John Rasmussen was born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, on February 24, 1942. He attended Concordia Theological Seminary, enlisted in the Army on February 24, 1968, and graduated from seminary in June 1968. His first assignment was with an Army Reserve…

Charles Press was born in St. Louis, Missouri, on September 12, 1922. He was drafted in 1943 and received his basic training at Jefferson Barracks, Missouri. He was then transferred to the Army Air Force and was part of a medical unit's headquarters…

Lloyd Powell was born on February 22, 1927 in Grand Rapids, Michigan. He enlisted in the Navy in summer 1944 and was called to active duty in fall 1944. He received basic training at Great Lakes Naval Station, Illinois then went to Camp Little Creek,…

James O'Malley was born in Chicago in October 1932. In April 1951, he enlisted in the Navy. He received his basic training at Great Lakes Naval Station, Illinois, then went to Naval Air Station Jacksonville, Florida, for Pre-Flight School. He then…

Jacob Mol was born in Grand Rapids, Michigan on December 15, 1986. In May 2006 he decided to enlist in the Marines and was sworn in on September 11, 2006. He began basic training in San Diego in February 2007 then received Marine Combat Training at…

Marjorie Matthews was born in Muskegon, Michigan, in 1922. Shortly after America's entry into the Second World War she joined the Red Cross and served as a driver in the Motor Corps in Muskegon. Her duties ranged from the transportation of servicemen…

Lawrence Koster was born on May 13, 1935 in Grand Rapids, Michigan. After attending Calvin College for two year, he enlisted in the army with the idea that he would be allowed to finish his degree. Since his test scores were high, he was given…

Robert Knight was born in Decatur, Michigan on March 28, 1933. He enlisted in the Air Force on March 3, 1953 and received his basic training at Sampson Air Force Base, New York. He received property accounting and material services training at…

Herb Kitchens was born on October 24, 1940, in Bauxite, Arkansas. Prior to joining the Army, he attended the Missionary Baptist Seminary in Little Rock, Arkansas, and served as a pastor for 12 years. He joined the Army as a chaplain in 1974. He was…

Herman Keizer was born in Chicago on May 21, 1938. He was drafted into the Army in 1962 and served as a Chaplain's Assistant at Fort Belvoir, Virginia until 1964. He studied at Calvin College in Grand Rapids, Michigan, and also attended the Calvin…

Robert Keegstra was born on April 20, 1919 in Grand Rapids, Michigan. He enlisted in the Navy on August 7, 1941 and received his basic training at Great Lakes Naval Station, Illinois. He went to Yeoman School and after 16 weeks graduated as a yeoman…

Richard Johnson was born in Lincoln, Kansas, in January 1932. He first served in the Army as a draftee and was inducted in October 1953. He served for two years before getting an early discharge to go to seminary. Upon completion of seminary he…

Donald Jansen was born in Holland, Michigan, on May 6, 1937. He graduated from Western Theological Seminary in June 1967, was ordained in September, and went on active duty at Fort Hamilton, New York, in October 1967. He was sent to Fort Bliss,…

John Hoogland was born in Decatur, Michigan, on April 20, 1934. During his first year in seminary he attended the Chaplain School and was commissioned as a 2nd lieutenant - staff specialist, then returned to Calvin Seminary to complete his seminary…

Kyle Herring was born in Frederick, Maryland on October 11, 1987, but grew up in Grand Rapids, Michigan. He enlisted in the Michigan National Guard when he was 17 years old in spring 2005 and drilled during his senior year. In January 2006 he…

Billy Hayes deployed to Vietnam with the 27th Surgical Hospital on March 5, 1968, and departed by ship out of San Diego. He arrived at Da Nang on March 26, 1968, then sailed down the coast to Chu Lai. He served at the hospital there until…

Seymour Harkema was born in Grand Rapids, Michigan, in 1930. In December 1950, he enlisted in the Air Force and received his basic training at Sheppard Air Force Base, Texas. Upon completion of basic training he went to Keesler Air Force Base,…

Leigh Freeman was born in Omaha, Nebraska in 1950 and was the son of a World War Two veteran. He was drafted in 1969 and trained at Fort Ord, California. When he arrived in Vietnam (April 1970), he was placed in Charlie Company, 2nd Battalion, 506th…

Jerry Everitt was born in Big Rapids, Michigan on April 5, 1927. He enlisted in the Navy on March 20, 1945 and received his basic training at Great Lakes Naval Station, Illinois. He served aboard the USS LST-457 in the Philippines, Japan and the…

Norris Einertson was born on August 6, 1930, near Westbrook, Minnesota. He studied at the Luther Seminary in St. Paul, Minnesota, and became a chaplain in the Army in 1961. His first assignment was at Fort Riley, Kansas, where he served with the…

Gary Doublestein was born on November 15, 1952, in Plainwell, Michigan. In early 1970 he enlisted in the Navy, and in June reported for basic training at Naval Training Center San Diego, California. He went to Hospital Corps School at Balboa Naval…

Grover DeVault was born in Plainfield, New Jersey, on August 20, 1929. He originally served in the New Jersey National Guard with C Company of the 50th Armored Division before joining the regular Army as a chaplain after studying at Philadelphia…

Tom Cannan was born in Eldorado, Illinois, in 1922. Prior to military service, he went to the Citizens' Military Training Camp at Camp McCoy, Wisconsin, for a month of training with field artillery in 1940. In 1942, he joined the Naval Aviation Cadet…

Jimmy Butt was born in Tippo, Mississippi, on October 13, 1921. He was in the Reserve Officers' Training Corps at Auburn University and graduated in February 1943. He attended the Officer Candidate School at Fort Sill, Oklahoma, and was commissioned…