the men and women that I grew up in church with, who taught our Sunday School classes and to my dad, who passed away last April at the age of 80. These great saints were men and women you could confide in and never worry about having your confidence betrayed. They were men and women who you knew earnestly prayed for you every week. You could go to any of them anytime and they would do anything they could to help you. How that has changed today. I can count on one hand the people I would trust today with a confidence, who would help you if you asked, and who pray for me, and my family. Several years ago, I had the honor of witnessing the difference between an honorable man and a dishonorable one. My dad was in the hospital awaiting surgery for his second bypass in 5 years. Just before the time for the surgery, a hospital’s patient advocate came into his room and said she needed to talk to us. It seems that the doctor who was doing dad’s surgery had discovered that my dad still smoked and he had made the decision that he did not want to “waste” a good bypass on a patient that was still smoking. Therefore he had sent the advocate to inform him that his surgery was cancelled and he was sending him back home to die. My dad was very disappointed and hurt. He just sat in his bed shocked and refusing to speak to anyone. I asked the advocate to come outside in the hall to talk. I quickly prayed for God to give me the right words to say because I knew this was a desperate situation. My dad’s heart condition was critical and without the surgery he would not survive very long. This doctor was the only one recommended to do this surgery. The advocate stepped outside and immediate began to apologize, with tears in her eyes, for this situation. I remained calm, but I looked her in the eye and said, “I have a lawyer in this town (and I really did) that I am going to see immediately. It is my understanding that this doctor’s decision is not legal. I don’t think my dad can be denied this surgery. I will do whatever it takes to fight for his rights and his life. Please convey that to the proper administrators.” My sister, who was with me, just looked shocked at what I had just said. The advocate told us that she would pass along that information and get back with us. We waited for quite a while, and then my sister had to leave. I was alone with this problem. I knew that my dad was a very proud man, and my gut instinct was that when he got his thoughts together, he would die before he would let that doctor operate on him now. So, I really did not know what could be done, even if the doctor changed his mind. I needed a miracle and soon.  The advocate came back finally, and asked my dad what she could do for him until this was resolved. My dad told her that he wanted this doctor to come into his room and tell him personally that he would not operate on him. That was his request! My dad felt that any man worth his salt would face him and tell him personally and not send a messenger with this bad news. He felt this doctor was not being very “honorable.” This began a long series of “arbitration” between the doctor’s staff, my dad, and the hospital administration that lasted well into the evening. First the doctor refused to meet with my dad, and then dad refused to leave the hospital or sign anything until the doctor came into his room to talk. Hours went by, and the advocate made many trips to pass along the next message to dad, but he would not give in. Finally, after many hours of this, I heard my name being called over the intercom to come to the conference room. When I arrived, I saw a big round table with several people seated. I was introduced to the doctor in question; the head nurse of the floor dad was on; the advocate and her supervisor; and a “neutral” party who I can’t remember. The advocate started the meeting by saying that she and her assistant were there to represent my father’s best interest and me. Whatever was decided, she said, it was her job to make sure we were happy with the decision. Then she told me that the doctor wanted to speak to me. I braced myself for what he was going to say. The doctor was struggling to talk, he seemed very contrite to me for some reason, and he was a bit nervous. “I have a favor to ask of you,” he said. “ I need you to convince your dad to let me operate on him.” “I don’t understand,” I said. “I thought you were refusing to operate.” “No,” he said, “I have changed my mind and I really need his cooperation. As his daughter, I was hoping you could persuade him. I don’t want him to leave here under these circumstances.” I could not help but wonder what circumstances had occurred that caused such a change of heart with this doctor. I suddenly felt that he was being pressured against his will, probably by the hospital administration; however, this doctor did not know what he was asking. He did not know, because he did not know my father. My father had lived his whole life by God’s standards of “honor” as laid down in the Bible. He was a WWII veteran and he had grown up in the depression. He had known hard times in his life, and he was a proud man and an honorable man. He always lived his life based on the principals that God gave us in his Word. He had been a Southern Baptist deacon most of his life and he had spent his life helping others. If he said he would talk to no one but this doctor, then it would be very presumptuous of me to try to persuade him otherwise and, as his daughter, I knew better. He would consider this “not my business!” “I’m sorry,” I said to the doctor, “but you don’t know my father. If he asked to talk to you face to face, believe me there is nothing I can do. You are the one that offended him and you are the only one that can make it right. My dad is a fair man. He treats the newspaper boy with the same respect that he would give the President of the United States. He expects people to give him that same respect. If you want my father to know you have changed your mind, you have to tell him that yourself. He will not hear that from me, or anyone else.”  The doctor hung his head and after a long silence, he looked at me and with tears in his eyes, he asked me if I would go with him to my father’s room. “Again,” I said, “I am very sorry, but if I go with you, my dad will assume that I twisted your arm and made you come against your will. The only way he will believe you is for you to go, man to man, by yourself and tell him.”  The doctor sat there for a moment and then the head nurse, in all her wisdom spoke up and said to the doctor, “Would you like me to go with you?” “Yes, thank you” he said with a relieved tone. The two of them got up and headed to my dad’s room. The advocate and I stood outside the door, in hearing range, and listened to what took place in that room. I will never forget that moment as long as I live. The doctor went in the room and introduced himself to my dad, and my dad shook his hand. Then he introduced the nurse and she smiled and nodded. She stood at the foot of the bed and the doctor was at the side near the foot. “Mr. Carden,” he said, “I am here to inform you that I have reversed my decision and if you will allow me, I would like to perform your surgery first thing tomorrow morning.” I strained to hear a response from my dad. Finally, I heard his voice. “Tell me,” my dad started out very slowly, “where exactly were you raised?” “I’m from this area,” the doctor said. Then he proceeded to tell my dad about his education, his experience and so on. “Did you always want to be a doctor?” my dad asked. “Yes, I knew when I was in high school that I wanted to be a heart surgeon someday, and I planned early on to go to medical school,” he said. “You were a very lucky young man to get to see your dreams come true,” my dad said. “Do you know what I wanted to be when I was in growing up?” my dad asked. “No,” the doctor said. “Well,” dad said, “when I was a little boy growing up on a farm during the depression, I wanted to be an engineer. When I was in high school I planned to go to college and study engineering, but the war broke out and during my senior year, I was drafted into the Army, but joined the Navy instead. For the next several years, I did not know if I would live to ever get back home again, much less go to college. So, you see, I didn’t get to choose what I wanted to do after high school like you did. I was too busy fighting for the freedoms you enjoyed that allowed you to go pursue your dreams.”  Then he continued, “Do you know what the first thing the military issued to all us GI’s when we enlisted.” “No,” said the doctor. “Well, it was a carton of Camel brand cigarettes, and I had never smoked before. During the war, the military made sure that all us soldiers had all the cigarettes we wanted, I guess because they figured that if we died, at least we not have been deprived of the basic pleasures of life.” At this point, the doctor was beginning to see where this was going and his head was hanging lower than ever, but dad did not stop there. “So,” my dad said, “here we all old veterans are today, 45 years later, and all of us suffering from some kind of disease related to all those years of smoking and you young doctors, who we need to help us and take care of us, have the attitude that we don’t deserve your skills and treatment because we smoke those cigarettes that the government gave us during the war that we all fought and died for, so young men like you could realize your lifelong dreams of becoming a doctor. When I got back home from the war, the only job I could get was in the local plant at minimum wage. I worked there 40 years and retired from there. I never got to go on to college and become an engineer as I had dreamed, but I was comforted by the fact that our generation had secured the freedoms of your generation, forever. We veterans have always been proud that it was our generation that secured those freedoms. So, in answer to your question, no, I will not let you perform heart surgery on me. Your values do not meet my requirements for a doctor. I think you will find that us old veterans would rather die honorably than to beg for treatment from doctor’s with your attitude.”  At this point, I could see the doctor’s face and tears were streaming down his face, and the nurse was weeping openly. The doctor apologized to my father and I believe he sincerely meant it. My dad told him that he accepted his apology, but he hoped that he understood why he could not allow him to operate on him. When the doctor left the room, I was convinced that that doctor's life had just changed forever, and so had mine. I looked at my father from that day forward with different eyes. I saw a man that had sacrificed unselfishly everything he had ever wanted to a cause that he believed had been worth it no matter what. I often wonder what his life and the lives of all the WWII veterans would have been like, if fate had not intervened at such a young age. We will never know, but, I know one thing, it will be a travesty, if the generations that have benefited from the sacrifices of these veterans are not taught what price was paid for those freedoms.  My dad immediately called for transport back to the VA hospital that had sent him there. As the emergency technicians rolled his bed out into the hall, we were met with the entire floor of nurses, and techs, lined on both sides of the corridor to say goodbye and as he passed them, they all saluted him. I was following behind and I saw my father, with his Navy cap on, smiling and waving to all the staff, and the head nurse stopped us at the end of the hall, and with tears streaming down her face, kissed my dad on the forehead. “Thank you,” she said, “from all of us. That doctor has needed to get a dose of humility for a long time, and you did what we have all wanted to do. God bless you and we wish you the best.”  As the ambulance pulled out of the parking lot, I was following behind in my car, and I thought, “I was so lucky to have been a witness to this defining moment in so many lives, and I have never been prouder of my father. Even though he probably will not live long, he will die with his honor, and what more can we all ask?”  The story does not end there, however! God is so good. A few months later, a Godly doctor from the local medical center was sent my dad’s files from the VA to review to see if he felt he could help him and he called my dad and said he believed he could if he would allow him. My dad agreed and after a very risky heart surgery, and some touch and go times in recovery, dad made it though another bypass and lived for another 15 years!! Dad’s faith in God never waned and it sustained him for 80 years. God blessed him for his faithfulness, in his life, and in his death. He died peacefully in his sleep April 2006. What a lesson for us today!
Submitted by Karen E. Heaton

My great uncle, David Clowers, joined the Army as a 14 year old boy in Knoxville, TN. He gave his age as 16 years and, because he was so tall for his age, he was accepted and became a very tall, but young "Dough Boy." Dave served under Gen. J. J. "Black Jack" Pershing in the trenches of France. He managed to live through the war but he had been a victim of mustard gas and was very ill when he returned home to Knoxville, Tennessee at the conclusion of the war. "Uncle Dave" was never in the best of health for the rest of his life and he died in the early 1950s. Uncle Dave was forever and always proud to tell people that he was one of "Black Jacks" soldiers.
Submittted by Sandra C. Waters

Every Sunday, the Connell family in Lake City gathers for dinner. This past Sunday, they gathered to mourn the passing of Sgt. 1st Class James David Connell Jr., 40, a platoon sergeant in the U.S. Army's 10th Mountain Division who was killed Saturday during his second tour in Iraq. Family members said he was one of five killed when his patrol came under attack near Mahmudiyah, Iraq. Connell's family learned of his death Saturday afternoon.

The Pentagon has not confirmed the identities of the four U.S. soldiers and one Iraqi interpreter who were killed during the attack. It happened at 4:44 a.m. Saturday, according to the American Forces Press Service. U.S. Army Maj. Gen. William B. Caldwell, Multinational Force Iraq spokesman, said three other soldiers in the patrol were missing. An al-Qaida front group claims to have taken the soldiers, according to The Associated Press. Mahmudiyah is about 20 miles south of Baghdad in an al-Qaida-dominated area known as the "triangle of death."

When Connell was in East Tennessee on leave earlier this month, he visited Lake City Middle School and talked about the work and the military lifestyle, his children said Sunday. He spoke to his 12-year-old son Bryan's class and 14-year-old daughter Courtney's class.

Family members said Connell had just recovered from a shrapnel wound to his one of his legs when he came home for two weeks of leave. "He's a hero," Courtney said. She said that during her father's leave, he took each of his three children out of school for one day to spend the day with them. He took his oldest son, 16-year-old Nick, horseback riding in the Smokies. He took Bryan to Knoxville Center and to a movie. Courtney wanted to go to West Town Mall. She wanted to get a pedicure and so did her father. They got them together, she said, her face brightening at the memory.

Nick said his father lived in a village in Iraq two weeks at a time and patrolled two weeks at a time. He couldn't talk about where he was exactly, said Nick. "He said it was hard," said Courtney.

In the back bedroom of the Connell home, Connell's father, James Sr., looked at pictures from his son's most recent military leave on a flat-screen monitor. The pictures appeared one at a time, an electronic slide show from just one week ago when the family had celebrated Bryan's birthday. In one picture, he stands on a trampoline with the younger children of the family. In another, he sits in uniform on the couch with his two sons.

Connell has three brothers and one sister, all present Sunday. He played little league in Lake City and graduated from Anderson County High School in 1984. He grew up in the house where the family was gathered Sunday. "He's just a real good son," said James Connell Sr. "Everybody loved him."

The family plans a memorial service in Lake City at Hatmaker Funeral Home. No time or date has been set. Jeff Connell said his brother would be buried at Arlington National Cemetery in Arlington, Va. Sgt. 1st Class Connell is the 29th member of the military with East Tennessee ties to die in Iraq.
By Darren Dunlap, Knoxville News Sentinel, May 14, 2007
 © 2007 Knoxville News Sentinel.  All Rights Reserved

I have an uncle, Forrest Mitchell Cook, who died on Anzio Beach in Italy on March 1, 1944 ( WW II).  His date of birth was 12/07/1921, he was in the Army.  His family home was on Laurel Road, near Clinton, TN in Anderson County.  Parents were Posey and Martha Cook, he was not married.  He was my mother's brother and I have heard lots of stories about his courage and abilities in the Army. 
Submitted by Helen Fowler

35; Rank/Branch: CWO, Army Unit: HQ and HQ Co., 124th Signal Battalion, 4th Infantry Division
Hometown: Bristol
Died: Nov. 17, 2003, Baqouba, Iraq

First Lt. Owen Guy Cox II, born 5 May 1916; Hometown: Louisville, TN; Entered the Army: 1938, Knoxville; First Lt. Cox's plane was shot down over France on 23 Feb. 1945 over France with no known survivors.
Submitted by Allen K. Jeffries

My brother was a para-rescue specialist (Jolly Greens), from Oak Ridge. He was killed in action May 25, 1970. In May 1975, the Davis family attended a dedication of a building at Keesler AFB, Mississippi, aptly named "Davis Manor", in his honor. Gene earned the Silver Star, 3 Distinguished Flying Crosses, 15 Air Medals, 3 Purple Hearts, and numerous other awards and decorations. He is survived by two sons, one of whom has served in Iraq as a Special Forces Medic and the other who is a high school teacher.
Submitted by Tom Davis

More than 60 years have passed since World War II, but finally the remains of Seaman 1st Class General Douglas will be buried in the Tennessee soil that he called home.

In June 2006, a resident of Ranongga Island, Solomon Islands, notified U.S. officials that he had found human remains and Douglas’ dog tags partially out of the ground near a trail by his village. Recently, military officials announced the remains were in fact those of seaman Douglas.

Denny Douglas, a nephew the seaman never met, says he is utterly amazed that his uncle’s remains were found. "This is just a great surprise and a wonderful thing the Navy has done for us by identifying him, contacting us, and sending him home. He is a hero to us, and a man who deserves the full military funeral we have planned for him," Denny said.

Douglas will be honored with a funeral in Sneedville on Jan. 26. It will be a day that has been a long time coming.

Denny said his mother, Regina Douglas, checked on her brother’s whereabouts for more than five years after the war. "My mother never got word of what happened to him. She called for years to see if he had been found. She always hoped that she would one day find closure about what happened to her brother, General. She told us about him, how he enlisted in the Navy, how he went off to fight a war he believed would ensure freedom for America, and how he never returned. She wanted to know what happened to him," Denny said.

For officials, finding Douglas’ family wasn’t as hard as finding Douglas had been, but it was a challenge.

General Douglas boarded a bus for war from his hometown in Newcomb, Tenn. So it was in Newcomb that officials with the Navy first began looking for the next of kin when remains found.

"My mother moved to Sneedville about 55 years ago. The Navy was able to trace her through the Newcomb Post Office. My uncle’s remains were found in June of 2006. It took until November of that year to locate Mom, and then there was a lot of work to be done before he could be positively identified," Denny said.

DNA kits were sent to the Douglas family in Sneedville. Denny’s sister, Carolyn Roberts, and his mother provided DNA samples, sent back the swabs, and waited. But, by the time she got word that her brother’s dog tags and remains were found, Regina Douglas was not in a condition to comprehend the news.

An Alzheimer’s disease sufferer, she was able to provide the DNA samples, but she was not able to comprehend why her throat was being swabbed. After all those years, she did not realize her beloved brother had been found. By the time the DNA results proved positive and plans were being made to send him home, Mrs. Douglas’ family was mourning her death. She died in November, the same month the DNA results became official.

"We regret that Mom never knew her brother had been found. This would have been an amazing time for her. She would have been happy to know that he was receiving what he was due: A funeral on American soil with full military honors. We just wish she could have been here for this," Denny said.

His mother was there on Dec. 17, 1941 when her brother enlisted, just 10 days after the attack on Pearl Harbor. She was there when he left home destined to go aboard the light cruiser USS Helena, after it had been repaired for damage sustained in the Pearl Harbor attack. And she was there to hear the news back home that on July 6, 1943 her brother’s ship had been struck by torpedoes fired by Japanese destroyers off the coast of Kolombangar Island in the Solomon Islands in what would become known as the Battle of the Kula Gulf. More than 700 servicemen were rescued, but Douglas was one of nearly 170 servicemen who were missing as the ship sank.

More than 60 years after his death, U.S. officials learned that remains, likely Douglas’, were found. The officials contacted the Joint POW/MIA Accounting Command (JPAC) who subsequently sent officials to Ranongga Island to examine the burial location.

Denny Douglas said he has made it his mission to learn more: More about his uncle and other heroic servicemen who gave their lives in such an important battle in America’s history.

"I’ve been reading a lot about the battle, about World War II, and about my uncle. It is really interesting, and it makes me proud to have this family heritage. "I am glad to have the opportunity to attend his funeral, and we invite the public to come. I am actively trying to find out if there is anyone still alive that was on that ship with my uncle. I would love to contact them if there is someone out there who was there that day."

Debi McKay of Knoxville wasn’t there, but her finance’s grandfather, a former Seymour resident, was on the ship. He was rescued the day the ship went down, returned home from war, but has since passed away.

McKay and her future mother-in-law plan to attend the funeral. In fact, as the captain of the Patriot Guard Riders, McKay said she plans to bring a group of motorcycle riders to the funeral to help escort Douglas to the cemetery, where he will be buried beside his sister.

"We are honored to know that other people care about my uncle and the other servicemen who fought in WWII. It is an important part of America’s history that should never be forgotten, and we are thankful that the Navy understands that it still matters that we return our men to their homelands even after all these years," Denny said.

General Douglas was two weeks shy of his 21st birthday when his ship went down.

Denny Douglas, 52, says his life has been inspired by the young uncle who never came home from war.

According to JPAC reports, 78,000 servicemen remain unaccounted for - still waiting to be found, to be brought home to a final resting place.

Denny Douglas and his family are glad the number of MIAs has decreased by at least one. He hopes the number continues to decline as he eagerly awaits the arrival of the brother his mother always hoped would come home.

The funeral will be Jan. 26 at the Sneedville funeral home with visitation on Jan. 25.

"There is no one left that knew him when he was alive so we are counting on those who simply want to honor him and his comrades to attend the funeral," Denny said.
From the Citizen Tribune, Morristown, TN, 2008


In a crowded chapel in a small town nestled in the shadows of the snow capped Newman's Ridge, a standing room only crowd gathered to remember a man no one in the room ever met. There were soldiers from four wars, school children and distant relatives who came to remember Seaman 1st Class General Preston Douglas. Douglas was a sailor in World War II. He was assigned to the U.S.S. Helena when the ship came under attack at the Battle of Kula Gulf.

On the morning of July 6, 1943, a Japanese submarine torpedoed the Helena. Nearly 1,000 men were on board the ship. Of these, all but 174 were safely evacuated from the ship before it slipped into its watery grave. Douglas was among those who died in the attack. For the next two years he was listed as Missing in Action. Finally, in 1945 he was officially declared Killed in Action. Though the new designation brought closure to his grieving family, questions persisted.

For years his sister, Regina, made many inquiries about her brother's fate. His fate remained a mystery until 2006. On a warm sunny day on a secluded beach on the Solomon Island of Kolombangar, a beachcomber discovered a dog tag protruding from the sand. After a little digging he found several bones. He contacted the United States Department of Defense, which excavated the area. There they uncovered, bones, teeth, the dog tags and a metal four-leaf clover that Douglas carried. The remains were 50 miles from where the battle had taken place. How they got there remains a mystery.

The DOD issued a statement that the most prevailing theory is his body may have washed up to shore where it was buried by natives. Later, soil erosion may have uncovered it. After careful investigation the DOD located the Douglas family. The family had moved from Newcomb, Tenn. where he was born, to Sneedville.

"My mother spent many years wondering what happened to her brother," said Denny Douglas, nephew of General Douglas. "We were all very happy when the Department of Defense confirmed that it was my uncle's remains they found. It was in early 2007 that they confirmed it was my uncle's remains."

Unfortunately, Regina Douglas had developed Alzheimer's disease by 2006. She was unable to comprehend that her brother's remains had been found. Regina Douglas died in November 2007. She didn't live to see her brother's remains returned home.

The funeral for General Douglas was held Jan. 26 at McNeil Funeral Home in Sneedville, six and a half decades after his death. His flag-draped coffin sat next to a table with a portrait of him along with a display case containing three medals that were awarded posthumously. The Patriot Guard, an organization formed to honor fallen soldiers bore two American flags in the Chapel.

After "Amazing Grace" was sung, Hancock County Mayor Greg Marion delivered a short speech. "I don't know how he lived," he said. "I don't know if he worked on his parents farm before he left to answer his country's call for men, I don't know if he had a girlfriend that he sent letters to. There is so much we don't know about him. But today he is home. He will be buried next to the loving sister who wondered about him so often." The coffin was then escorted across the Clinch Mountain down a winding road to an old community cemetery.

As many as 200 people braved the chilling cold, the color guards proudly displayed flags from all branches of the service as well as the United States flag, the flag of Tennessee and the MIA flag. After a brief prayer there was the firing of the 21-gun salute, the highest honor bestowed at a military funeral. Dozens of active and retired soldiers, ranging in age from 20 to 80, in their military dress uniforms, stood at attention as the somber notes of "Taps" resonated throughout the valley.

The mystery of his fate is now resolved. The final fleeting moments of his all too brief life will remain, as inscribed on the tomb of the Unknown Soldier, "known only to God." His casket was lowered into a grave next to his sister and near his parents. It was a long journey for Douglas who left the hills of Tennessee to serve his country only 10 days after the bombing of Pearl Harbor. His journey in life took him to distant waters where he lost his life. His remains discovered on a distant shore thousands of miles from home. Now, Douglas' long journey home is complete.

By Mike Williams, (Morristown) Citizen Tribune, February 3, 2008

Ensign Norman Draper, born January 2,  1921; Navy
Submitted by James Pointer

Wallace Herbert Dunbar was just one of the many heroic men and women from East Tennessee who gave their lives during World War II.  He was a young man of only eighteen when he was drafted into the army, but his service to his country is only a small part of the man that he was. Before he was drafted, Herbert, as he liked to be called by his family and friends, drove a truck.  As a boy, he received an eighth grade education in Chuckey, Tennessee.  His family remembers him as a loveable individual who was funny and disliked garden work.   He would sometimes tie his cousins’ feet together with string from his aunt’s sewing basket in order to make people laugh, and he would pretend to be sick to avoid working in the garden.  On December 28, 1942, Herbert Dunbar married a young woman named Audrey J. Broyles, and in September 1943, his only child, a daughter named Judy, was born.  He also had three sisters and two brothers, neither of whom was drafted into the war. Herbert Dunbar came home to East Tennessee one last time in February 1944 before leaving for Europe.  He was delighted to meet his daughter for the first time.  He was killed during Operation Overlord in Normandy, France, on June 19, 1944.  His body was discovered and identified by a close friend, medic Troy Broyles, who determined that the cause of death was machine gun fire.  Wallace Herbert Dunbar is buried in the American Cemetery overlooking Omaha Beach, in Normandy, France.
Sixty-one years after his death his cousin, Ashley Frazier, a student at the University of Tennessee in Knoxville, joined a group of other UT students for a pilgrimage to Normandy.  Ashley’s goal was to find her cousin’s grave and to lay flowers.  She bought several bouquets and, along with the students, found his headstone near the middle of cemetery.  She knelt by the grave and laid the flowers down.  There was a poignant moment of silence.  Ashley knew that this was the first time that any family member had visited Herbert Dunbar’s grave. In a few moments, the group moved on to see other graves and Omaha Beach itself but the time shared together at her relative’s grave is indelibly stamped in their memory. Wallace Herbert Dunbar’s name will be inscribed on the East Tennessee Veterans Memorial in Knoxville, along with those of thousands of other young soldiers who fought and died for their country in conflicts going back to World War I.
Submitted by Ashley Frazier

DOB: 09-20-1946
DOD: 03-27-1970   (Vietnam)   US  ARMY
Gary lived in Anderson County but graduated high school from Oliver Springs which is in Roane County.  He was killed in Vietnam on March 27, 1970.
Submitted by Joan Carter

Dalmos Eldridge lost his life in October 1942 in the Battle of the Santa Cruz Islands.
Submitted by Mary Ellen Brennan

Delbert J. Fellers, of Greene County, won the Silver Star in 1944 while serving with the 81st "Wildcat" Division in the Pacific during WWII. He also earned the Purple Heart, two Bronze Stars and the Philippine Liberation Ribbon, the Asiatic-Pacific Theater Ribbon and the Expert Rifleman's Badge.
Submitted by Billie D. Jones

My Grandfather was Harold Cecil Fox. My daddy, Harold Augustus Fox, never got a chance to meet him. My Grandfather was born August 20, 1912, in Sevier County, Tennessee. He was a Private in the U.S. Army. He was with the 82nd Ground Forces Replacement Center. He was killed February 5, 1945, in Torel, France during WWII. He is buried in Plot B, Row 30, Grave 7, in Lorraine American Cemetery, St. Avold, France. He was awarded The Purple Heart. He left behind a wonderful wife and 3 children, my dad being the youngest of the three.
Submitted by Christy Renee Fox

Private, United States Marine Corps.  Born Sept. 22, 1919, Stechoah, NC. Died Nov. 3, 1942, missing in action or buried at sea. Memorialized at Manila American Cemetery, Phillipines.  Purple Heart.  McMinn County.
Submitted by John M. Gunter Jr.

Army Specialist, age 22 of Knoxville, made the ultimate sacrifice for his country on December 2, 2004, while proudly serving in Mosul, Iraq. Daniel was assigned to the 293rd Military Police Company. He lost his life coming to the aid of his fellow soldiers. He will always be our hero. Daniel graduated from Carter High School in 2001. He attended Pellissippi State Community College. He worked at Sears, Wolf Camera, Lift Truck Sales, and Ed Financial before joining the Army on February 19, 2003. Daniel, our first-born son, was very precious to us. When Daniel was just a few weeks old, he learned to smile - an infectious smile that stayed with him throughout his life. It was a smile that will always be engraved on our hearts. Daniel's enthusiasm and love for life touched many people. Daniel's death is an inconceivable loss to our family. However, this loss strengthens the bond of love we feel for each of you. The Word of God tells us in John 15:13, "Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends."
Submitted by his family

20, of Ooltewah, Tenn.; assigned to the 1st Battalion, 5th Cavalry Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division, Fort Hood, Texas; died May 19, 2007, in Baghdad of wounds sustained when an improvised explosive device detonated near his vehicle.

My son, Staff Sergeant Ryan E Haupt, was killed in Iraq on October 17, 2006.  He lived here in Monroe Co. East Tennessee for about 2 years when he was a teenager, but he enlisted out of Arizona after only living there for 2 years. He did love East Tennessee, though, and this is where I have lived for 12 1/2 years. He did attend school in Monroe County, and they do honor him on each Veteran's Day and Memorial Day as being one of theirs.
Submitted by Lynn Forehand

1st Cousin Charles Williston Hayes was a B17 Pilot with the 351st Bomb group 111th Squadron and was KIA on a mission over Germany on August 6, 1944.
Submitted by John Freels

When Earl Henry Jr. was old enough to appreciate his father’s gift for art, the elder Henry had been dead for years – lost when a Japanese submarine torpedoed and sank the USS Indianapolis in the waning days of World War II.

But his vivid portrayals of birds small and large live on, including the stunning “American Eagle in the Pacific,” painted onboard the Indianapolis in August 1944. Undoubtedly the most famous painting by Tennessee artist Earl O. Henry Sr., it pictured a majestic bald eagle with wings spread wide against the background of a U.S. Flag. The eagle’s talons clutch a writhing serpent with a torn and ragged Japanese flag on its tail, symbolizing the Allies’ confidence in an eventual victory over Japan.

“I’m especially blessed that my father left so much behind through which I could know him,” says Earl Henry Jr., an Army veteran and member of American Legion Post 5 in Nashville, Tenn. He was six weeks old when his father’s ship went down July 30, 1945.

Before entering the Navy in 1942, Earl Henry Sr. was a dentist in Knoxville, Tenn., whose first love was birdwatching. Growing up, he collected bird pictures from soda boxes. He spent hours hiking through the woods to match them with birds he saw. Soon he learned to imitate bird calls and to mount birds, later painting lifesize duck images for display in a sporting-goods store.

His enthusiasm for birds grew after he joined the Navy. At Parris Island, S.C., and the Naval Academy at Annapolis, Md., he observed and painted birds from the shoreline and countryside. He then asked for sea duty, feeling he owed his country a more active role in the war, and was assigned to the Indianapolis as the ship’s dental officer. He continued to paint birds from memory and send work home to wife Jane. Once during battle while waiting at his post below deck for casualties to come, he painted sea gulls.

Henry earned the admiration of the Indianapolis on “amateur night” by performing bird calls. He also had a talent for building models, including a six-foot replica of the Indianapolis using wood and dental clay. It was in his cabin when the ship went down.

“I suspect my father never knew what happened,” Henry Jr. says of the sinking, widely considered to be the Navy’s worst disaster at sea.

In July 2005, Henry gave a presentation on his father’s life and artwork at a USS Indianapolis Survivors Association reunion. He played a rare recording of his father doing bird calls, displayed original paintings and sold prints. Naturally, “American Eagle in the Pacific” received the most attention.

For Henry, the long journey to getting his father’s work reproduced has fulfilled a longtime dream of his mother – and brought him closer to the dad he never knew.
By Matt Grillis, American Legion Magazine, November 2005

Flora Hicks said her son was an adventurous boy who longed to see the world beyond his native Campbell County. Less than a month after he graduated from Wynn High School in 1986, the 17-year-old enlisted in the Army destined for the life he dreamed of. "He always talked about wanting to go and fly and going places that he'd never been to before," Flora Hicks said Saturday evening from her home in rural Campbell County. "He said there wasn't anything out here for him."

After serving for almost 19 years, traveling the globe and participating in both Iraq wars, Sgt. 1st Class Gregory Hicks made the ultimate sacrifice January 8, 2004, when he was one of nine soldiers killed in the crash of a medical transport helicopter. Hicks was the second East Tennessee soldier killed during Operation Iraqi Freedom and the third to die in overseas combat since Sept. 11, 2001

The 35-year-old native of Duff was heading home to the United States to have surgery after suffering shrapnel wounds to his face and knee damage. Military officials believe the UH-60 Black Hawk chopper was probably shot down by enemy insurgents. Flora Hicks learned of her son's death when she received a phone call from Gregory Hicks' wife in Texas. "She was looking forward to having him come home and getting his surgeries taken care of so they could get out and travel with the kids," Flora Hicks said.

Even before being wounded, Gregory Hicks had decided to retire from the Army in 16 months. He hoped to spend more time with his wife and kids after retiring, his mother said. "(His wife) is just tore to pieces," Flora Hicks said. "I don't know what she'll do."

Gregory Hicks and his wife Melinda had a 13-year-old son, Chris, and an 18-year-old daughter, Jennifer. "He was an excellent father," Flora Hicks said. Gregory Hicks was assigned to Company B, First Battalion, 9th Cavalry Regiment of the First Cavalry Division based at Fort Hood, Texas. "He just got along great with everybody and was always a good kid," Flora Hicks said.

His mother recalled one fond memory of when her son was home a few years ago with his family. It was raining heavily, and Hicks joined his childhood friends and his children for some fun in the yard. "They looked like drowned little rats when they came from out there," she said with a reminiscent smile.

George Ivey, Hicks' cousin and boyhood friend, was at the Hicks household Saturday night lending moral support to the devastated family. "He was the most accomplished person in this whole family," Ivey said. "You couldn't be more of a somebody." Now Ivey is left with nothing but memories and thoughts of what could have been. "I sure thought I would get to see him again, but I guess I won't," Ivey said. "It's just something you've got to live with."
By Bryan Mitchell, Knoxville News Sentinel, January 11, 2004
Copyright 2004, KnoxNews. All Rights Reserved.

Killed in action on Okinawa May 7, 1945.   He was my uncle and I was 11 years old when he got killed.  He was first buried in a large cemetery in Okinawa. When they brought his body (bones) back he laid instate at our house.  He was identified by his partial missing in front.  His front teeth were knocked out playing football at Rule High School in early 40's. He wanted to serve his country before going on to college. He got a weeks leave after basic and was shipped overseas.....Never to return. A motto he wrote in my autograph book while on leave was: "Always strive for that extra yard in life."
Submitted by Delores Peigh

Bill (NMI) Jones, of Rogersville, served with the U.S. Army's 50th Engineers in the Pacific Theater during WWII. His unit participated in battles in locations as far-flung as the Aleution Islands, the Marshall Islands and the Philippine Islands. He received the Purple Heart after being wounded by shrapnel.
Submitted by Billie D. Jones

Richard Jones, of Hawkins County, served in the U.S. Navy during WWII and later served in the U.S. Army during the Korean War. He earned the Bronze Star in Korea.
Submitted by Billie D. Jones

The Oak Ridge National Guardsman killed Monday in a fierce firefight in Iraq was remembered as a loving family man and son by grieving family members on Wednesday, his 36th birthday. Staff Sgt. Stephen Curtis Kennedy was the father of four children. He died during a four-hour battle after an ambush by insurgents hiding in ditches and canals south of Balad Ruz. "I want people to remember my husband loved his job, he loved his country, and he loved his family,' his widow, Tiffany Kennedy, said Wednesday.

Sgt. Kennedy was a member of Lenoir City's Company D, 1st Squadron, of the 278th Regimental Combat Team. He was the second member of the 278th killed in Iraq and the first Anderson County resident to die in Operation Iraqi Freedom. "He felt that going over there and doing what he was doing was right because it was for his family and it was for his country,' Tiffany Kennedy said during a press conference on the carport of the family's modest home in the Scarboro community. Earlier Wednesday, she and family members added a birthday balloon and other decorations atop the weather-beaten yellow ribbon that already adorned the family's mailbox. "He felt it was his obligation to do what he did,' Tiffany Kennedy said as she struggled against tears. "I cannot be prouder of anybody that I've met in my whole life. Whether he had this job or not, he was a hero to his kids. He was a very loving, strong, dependable, reliable person. Everybody he met, he touched their lives in some way.'

Tiffany Kennedy said she last spoke with her husband by phone Sunday, and they communicated daily by e-mail, phone or instant messenger. Their conversations centered on their children and life in Oak Ridge, she said. "We never discussed anything he was doing,' she said. "He loved his children,' she said. "This is the hardest on them. They all understand what happened.' Sgt. Kennedy was the father of three sons, ages 15, 12 and 10, and a 3-year-old daughter.

Tiffany Kennedy said she learned of her husband's death Monday when a military chaplain arrived at her door. "About the only words that went through my mind at that time were, 'Oh God, why Stephen?' That was pretty much it.'

"He was the consummate soldier,' Bob Kennedy of Rockledge, Fla., said of his son. "He loved the military.' Retired after 28 years in the Navy, Bob Kennedy said his Oak Ridge son was the second of three children.

Sgt. Kennedy joined the U.S. Marines in 1988 just after he graduated from high school in Bremerton, Wash. During a four-year stint in the Marines, he participated in Operations Desert Shield and Desert Storm. He joined the National Guard in 1998 and had been serving since then in the Lenoir City unit. Just over a year ago, he was assigned as a full-time military clerk at the National Guard Armory in Lenoir City. He departed for Iraq in November.

"He loved children, and he was always laughing,' Bob Kennedy said of his son. "He loved to have fun."
By Bob Fowler, Knoxville News Sentinel, April 7, 2005
Copyright 2005, KnoxNews. All Rights Reserved.

John P. Keys left Elizabethton shortly after the United States entered World War II. He, like millions of young Americans, joined the U.S. armed forces and journeyed to Europe, Africa and Asia to fight enemies on two fronts. And like so many of those young Americans, Keys never returned home. The pilot of a B-17 Flying Fortress, Keys and seven members of his nine-member crew were killed in action after their aircraft was shot down during a bombing mission over occupied France near a small village called Perigny on Aug. 8, 1944.  Now, 60 years later, the village is planning a memorial tribute to Keys and his air crew. Yann Thomas, a resident of Perigny, informed the Star of plans to memorialize Keys and the crew with a stone memorial on the 50th anniversary of their deaths on Aug. 8, 2004. Keys served as a pilot with the 100th Bomb Group, 349th Bomb Squadron crew flying a B-17 bomber nicknamed the "Varga Venus" over occupied France and into Germany during 1944. Keys crew included flight officer and co-pilot, Elvin W. Samuelson on the bomber. The squadron included 2nd Lt. Patrick H. Lollis; 2nd Lt. Elton Dickens; Sgt. Frank O. Thomas; Sgt. Harry D. Park; Sgt. Peter P. Martin; Sgt. Gilbert A. Borba; Sgt. Joseph A. Costanza, and Sgt. Donald V. Rieger.  Only waist gunner Borba survived after bailing out of the aircraft, and he was taken prisoner of war. Costanza was not on the flight. The Missing Air Crew report on the incident stated that Dickens bailed out but later died on the same day from a leg wound.  The 100th Bomb Group of the U.S. Army Air became known as "The Bloody Hundredth". Keys and his crew were on a bombing mission over occupied France near St. Sylvain when their plane was shot down near Perigny. According to the U.S. Army's operations narrative of their mission, Keys' B-17 was hit by flak in the number two engine roughly 90 seconds before unloading over an occupied area near Perigny.  The village lies in the French province of Calvados - the historic province of Normandy - roughly 30 miles southwest of Caen. It is the province where U.S. military men hit the beaches of Normandy and Omaha on D-Day, June 6, 1944.  Keys' crew had a close call on returning to England from a bombing mission in late May. According to a United Press news report published June 2, 1944, the B-17 was "limping home" on one good and one disabled engine. Keys ordered the crew to "throw out everything that can't shoot", according to the report. The crew complied, tossing out all removable guns and ammunition as well as some of their clothing, according to the UP report. Thomas said he "threw out his pants, shirt and underwear, declaring, 'My pants and my all, I give for my country.'"  In 1943, the average life of an 8th Air Force B-17 crew was 11 missions. In 1943-1945, the 100th lost 177 aircraft missing in action plus 52 lost due to operational accidents, a total of 229. The 100th was not the Group with the highest losses in the 8th, but since its losses often came many at a time, it soon acquired the reputation of a hard-luck outfit and the name "The Bloody Hundredth."  John Perry Keys was the son of Mr. and Mrs. J.E Keys. A memorial service honoring Keys was held at the First Methodist Church in Elizabethton on April 25, 1948, according to county historical records.  Beginning in May 1944, Keys and his crew flew bomb missions that struck munitions factories in Munich and Hamburg as well as oil refineries in Western Germany. They had flown 25 missions over enemy territory when they took off on Aug. 8, 1944, according to a flight history of the crew provided by the 100th Bomb Group Foundation's Web site. The Foundation preserves the memories of veterans killed in missions over Europe during World War II. Costanza did not fly that mission.  The memorial will have the names of all crew members engraved on a marble or bronze tablet and will be placed in front of the town hall of Perigny. World War II veteran and ex-prisoner of war, Wright Swanay, recalled meeting Keys while both were preparing to ship out to Europe. "I was in Salt Lake City, Utah in November 1943," said Swanay. "John was a pilot, and we were being assigned to our crews. We never knew each other until then."  Swanay said once the men got their assignments, they shook hands and headed off. That was the last time he ever saw Keys. Swanay said Keys was one of three men he made a point to remember each Memorial Day as a veteran and fellow Elizabethtonian who answered the call to duty and gave his life for freedom. "I got shot down and they got shot down," said Swanay, "and I was the one who came back."  The crewmembers and hometowns listed at the 100th Bomb Groups Web site are: * 1st Lt. John P. Keys, pilot, Elizabethton, Tenn.  * Flight Officer Elvin W. Samuelson, co-pilot, Montgomery, Ill.  * 2nd Lt. Patrick H. Lollis, navigator, Kansas City, Mo.  * 2nd Lt. Elton Dickens, bombardier, Spokane, Wash.  * T/Sgt. Frank O. Thomas, radio operator, Rutland, Vt.  * T/Sgt. Harry D. Park, top turret gunner, Galesburg, Ill.  * S/Sgt. Peter P. Martin, ball turret gunner, San Francisco, Calif.  * S/Sgt. Gilbert A. Borba, waist gunner, Salinas, Calif.  * S/Sgt. Donald V. Rieger, tail gunner, Lathrop, Calif.
Submitted by Judy L. Jones

My Dad's brother was Larry D. Leamon who was killed in Vietnam.  We now live in Nebraska and only get to Chattanooga about once a year.  I was recently there helping my grandma and she let me bring all of Larry's papers and pictures from Vietnam home for my Dad. He still misses his brother, and I think he feels guilty that he joined the Army voluntarily and didn't have to go to Vietnam.  Larry was drafted and died at age 19.
Submitted by Sheila Leamon-Tallent

Andre:  My name is Andre Lieurance.

Karen:  And my name is Karen Lieurance.

Andre:  We live in Seymour, Tennessee and Staff Sergeant Victoir Lieurance is our son.  He was inquisitive, fun-loving…

Karen:  He was very much a kid at heart.  He liked to pull practical jokes.  He liked to play.  He was a hard worker, but when the hard work was done, he wanted to play.  And he’s always loved to play with children.

Andre:  Just watching him with his sons, I mean, he would rather be doing something with them than anything else I can think of.  He was constantly out playing with them, doing stuff with them and for them.   

Karen:  He was a very loving father, who loved his family and friends.  He was a very kind man.  He was a very generous man.  He was a very patriotic man.

Andre:  He made an obligation, obligated himself to serve the country and he did it, did his job, did what he was supposed to do.  He was killed on August 22nd, riding in a Humvee.  An IED exploded underneath the vehicle.

Karen:  I had gone to work and Andre was out running some errands.  And my supervisor came up to me and told me he needed to see me in the office.  So of course, I went immediately and followed him into the office and right before we went in the office, he stopped and said, “If you need anything, let me know.”  And I thought, “Now, that’s pretty weird.”  And as soon as he walked away, I saw two military officers.  And one was a chaplain and I immediately knew that my son had been killed and they were here to tell me that.  And my first thought was that I had to get hold of my husband, because I knew how he was going to react.  So I had to call our other son and tell him that his brother had been killed and that he needed to get over to my house to be with his father before he found out.

Andre:  And I come home and my son and daughter-in-law came to the door.   And I’m as big a goof as Vic was.  And she was pregnant, she was due the next day.  Or that day.  And I said, “Oh, is it time for the baby?”  I started running around like an idiot, getting clothes and stuff.  Hank just stood there.  And he said, “No Dad.  The Army called.”  I grabbed him by the shirt and started screaming “No!”  He said “Yes”.  And then I went, went crazy.  Knocked the microwave, the refrigerator, threw a chair, hit the door.

Karen:  It was just a big, almost like a big blur in our lives.  It’s like it didn’t seem real, but I knew it was.

Andre:  About two weeks ago, I was watching TV and a lasagna commercial come on and I started crying because that was his favorite food.

Karen:  He was really into science fiction and war movies and I’ll just see something come up and I’ll say, “Man, I need to, I need to Tivo that for Vic for when he comes home.”  And then I’ll remember he’s already home.     Born December 6, 1970; died August 22, 2005.
Submitted by his parents

PFC Earl C. McCoy US Army – Knox County
Killed June 23, 1944 in France
Submitted by sister, Helen M. Bell

PFC Troy Elmer Mitchell, born April 13, 1923; Died October 3, 1944 in Nancy, France. Member of 3rd Army
Submitted by James Pointer

Max was in the U.S. Army from April 24, 1962 until April 13, 1964, when he was honorably discharged. He excelled in Marksmanship (Rifle M-14) for which he received a commendation. He served his country overseas for 1 year, 7 months, and 4 days (in Europe).
Submitted by Nyoka Lee Lewis Morris Hardin

Riley Murphy joined the local National Guard unit for Etowah, which was Company G of the 2nd Tennessee Regiment. Riley and Company G served at the Mexican border in 1914. In April of 1917 the United States entered WWI and Company G became Company L assigned to the 117th Infantry Regiment as part of the famous 30th Army Division. The unit was shipped to France and saw their first combat during the summer and fall of 1918. They participated in the Flanders Offensive, the Ypres-Lys Operation, and the Somme Offensive. These operations helped turn back the massive German westward advance that came within 50 miles of Paris. Riley was killed on October 7, 1918, as Company L advanced under heavy fire. Captain Dave Lillard of Company L described Riley as a "great hero and a true friend." He further stated, "Riley saved my life more than once." As part of the 30th Army Division, Riley's regiment was given credit for breaking the Hindenburg Line that brought WWI to a close.  Riley Murphy was the born in 1893, the son of John W. and Mary E. Murphy.  After the war, Captain Dave Lillard returned to his law practice in Etowah and married Riley's sister, Margaret. They raised a family, descendants of which still live in East Tennessee today.
Submitted by John P. Murphy

My father, Albert Kinzel Murrian, died in the line of duty in World War II. I would like to offer this information in honor of his memory. My Dad was born January 26, 1922, in Knoxville, Tennessee. His parents, John Hendry Murrian and Helen Ault Murrian, were living at 127 Jennings Street at the time. He had an older brother, John Jr., and younger brother, David. John Jr. is deceased and David lives in Antioch, Tennessee.

My Dad was known as “Al.” His parents moved to North Knoxville when he was young and he graduated from Central High School. He was in the band and selected to be drum major. He was a gifted musician and played the trumpet and cornet. He played in several dance bands,

He attended Maryville College where was also in the band and drum major. His sport was wrestling.

My Mom, Mary Gilbert Eppes, who was also raised in Knoxville, was visiting my Dad at Maryville College on December 7, 1941. They heard the news about Pearl Harbor on the radio and immediately knew that their lives would never be the same.

My Dad volunteered for Naval Aviation Cadet training and left Maryville College. He and my Mom were married in May 1944 while he was still in training at Pensacola Navai Air Station. He qualified to fly the PV1 Ventura and the PBY amphibious plane.

I was born April 1, 1945, while my Dad was in the Pacific. He saw my picture before he died, because it was returned with his personal belongings.

When he and his crew went missing in action May 28, 1945, he was attached to Patrol Bombing Squadron 133, Asiatic Area and flying the PV1.

My middle name, “Phillip,” comes from a man he flew with, Phillip Olson. Mr. Olson survived the war, and I have visited with him and his wife in Beverly, Massachusetts. He is now deceased. He told me how he and other pilots spent days searching the area where my Dad’s plane is thought to have gone down.

My Dad was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross, Air Medal, Purple Heart, American Campaign Medal, Asiatic Pacific Campaign Medal and WW II Victory Medal. His father had been awarded the Distinguished Service Cross, French Croix de Guerre, Purple Heart, British Military Cross and other medals for his bravery and distinguished service in WW I as a member of a Tennessee Army National Guard Unit.

I have letter signed by President Truman that states in part that my Dad …

“Stands in the unbroken line of patriots who have dared to die that freedom might live, and grow, and increases its blessings.”

“Freedom lives, and through it, he lives – in a way that humbles the undertakings of most men.”

I believe that to be true.
Submitted by his son, Robert P. Murrian

From the newspaper account:

Ensign Murrian was reported "missing following action" May 28, 1945. He was piloting a patrol bomber, taking off from Tinian Island, the Marianas, on a routine strike and reconnaissance flight over the coast of the Japanese home islands. He failed to return. Secretary of the Navy James Forrestal's account tells that a radio communication received from the plane said the mission had been completed and that the plane had developed engine trouble on the return leg of the trip. It continues, "another aircraft in the same area picked up a voice signal from the plane which indicated that they had gone approximately 300 miles in the direction of Iwo Jima, Nansei Shoto. No further communications were received from the plane, and an exhaustive search of the area failed to disclose any trace of the aircraft or its crew."

He was born in Greene County and buried in Greene County but his family moved to Knoxville before 1910. He is listed in The Washington Post, Sunday, July 28, 1918 edition as Died of Wounds - Overholser, J. W., Knoxville, Tenn.  The book Knox County in the World War 1917-1918-1919 lists him on page 68 as being a casualty and his picture is on page 69. His brother, Dewey Lexon Overholser also of Knoxville is pictured in this book as having served in the war and survived.
Submitted by Joyce Smith

EM3c John Carol Owen, Jr. born, September 29, 1921; died October 1, 1943, lost at sea WWII
Submitted by James Pointer

Daniel Parrott, of Hawkins County, entered the U.S. Army before WWII and was shipped to Australia in early 1942. He served as a gunner aboard U.S. Army Air Forces bombers throughout the Southwest Pacific.
Submitted by Billie D. Jones

John Parrott, Sr., of Hawkins County, served with the U.S. Army in Europe during WWII. Wounded in action in Germany, he received the Purple Heart.
Submitted by Billie D. Jones

Willie was born to my father’s first wife.  He was twelve years older than me.  And we kind of looked up to him because he was older than we were.  And uh, he was the kind of brother anyone would want to have for a brother.  You know, he always took care of the little ones.  And he was very creative.  He could build a car, take tricycle wheels and make a car and I mean, it looked like a racing car.  And we younger kids really ate it up.

He was a happy-go-lucky person.  He didn’t have frowns or run around with a chip on his shoulder all the time.  You know, it seems like he enjoyed life to the fullest.  He used to take us fishing all the time and he was all the time like a prankster.  And he caught this bullhead catfish and he tricked me into putting my finger in there to take that hook out.  And it took the skin off my finger (laughs).

When Willie enlisted in the Army in World War II, he was 17 years old.  And he came back and Daddy said, “I’ll get you a job in the mines” because he was looking for a job.  Well, he worked two years in a coal mine.  And he almost got killed.  A piece of slate almost fell on him.  He said, “That’s it”.  He told Daddy, “This is not for me.”  Then he decided to go back in the military.  And he was around 23 or 24 when he enlisted in the Marine Corps.

When he got ready to go to Korea, why, he made a phone call and told Daddy that he got orders and that he was going to try to come home for a week before he shipped out.  And he did get to make it home for a week.  And boy, we were all tore up, I’m telling you that.  Because we were afraid that something was going to happen to him.  I don’t know, seems like you get those feelings about things that’s going to happen.

He got killed at the 38th Parallel, four miles South of the 38th Parallel.  April 24, 1951.  That’s when they had that big push.  And most all Korean veterans know when that big push was. 

We were living up on White Oak, I believe, when the telegram came.  And it just tore my dad up, I’m telling you.  It tore us all up, as far as that goes.  But he almost had a nervous breakdown.  It really was working on him.  In fact, I don’t think he worked for about a year after all this.  He was devastated by him getting killed. 

A couple years ago, my daughter pulled an email off the Internet and it stated on how Sergeant Willie Partin was killed.  Said he was shot in the head, Horseshoe Ridge, in Korea.  And that’s the first time I had heard how he actually got killed.

Willie sacrificed and gave his life for the country.  It’s something that he believed in strong.
Campbell County, Marine Corps, March 17, 1925 - April 24, 1951
Submitted by his brother, Jerry Partin of Cleveland, Tennessee

Sgt John Henry Pate, Jr., born September 11,  1940; Died March 5, 1968, Army, Vietnam
Submitted by James Pointer

John McCoy Patrick' name is listed under the veterans of Sequatchie County, and he was killed during WWII on 25 Dec, 1944.  He is buried in Luxembourg National Cemetery.
Submitted by Donna O'Brien

Sergeant William L. Phibbs; birth March 18, 1895; death May 17, 1920; U.S. Army; served in Machine Gun Company 120th Inf. 30th Div.; 1319111 may be his serial number; fought in trenches in France and was wounded; there was a hospital stay. Returned to his unit just prior to November 1918. Returned to USA and discharged - Date unknown. Sergeant Phibbs passed away May 17, 1920. Death caused by wounds received in France.
Submitted by Kenneth W. Carmon

24 May 1944 mission #159 to Berlin, Germany in B-17G #42-97787 (No name) (358BS) VK-M (MACR 5173). Flak over Berlin was intense and accurate. Twenty-five 303rd B-17s sustained flak damage. 1Lt Joe Worthley's aircraft was last observed over the English Channel at 21,000 feet on fire at 1018 hours. Eight men were spotted leaving the B-17. Three 'chutes opened immediately and five men apparently had delayed jumps. The B-17 was not observed hitting the ground or water. It was later determined that the B-17 ditched in the North Sea. Pickell was a flight engineer, and this was his first mission. Loudon County.

My cousin's name is Elbert F. Price Jr. Cpl. Price died in Quang Tri provence on 11-06-1967 from the wounds he sustained in a mortar attack. Although born in Grafton Ohio, Elbert made his home in the Range community in Watauga TN. His name can found on the Vietnam wall Panel 29E, 34. Elbert loved his family and the outdoors. My mother and Elbert were very close childhood companions and mother speaks of Elbert often.
Submitted by Billy J. Collins II

22; Rank/Branch: Pfc., Army  Unit: 4th Battalion, 5th Air Defense Artillery Regiment, 1st Cavalry
Hometown: Cleveland
Died: Sept. 18, 2004, Baghdad

The Army Reservist from Greeneville who was killed September 6, 2004, in Qayyarah West, Iraq, had volunteered for a more dangerous position before a roadside bomb exploded near his truck. Specialist Brandon Michael Read was with the 125th Transportation Company from Lexington, Kentucky when the roadside bomb detonated near a convoy. The Army told his mother that Read had volunteered to exchange places with another U.S. soldier while they were on a dangerous convoy mission. He was gunner on a truck when the blast occurred.
The Associated Press, September 10, 2004

From Blount County. He drowned while serving in World War II  in Germany.
Submitted by Denise Russell

Was killed August 10, 1944, in New Guinea.
Submitted by his sister, Nadine Ridge Gudger

Spc. Michael Rodriguez didn't like to draw attention.

"He always set very high standards for himself, but he was also very shy," said his father, George. "He never wanted to get out in the limelight. I think Michael would have been very embarrassed to hear his name mentioned by the president."

The fallen soldier's name rang out over the radio Saturday when President Bush singled his family and two others out for praise in his weekly address.

"This Christmas, we hold them in our hearts," the president said. "We lift them up in our prayers. And we are inspired by the example that many of these families have set by turning their grief into extraordinary acts of compassion and love."

Rodriguez, 20, died April 23 in a double suicide bombing while serving with the Army's 82nd Airborne Division in As Sadah in Iraq's Diyala province. He'd attended Central High School in Fountain City and called Knoxville home.

The paratrooper's letters always mentioned the children of Iraq. After his death, his family looked for a way to help the children he'd written about. The students of Dur-Mandali Primary School for Girls in Balad-Ruz, part of the area Rodriguez patrolled, got that gift last month - donated school supplies for all the children, along with a photo of the fallen soldier.

"I actually have a picture of him there in Balad-Ruz," said the father, who now lives near Baltimore. "I was using it as the wallpaper on my computer for the longest time. For this to go to an all-girls school was very heart-warming for us, especially after hearing how some of the insurgents have been targeting schools over there."

Rodriguez's father and birth mother, Lori Southerland, put together the donations as a way to keep their son's memory alive. They'll think of him this Christmas, as well as all the troops still serving overseas and the families waiting for them at home. "That was us last year," the father said. "We went through it last year with Michael not being here for Christmas, and it was very hard on us."

The president also praised the work of Bob Lehmiller, who lost a son, Sgt. Mike Lehmiller, in Afghanistan two years ago, and Kirsten Yuhl-Torres, who lost her son, Sgt. Joseph Perry, in Iraq last year. Lehmiller, of Clearfield, Utah, organized Mike's Guardian Eagle Foundation, which offers financial help to families of the deployed and the fallen. Yuhl-Torres, of San Diego, began sending care packages and letters of support to soldiers she never met. "All these families have already given so much to America, and yet they have found a way to give even more," Bush said.

The president's words bring George Rodriguez pride, but they won't make Christmas easier. "It's a double-edged sword," he said. "It's wonderful for Michael to be honored by the president. But it's still a holiday, he's not here, and it's hard." The father, a former soldier, said he takes some comfort in knowing that his son's name will live on in the place where he fought. "I think there's ways of supporting the process, and not just through the military side," he said. "There is a human side of this that needs to be addressed, and this was a way to do that."
By Matt Lakin,  Sunday, December 23, 2007
© 2007, Knoxville News Sentinel Co.

My Dad passed away 9-23-07 after turning 82 on 9-11-07.He served in World War 2, Koren conflict and 3 tours in Vietnam received the Bronze Star. Also was a Green Beret.We loved him and miss him very much. God Bless every soldier and their families this Veterans Day.
Submitted by Brenda Rudder Hill

My 1st cousin Mack Eugene Sanders, age 19, died in a flight training accident on Mar 1, 1944, in a Marine F4U Corsair just prior to his being scheduled to go to the Pacific.
Submitted by John Freels

Knox County; killed in Vietnam November 17, 1965

37; Rank/Branch: Sgt., Army National Guard Unit: 2nd Squadron, 278th Regimental Combat Team
Hometown: Talbot
Died: March 20, 2005, Kirkuk

Flags were already flying half-staff in and around Monterey for other national tragedies when news was received last Friday that another young soldier had laid down his life for his country. This time, the news, like a bomb, hit close home. Sgt. Alex Van Aalten, 21, son of Susan and Ed Van Aalten, of East Cove Road, and husband of Shauna Van Aalten, had stepped on a land mine in Afghanistan and was killed, his family was told. The Van Aaltens live in a section of Cumberland Cove that lies inside Cumberland County. Alex attended Pleasant Hill Elementary School but transfered to Cookeville High School who had a ROTC program at the time.

It was early Friday morning in America, while we all slept safely, that Sgt. Van Aalten paid the supreme sacrifice in another part of the world. It was later in the morning, after everyone had gone to work, that the U.S. Army reached family members and broke the sad news. His mother was at work at Horner Rausch, his father at the law offices of Cameron & Young and his wife at Premier Medical Center. They were all told to meet at his wife’s workplace for the dreaded visit from an army chaplain and another officer.

“He was a real soldier,” his mother recalled. “He believed in his country and he believed in God.”

Sgt. Van Aalten, a soldier in the 82nd Airborne, had been on his second tour of duty when he was killed. He had already served a tour of duty in Iraq, up near the Syrian border. The young sergeant would have been in the Army for three years if he lived until June. His mother said that he had re-enlisted a couple of months ago after being back in the States for a year. “He wasn’t upset about going back,” she said.

Friends and family all say that Sgt. Van Aalten was full of life. He loved the outdoors and participated in everything from four-wheeling to rock climbing and kayaking. A black-belt in Karate, he was an instructor at Jack Scott Karate in Cookeville. Growing up in the Monterey area, he went to Pleasant Hill Elementary School from kindergarten to eighth grade. His mother said that he had always wanted to be a solder. Because Monterey High School had no ROTC program, he went to Cookeville High School instead and became the ROTC brigade commander before graduating from high school.I do remember him,” Pleasant Hill Elementary School Principal Mary Ann Kotus said Friday night. “I remember him being very smart, very well liked. He could talk about a lot of subjects; he knew a lot about a lot of things. We were all so saddened to hear about this.”

The brave soldier has two siblings; a sister, Nichole Van Aalten, is in the U.S. Army and stationed in Texas; a brother, Dax, is an artist and musician in New York.
By Dale Welch, Crossville Chronicle, April 23, 2007

U.S. Marine Corps Reserve, 1925-1944.  Killed in action Battle of Saipan and Tinian.
Submitted by his sister, Mildred Watson Cole

Jacob Watts asks about his father more often now. He remembers a few things - trips to the mall, rounds of video games and presents on Christmas and his birthday. "That's when he brought me toys," the 8-year-old said.

His grandmother, Brenda Rainwater, expects more questions as the years pass, questions about what kind of man his father was and how he died. Jacob was just 5 years old when his father, Petty Officer 2nd Class Chris Watts, died in a suicide terror attack near an oil terminal in the Persian Gulf near Basra, Iraq, on April 24, 2004. Watts, 28, was one of three servicemen killed in the attack - and the only sailor from East Tennessee to die in Iraq since the 2003 invasion.

His memory lingers in the minds of family members every day. They'll think of him again as families across the country celebrate Memorial Day. Rainwater thinks about him every time she looks at her grandson. "It's always foremost in our mind," she said. "I don't dwell on it a lot. At this point, there's nothing you can do about it. But I guess we're more fortunate than most people. We've got a little reminder of him sitting here."

Jacob's questions come at various times. He asks about things his father said and did and about whether he'll see him again. "We'll be driving places and he'll remember going there with his daddy," Rainwater said. "He'll point and say, 'My daddy took me there.' " She does her best to give each question an honest answer.

Christopher Eugene Watts grew up in Jefferson County and in Neon, Ky., where he graduated high school. His mother remembers him as a quiet boy who spent most of his time outdoors, fishing or filling notebooks with drawings and stories. Watts joined the Navy in 1995 at age 18. Rainwater believes he saw himself as part of a family tradition. "His father and grandfather had both been in the Navy," she said. "He loved the Navy. He loved wearing his uniform. He thought he was doing what God wanted him to do."

Watts was 22 when his son was born. He and Jacob's mother later divorced, but Watts kept in touch with his son, visiting when he could. "The last time he called, he asked if we'd make sure Jacob went to Sunday school," Rainwater said. "He always believed that was important."

Watts had been in Iraq about three months aboard the USS Firebolt patrol ship when a boat approached the oil terminal that the ship was guarding April 24, 2004. The operator wouldn't turn back, despite warnings from the ship. Watts went out with a boarding team to inspect the boat. As they drew near, it exploded. Jordanian extremists with ties to the Al-Qaida terrorist group later claimed responsibility.

"I'd always felt like he'd be safer on the water," the mother said. "But those people over there don't fight like we do." Now she hangs on to each memory, hoping to pass them all down to her grandson. She's kept every photograph of Watts, from faded images of him as a baby to his last photo in uniform to the picture of Jacob receiving the folded flag at the burial. Sometimes she looks through the photos. Sometimes Jacob looks with her, although he doesn't sit still for long. The photos bring smiles and tears, sometimes both at once.

"He looks so much like Jacob," Rainwater said as she thumbed through a scrapbook from her son's childhood. "Chris won't see him grow up. But I'm glad we have Jacob, because it's like still having a part of Chris."

Three years have passed since Watts died. The American death toll in Iraq has topped 3,400, including Watts and 29 soldiers and Marines with ties to East Tennessee.

Jacob lives with his mother, Kathy Durance, in Rutledge, where he'll begin third grade this fall. He visits Rainwater and her husband, Carl, at least once a week at their home near Douglas Lake. He spends as much time as he can at the dock behind the house. Sometimes he fishes. Sometimes he catches frogs and turtles. Sometimes he just splashes in the mud and watches the ducks paddle.

"Chris always loved the water," the grandmother said. "He always said he felt closer to God on the water, out there with no distractions."

Now and then she forgets and calls Jacob by his father's name. He doesn't mind. "It's OK," he told her. "You can call me Chris." She smiles as she watches him play. She warns him when he gets too far out in the water.

"He's a typical boy, really," Rainwater said. "He's not afraid of anything. Sometimes I worry about him. His daddy was a little bit of a risk-taker, too." She wonders what lies ahead - for her grandson and for the troops still overseas.

"I'd like to think that there'll be no more lives lost, but that's just wishful thinking," she said. "There's been too many deaths, too many children that have lost their dads. I wish there was an end in sight. But Chris saw the good in what he was doing, and I have to support that." She believes she'll understand it all one day. She believes Jacob will see his father again and learn the answers to all his questions. "I think he'll see him one day, and I think he'll recognize him," she said. "That's why I want him to be proud of what his daddy did and try to be someone his daddy could be proud of. I've told him that his daddy was a hero and that we expect a lot from him. He'll never take that for granted. I'll always remind him of that."
By Matt Lakin, Knoxville News Sentinel, May 27, 2007
Copyright 2007, KnoxNews. All Rights Reserved.

He was born in Oneida August 20, 1948, and grew up in the Fosters Cross Roads area of Scott county. He actually enlisted in the Marine Corp in Ohio where he was working at the time. Dennis died in the Vietnam War on May 15, 1967.
Submitted by Edward E. Sharp

My name is Tommy Young, Sr., and I was wanting to make sure that my son PFC Tommy Chance Young's name will be on the East Tennessee Veterans Memorial. He was in Operation Anaconda right after 9/11 after serving in Afghanistan. My son was killed in a Blackhawk crash at Fort Drum N Y, and I am hoping that my son will not be forgotten for fighting for our country and being killed at Fort Drum. I hope and pray that his name will be put with the other fallen heroes,for he was a 20 year old veteran. No one made my son join the U S Army. He did it on his own, and when it was time for my son to be called up for Operation Anaconda, he didn't say no. He went with pride and didn't back down. He spent his 19th birthday over there fighting for our freedom, so please don't forget him.
Submitted by his father, Tommy Young, Sr.