Promote & Preserve stories of U.S. fallen soldiers/sailors
Sterling W. Wyatt, age 21, from Columbia, Missouri, Boone county.
Service era: Afghanistan
Military history: 5th Battalion, 20th Infantry Regiment, 3rd Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 2nd Infantry Division, Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Washington.
Date of death: Wednesday, July 11, 2012
Death details: Died in Kandahar Province, Afghanistan of wounds sustained when his vehicle was attacked with an enemy improvised explosive device.
Source: Department of Defense, Military Times
Charles M. Sadell, age 34, from Columbia, Missouri, Boone county. Their last known residence was in Weston, Missouri.
Parents: Jane Curry
Spouse: Kristin Dawn Sadell (McMillan); married Aug. 21, 1999
Children: Cameron Sadell and Hunter Sadell
Service era: Afghanistan
Schools: Harrisburg, Missouri High (1995)
Military history: 1st Squadron, 71st Cavalry Regiment, 1st Brigade Combat Team, 10th Mountain Division, Fort Drum, New York. Bronze Star.
Date of death: Sunday, October 24, 2010
Death details: Died at National Naval Medical Center, Bethesda, Maryland of wounds suffered Oct. 5, 2010 at Arif Kala, Afghanistan when insurgents attacked his unit using an improvised explosive device.
Source: Department of Defense, Kansas City Star, Military Times
Jason D. Fingar, age 24, from Columbia, Missouri, Boone county.
Parents: David Fingar and Rhonda Fingar
Spouse: None
Children: None
Service era: Iraq
Military history: 4th Battalion, 23rd Infantry Regiment, 5th Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 2nd Infantry Division, Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Washington.
Date of death: Saturday, May 22, 2010
Death details: Died in Dural, Afghanistan of wounds sustained when his military vehicle struck an improvised explosive device.
Cemetery: Memorial Park
Source: Department of Defense, Columbia Missourian, Military Times
Steven John Fitzmorris, age 26, from Columbia, Missouri, Boone county.
Parents: Rosemarie Fitzmorris Currier
Spouse: Samantha Jo Baker
Service era: Iraq
Military history: Company A, 3D Battalion, 29Th Field Artillery, 3 Bct, Fort Carson, Co
Date of death: Monday, August 25, 2008
Death details: Hostile; Baghdad, Iraq
Cemetery: Memorial Park Cemetery
Source: Department of Defense, Military Times
William Anthony Edens, age 29, from Columbia, Missouri, Boone county.
Service era: Iraq
Military history: Company A, 1St Bn, 5Th Infantry, 1St Bct, 25Th Id(Mnb-Nw), Fort Lewis, Washington
Date of death: Thursday, April 28, 2005
Death details: Hostile; Tal Afar, Iraq
Source: Department of Defense, Military Times
Melvin Yamil Mora, age 27, from Columbia, Missouri, Boone county.
Service era: Iraq
Military history: 245Th Combat Support Co, 89Th Regional Readiness Cmd, St. Louis, Missouri
Date of death: Sunday, June 6, 2004
Death details: Hostile; Baghdad, Iraq
Source: Department of Defense, Military Times
Terry Lee Dean, age 21, from Columbia, Missouri, Boone county.
Parents: Theo M. Dean
Service era: Vietnam
Date of death: Monday, September 21, 1970
Death details: Hostile in South Vietnam.
Source: National Archives, Fort Worth Star Telegram (1970)
Birch Udell Stemmons, age 21, from Columbia, Missouri, Boone county.
Service era: Vietnam
Date of death: Wednesday, June 10, 1970
Death details: Hostile in South Vietnam.
Source: National Archives
Douglas Frank Mahan, age 26, from Columbia, Missouri, Boone county.
Service era: Vietnam
Date of death: April 20, 1970
Death details: On April 19, 1977, the Central Identification Laboratory-Hawaii (CILHI, now DPAA) identified the remains of Captain Douglas Frank Mahan, missing from the Vietnam War.
Captain Mahan entered the U.S. Air Force from Montana and served with the 333rd Tactical Fighter Squadron, 355th Tactical Fighter Wing. On April 20, 1970, he piloted an F-105D Thunderchief (tail number unknown) that took off from Takhli Royal Thai Air Force Base, Thailand, on a strike mission against enemy artillery positions in Laos. During a pass over the target, his aircraft crashed and exploded for unknown reasons. He did not survive the crash and his remains could not be recovered at the time of his loss. In 1972, remains were recovered from the crash site that U.S. analysts eventually identified as those of Capt Mahan.
Source: National Archives, Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency
Lawrence K. Smarr, age 33, from Boone County Columbia, Missouri .
Parents: R. L. Smarr
Service era: World War II
Date of death: Friday, December 15, 1944
Death details: On December 13, 1944, Japanese forces in the Philippines began the transfer of 1,621 Allied prisoners of war (POWs) to Japan. The POWs were to make the journey aboard transport ships whose harsh conditions and extreme overcrowding led survivors to refer to them as “Hell Ships.” The ships also lacked markings that would distinguish them from any other military target, causing some of them to be attacked by Allied forces who could not identify them as POW transports. On December 14, 1944, Allied aircraft attacked the first ship, the Oryoku Maru, in Subic Bay in the Philippines, killing many Allied POWs who became lost in the water, sank with the ship, or were washed ashore. Survivors of the bombing were put aboard two other ships, the Enoura Maru and the Brazil Maru, to continue on to Japan. During the journey, while anchored in Takao Harbor, Formosa (present-day Taiwan), the Enoura Maru was attacked by Allied aircraft from the USS Hornet (CV-8), killing Allied POWs who were lost in the water, on board the ship, or on the nearby shore. Survivors of the Enoura Maru bombing were loaded onto the Brazil Maru, and reached Japan on January 30, 1945. As a result of these incidents, Allied POWs were lost in the Philippines, at sea between the Philippines and Taiwan, while anchored in Taiwan, at sea between Taiwan and Japan, and in Japan. The attacks on these POW transports ultimately resulted in a series of death notifications from the Japanese government through the International Red Cross (IRC), and some casualties were given up to five different dates of death at various locations during the transfer. Witness accounts from surviving POWs offer detailed information for a handful of casualties, but the specific dates of loss and/or last-known locations for many of these POWs are based on the most recent reported date of death. Captain Lawrence K. Smarr entered the U.S. Army from Missouri and served with the Headquarters Battery, 1st Battalion, 88th Field Artillery Regiment, Philippine Scouts. Captured by the Japanese in April 1942, Capt Smarr is believed to have died on January 9, 1945, aboard the prison ship Enoura Maru when it was bombed and sunk by Allied planes in Takao Harbor, Formosa. He has not been associated with any remains recovered from the area after the war and is still unaccounted-for. Today, Captain Smarr is memorialized on the Walls of the Missing at the Manila American Cemetery and Memorial in the Philippines.
Source: National Archives, Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency, Columbia Missourian (1945)