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PLANO VETERANS MEMORIAL PARK
5024 Custer Road, just south of Spring Creek Parkway

Plano10.jpg picture by David Marks

Plano Heroes who gave their lives in the service of our country:

WORLD WAR I

BYLER, JOSEPH L. - Private, Machine Gunner, Company A, 345th Mach. Gun Battalion, 90th Division. Fought in France, sent home and died of spinal meningitis on 30 May, 1918. He is buried at Forest Grove Cemetery.

FERRELL, CLARENCE R. - Private, Army Air Service, 79th Balloon Company. Died 25 October, 1918 at Camp John Wise, San Antonio. Buried at Rowlett Creek Cemetery.

HARDING, PETER J. - Captain, Company A, 359th Infantry Division, killed in action in France on 15 September, 1918. He is buried in France.

KINNAMON, ROBERT H. - Private, Company B, 1st Battalion, 22nd Engineers. Died in France 24 February, 1919.

WORLD WAR II

BLAINE, ROBERT W. 27,  1st  Lt. Air Corps, Pilot of B24 Liberator, killed 8 March, 1943 when shot down over Rennes France in raid on German U-boat facility.

BOLTON, RICHARD L. Seaman 2nd Class, Navy, killed Aug. 9, 1942, in sinking of USS Quincy off of Savo Island in the  Solomons. The ship’s captain along with 370 sailors died with 167 wounded.

CAIN, VERNON M.  PFC, US MARINE CORPS, KIA Mar. 2, 1945, in the Philippines.

COOPER, HAROLD W.

CUFFMAN, ROBERT E. 21, Pvt., Tank Destroyer Battalion, Killed in action Dec. 1944 near Luxembourg, Germany.

DECKER, BOYCE D.  Private First Class,  Killed In Action (details unknown).

DOOLEY, JAMES C.  PFC, KIA 5 May, 1945 on the Island of Mindanao in the Philippines.

FRENCH, JAMES P. 24, KIA 19 Sep. 1944 in France.

HARRINGTON, CHARLES E. JR.  Lt. USMC, KIA 3 Mar. 1945 in the battle for Iwo Jima.

HOOPER, TOMMY A.

HOSKINS, DAVID M.

MANN, RUDD V. 26, 2ND Lt. 0431136, Army Air Corps, pilot instructor, killed in plane crash Jan. 1942, when an engine stalled and he chose to crash into a stack of lumber instead of landing in a street full of people.

NANCE, CLIFFORD B.  Technical/Sgt. Killed in Action (details unknown).

PAINTER, CHARLES R.

PARKER, WALTER E.  

PATTERSON, HAROLD J. 19, US Navy, Seaman 1st Class, killed onboard USS Arizona on 7 Dec. 1941, during initial Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. His name is inscribed on the monument at the site, now a National Park.

PEARSON, W. M.  Pvt. USMC, Killed in action 31 Oct. 1944 in New Guinea while on eight-man recon patrol. His body was carried eight miles through the jungle by comrades and is buried in the South Pacific.

POINDEXTER, AUBREY D.

RAWLINS, JOE H.   USMC, KIA March 1944 in South Pacific.

ROSS, RICHARD H.  Air Corps, Air Cadet, killed in plane crash while training with his instructor.

SMITH, JESSE A.  Pvt. US Army, Mortarman, KIA 18 Feb. 1945 near Kleinblatt, Germany, posthumously awarded the BRONZE STAR.

STANDERFER, JIMMIE W.  PFC, Killed in action 23 Feb. 1945 in the Battle for Manila, Philippines.

TENNEL, RAYMOND C. (details unknown)

THOMAS, ALFRED E.  2ND Lt. Air Corps, KIA 16 Dec. 1944 when shot down over Germany.

WHITE, EARL  36th Div. KIA October, 1944.

WHITE, FLOYD E. JR.  1ST Lt. KIA 20 Nov. 1944 in France.

YEAGER, HENRY M.  Pvt. Killed in Action (details unknown).

KOREA

PODE, BILLY R.

RHEA, BILLY J 22, US ARMY, PFC, 32nd Inf. Reg. KIA 4 Mar. 1951.

WILLIAMS, CLARENCE, 19, USMC, 3rd Bn. 7th Marines. Taken prisoner by enemy troops on 7 October, 1952. Declared dead 16 January, 1956, fours years after the war ended.

VIETNAM

BROWN, ROBERT RAY 20, Corporal, US Army, Indirect Fire Infantryman (mortar-man) B Company, 4th Battalion, 47th Infantry Regiment, of the 9th Infantry Division, 2nd River Raider Brigade, known as the Mobile Riverines. KIA 1 October, 1967. Posthumously awarded the BRONZE STAR for heroism.

HALE, LANNY EARL 25, SP4, US Army, Rifleman, 2nd Platoon, A Company, 1st Battalion, 6th Infantry Regiment, 198th Light Infantry Brigade. Killed in Action 8 Feburary, 1968 during the Battle of Lo Giang, six miles south of Da Nang. His unit was involved in one of the bloodiest battles of the entire war which included much hand-to-hand combat. Posthumously awarded the BRONZE STAR for heroism.

HUSTON, JOE STEPHEN 20, Sgt. US Army, A Company 2nd Bn. 1st Inf. 196th Light Infantry Brigade. KIA 19 March, 1969, in a battle on the Ho Chi Minh Trail.  Posthumously awarded the SILVER STAR for heroism.

STEINDAM, RUSSELL ALBERT 24, 1st Lt. US Army, B Troop, 3rd Squadron, 4th Cavalry Regiment, 25th Div. Killed in action on 1 February, 1970. While leading a night-ambush patrol, Steindam dove onto a live enemy grenade to save the lives of his fellow troops, and was posthumously awarded the CONGRESSIONAL MEDAL of HONOR.

Somalia

JOYCE, JAMES CASEY, Sgt. US Army Rangers, Plano High School, University of Texas in Austin, University of North Texas in Denton. In November of 1990, he enlisted in the US Army, completed Airborne training, and became a member of the Army's elite Rangers. B Company, 3rd Battalion, 75th Ranger Regiment. Killed in action on 3 October, 1993, The story of the mission in the country of Somalia is told in the book and movie, "Black Hawk Down." Sgt. Casey Joyce was killed as he attempted to save the life of one of his fellow soldiers. He is buried among the heroes of our country in Arlington National Cemetery. In 1999, his father, Lt. Col. Larry E. Casey, a hero of Vietnam, died, and was laid to rest next to his son. Awarded the BRONZE STAR for heroism.

Iraq

DUCKWORTH, ERIC T. 26, US Army, Staff/Sgt.  died 10 Oct. 2007 in Baghdad, Iraq, of wounds sustained when an improvised explosive device detonated near his vehicle. He was assigned to the 759th Military Police Battalion, 89th Military Police Brigade, Fort Carson, Colo.

TROVILLION, TYLER 23, Plano East High School class of 2000,Collin County Community College. Corporal, USMC, 1st Battalion, 5th Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division, 1st Marine Expeditionary Force, Two tours of duty in Iraq. On Wednesday, 15 June, 2005, his unit was involved in a combat operation near the city of Ramadi, about 70 miles west of Bagdad, when he and three other Marines were killed by the detonation of a roadside bomb. Tyler was 23 years old, and is buried at Ridgeview Memorial Park, between McKinney and Allen.

HAYES, JACOB D.  24, Lance/Corporal JACOB D. HAYES, 24, was born in Plano, Texas, 28 July, 1984 and also lived in Allen. As a United States Marine, Jacob, an 0311 (rifleman), served as a SAW-gunner (M249 Squad Automatic Weapon) also known as a Light Machine Gun in combat in Iraq with Kilo Company, 3rd Battalion, 7th Marines, 1st Marine Division. After being injured in Iraq he began to have seizures as a result of those injuries, which prevented him from doing his job and was given a medical discharge. On 17 December 2008, Jacob passed away as a result of those injuries. He was buried at Ridgeview Memorial Park with full Military Honors. (not listed on the Plano Memorial)

   
 

The PLANO VETERANS MEMORIAL dedication 11 November, 2008
Photos by David Marks
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Plano Veterans Memorial Congressman Sam Johnson Col Mark Tole USMC 21 Gun Salute  
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Photos by Clif Pratt

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