Ahlbrandt      Breckenridge     Cope        Daluski          Donnell        
Franklin       Gardner          Gaulding    Gearhart         Gensel 
Gregory        Hartman          Hoover      Kittle           Latona 
LeValley       Martin           Michael     Racusin          Rood 
Scott          Sharpe           Stevens     Thomas           Viti 
Vosler         Wilczynski       Worth       Zofcin

SEAMAN EVAN ROOD (photo)

(Evan Rood is the son of Mrs. Evana Rood, of Broadway. He enlisted for 3 years in December and took his boot training at Great Lakes, Ill. He is stationed on the USS Panamint, ACG 13, in the supply office.)

Cpl. Hilda Gardner left on Friday to return to Texarkana, Texas, after spending a furlough with her parents, Mr. and Mrs. Edward Gardner of West Union Street.

3rd Class Petty Officer John Thomas completed his training as a radio operator at Bedford Springs, last week and is spending a few days on delayed orders before reporting to the Texas A&M College to take advanced radio material. He is with his wife and family on West Union street and his parents in Danville.

Two Shickshinny boys are members of the U. S. Hospital personnel in England. They are: Pvt. Robert Daluski, son of Mr. and Mrs. John Daluski, of Glen avenue, and Pvt. Robert Zofcin, son of Mr. and Mrs. John Zofcin, of Rockview avenue. The Echo is in receipt of a complete list of the hospital personnel from European Army headquarters.

Pvt. Bernard Racusin returned to Camp Lee, Va., Monday night after a week end furlough at his home here and with his wife and son in Wilkes-Barre. Bernard is looking swell and wishes to be remembered to all his friends.

Pvt. Charles E. Donnell is stationed at Camp Wolters, Tex., is address is Pvt. Charles E. Donnell, 33884967, Co. A, 57^th Inf. Trg. Bn. Camp Wolters, Tex.

Pfc. Claud Rood, 33605577, of the 625^th Clearing Co., Camp Breckinridge, Ky., has been enjoying a furlough visiting friends around Broadway. He also went to Pottstown to see his children. He expects to be shipped overseas in the near future.

Pfc. Rolland Viti, of Miami, Fla., has been spending a furlough with his parents, Mr. and Mrs. Sam Viti. Rolland is a member of the 518^th Army Band.

Edward B. Volser, Jr., S-2/c, who was formerly at Bremerton, Wash., Navy yard, address is now Exec. Office, U.S.S. Munda (CVE 104) via Fleet Post office, San Francisco, Calif.

Mrs. Isla Wilczynski of Vine street, has received work that her husband, Pvt. Frank Wilczynski of the 406^th Combat Engineer, has arrived somewhere in France.

Richard B. Gensel, son of Mr. and Mrs. Brit Gensel, of 35 Baer St., enlisted in the Navy and is now training at Bainbridge, Maryland.

William Ahlbrandt, son of Mr. and Mrs. J. H. Ahlbrandt, of Town Line, is recuperating after a knee operation in a hospital in England.

A/S Hilbert G. Cope returned to Bainbridge, Md., after spending a nine-day furlough with his parents, Mr. and Mrs. D. M. Cope.

T/S Richard L. Michael A.S.N 33059283, Co. A, MISC, APO 7741, % P M, New York, N.Y., transferred from England now serving in France. He is a grandson of C. W. Dohl, Sweet Valley, RD 1. He has two brothers in the Orlando, service. T/5 James D. Michael in Orlando, Fla., and T/5 Charles O. Michael in the Pacific somewhere.

Mrs. Bernadine Hoover, Hunlock Creek, R. D. has received word that her husband, F/O Donald A. Hoover of Hunlock Creek, has arrived in Italy.

He was commissioned a Flight Officer at Blackland Field, Texas, March, 1944. On June 28, he finished a three months period of training as a Co-pilot in a B-26, at Barksdale Field, La., and left for overseas duty.

F/O Hoover also has a brother, Cpl. Sherman D. Hoover stationed with the Infantry at Camp Shelby, Miss.

PVT. VAUGHN O. MARTIN (photo)

Nine months overseas, is serving as a member of the U. S. Army Engineers, is in the Southwest Pacific. He is a son of Mr. and Mrs. Oscar Martin RD1 Shickshinny.

CORP. ROBERT M. STEVENS (photo)

Corporal Robert M. Stevens, son of Mr. and Mrs. Kenneth Stevens of Broadway enlisted in the Army Air Corps in Oct. 1942. He received special training in Airplane Mechanics at Glendale, Cal., and is now stationed in England.

CPL. JOHN H. ZOFCIN (photo)

Cpl. John H. Zofcin, son of … and Mrs. John Zofcin of R… View avenue, celebrated his bir..day overseas. His address is Cpl. john J. Zofcin, 33351399, Batt…C. 405^th AAA Gun Bn. Apo … c/o PM New York City.

Ens. Carol Sharp Is Navy Nurse (photo)

Ensign Carol R. Sharpe, R. N., USNR of Muhlenburg, granddaughter of Mr. and Mrs. Isaac C. Benscoter, will leave for Portsmouth, Va. on Monday, August 21 to report for duty in the Navy Nurse Corps. Ensign Sharp is a graduate of Shickshinny High School, class of ’38. She entered training at the Wilkes-Barre General hospital in September, 1940 and was graduated in May, 1943. She enlisted in the Navy Nurse Corps in February and was accepted in April, with a commission. After leaving Portsmouth, she will be stationed in a hospital at Bainbridge, Md., for six months.

Cpl. Charles Michael, of Shickshinny R. D., was wounded in action on Saipan Island on July 18, a telegram to his sister, Mrs. Margaret Hontz, of Shickshinny, revealed. The 28 years old soldier has been overseas with a Marine Corps unit for nine months. He entered the service from West Virginia, where he was employed in a war plant until two years ago. Prior to that time he made his home with Mr. and Mrs. Norman Fritz at Benton, R. D. His parents are both dead, and the children of the family were raised in other homes. He has two brothers in the service. Cpl. James Michael, in France, and Cpl. James Michael in Orlando, Fla.

Cpl. T/5 Marvin LeValley, is now at a resting camp at the foot of the snow-capped Alps, in Germany. He says he is in good health and this being his first rest period since the start of the European campaign. He has been through it, being with Gen. Geo. S. Patton’s famous 3^rd army as a teletype operator. He is the recipient of 5 bronze stars and one silver star; also a presidential citation, a good conduct medal, a first-class machine gunner and an expert rifleman.

He entered the service on March 17, 1943. He arrived overseas March 11, 1944. He is the son of Charles and Ruth LeValley, of Shickshinny RD 2. He is a graduate of Huntington Mills High School, class of 1942. His many friends say good luck and hope for his return home soon.

Kenneth Gearhart, who is serving in the Pacific area, was recently advanced from Sgt. to Staff Sergeant. He is the son of Mr. and Mrs. Fred Gearhart of Muhlenburg, and the husband of Betty Brown Gearhart.

T/Sgt. James Franklin, Jr., son of Mr. and Mrs. James Franklin, RD2, has reported to Baer Field, Troop Carrier command base, for reassignment.

He went overseas in Nov. 1943, and was stationed in England and France with the 435 T.C.G. 78 T.C.S. where his duty was that of an Aerial Engineer. He returned to the United States on July 5.

He has been awarded the Air Medal and 4 clusters, Presidential Citation, ETO Ribbon with 7 Battle Stars and Good Conduct Medal.

Before entering the armed forces he was employed by the AC&F at Berwick.

Marine Corporal (photo)

Promotion of Gaspard F. Culp, 23, son of James Culp of Fairmount Springs, to the rank of corporal in the U. S. Marine Corps has been announced. He lived with his uncle and aunt, Mr. and Mrs. Ree Culp, before enlisting in October, 1940. He is stationed at the naval Air Station, Quonset Point, R. I. A brother, Lt. James Culp is with the U. S. Army in Virginia.

June (date unclear)

Sea/B CALVIN HARTMAN (photo)

Above is pictured Calvin E. Hartman, a member of the Seabees, who has just arrived in the Hawaiian Islands. Calvin got his boot training at Camp Perry, Va. From there he went to Camp Endicott, R. I. Later he was sent to Gulfport, Miss. He embarked at Port Hueneme, Calif., for the Pacific area of action.

In a recent letter to his parents, Mr. and Mrs. Elwood Hartman of Shickshinny R. D. 1, Calvin says he met George J. Smith, MM 3/c. The latter was raised by Mr. and Mrs. Hartman, and is like a brother to their own son.

Lt. Howard K. Scott left Saturday for Philadelphia where he will be assigned new duties. Lt. Scott, who has been stationed at Pearl Harbor, spent a 30-day furlough with his wife and parents, Mr. and Mrs. L. O. Scott.

CPL. AARON F. GREGORY (photo)

Corporal Gregory, son of Mrs. Caroline Gregory of Shickshinny R. D. 1 (Muhlenburg) is a graduate of Shickshinny High School in class of ’34. He was inducted into the armed forces on September 29, 1942. Received his training at Fort Bliss, Texas; Camp Sutton and Camp Davis, N. C. He arrived overseas on May 23, 1943, and has served in Africa, Italy and is now in Corsica.

Dear Mr. Adkins:

I will now write you a few lines to let you know I am alive and still think of the Echo force.

I am in Corsica now, as you probably know by this time. I like it very much, but the old U.S. is much better.

Well, how is everybody at the office. I imagine you all are kept very busy now. How is the weather back home. I suppose the farmers have most of their crops planted. We are beginning to have some warm weather here now.

One of the Kittle boys from Kittle’s store, up at the North Mt., is in my outfit. I can’t think of his first name at the present. He is my age or a little younger. Do you know his parents? He receives the Echo also.

My address has changed again, as you probably know if Dana has told you.

Well, I will have to close now, as it is getting dark. My address is as follows:

A.S.N. 33354065 Btry. A. 409th AAA G. Bn. APO 512 c/o P.M., N.Y.C., N.Y.

Yours as ever,

"Shorty" Hilbert J. Cope.

A Shickshinny crew chief and a Pittston radio operator started to France in a glider-towing twin-engined Dakota and came back on a British destroyer which tried to ram them in their rubber boat because they were mistaken for Germans, a dispatch from the Ninth Air Force Troop Carrier Base in Britain revealed last night.

The two men are Sgt. James P. Franklin, Jr., crew chief of Shickshinny, and Sgt. Samuel L. Latona, radio operator of 155 South Main Street, Pittston.

In command of the plane was Lt. Seymour Rutberg, of 28 York Street, Worcester, Mass., who told of the experiences of his crew after they had left England to participate in the big invasion.

Rutberg said a burst of flak caught their plane right under the chin, knocked out one engine, and riddled the gas tank. They made a forced landing in the channel about 10 miles off Cherbourg Peninsula and piled into the dinghy which the crew chief, Sgt. Jack L. Breckenridge, Grove City, Ohio, had in the water by the time they reached the back door. The plane stayed afloat about 20 minutes.

The co-pilot was Lt. Emmett Gaulding of Winter Park, Fla., and the radio operator was Sgt. Harold Worth, Los Angeles.

"The waves were about 20 or 25 feet high and we all go sick after about an hour," Rutberg said. "We radioed our position and sent up flares, but nobody was watching or listening, I guess. About 3 a.m. the black hulk of a warship was sighted. We were so sick and weak and cold it took all our strength to load the flare pistol and pull the trigger. When we did this the ship started to ram us. The commander later told us he thought we were a German E-boat. We shot another flare and shouted ‘ahoy’ and they let down their ladders and took us aboard."

Two other crews first listed as lost in Tuesday night’s glider landings have been rescued in the channel.

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 Mary Ann Lubinsky
County Coordinator

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