James Lawrence Arnold, age 21, from Mattawan, Michigan, Van Buren county.
Service era: Iraq
Parents: Mary Ryan and Philip Arnold
School: Mattawan High (2004)
Military history: Troop B, 1St Squadron, 8Th Cavalry, 2 Bct, Fort Hood, Texas
Date of death: Thursday, March 15, 2007
Death details: Hostile; Baghdad, Iraq. Killed in an explosion
Cemetery: Fort Custer National
Source: Department of Defense, Mlive.com, Langland Funeral Homes
Luis Jose Castillo, age 20, from Lawton, Michigan, Van Buren county.
Service era: Iraq
Military history: C Co, 1St Bn, 24Th Mar, (Rct-5, I Mef Fwd), 4Th Mar Div, Lansing, Mi
Date of death: Saturday, January 20, 2007
Death details: Hostile; Balad, Iraq
Source: Department of Defense, Military Times
Gabriel Glenn Deroo, age 25, from Paw Paw, Michigan, Van Buren county.
Service era: Iraq
Military history: Company A, 2D Battalion, 3D Infantry, (101 Aa), Fort Lewis, Washington
Date of death: Sunday, August 20, 2006
Death details: Hostile; Mosul, Iraq
Source: Department of Defense, Military Times
Vincent Earl Summers, age 38, from South Haven, Michigan, Van Buren county.
Service era: Iraq
Military history: Company A, 2D Battalion, 69Th Armor, (2 Mef), Fort Benning, Ga
Date of death: Saturday, October 15, 2005
Death details: Hostile; Ar Ramadi, Iraq
Source: Department of Defense, Military Times
Ronald Kenneth Sweetland, age 20, from Van Buren County Bloomingdale, Michigan .
Parents: Mr. and Mrs. Robert Gilbert
Service era: Vietnam
Schools: Bloomingdale High (1969)
Date of death: Sunday, November 28, 1971
Death details: Killed in a helicopter crash in South Vietnam.
Cemetery: Spring Grove in Bloomingdale
Source: National Archives, UPI (1971), Herald Palladium (1971)
Jerald Dale West, age 23, from Bloomingdale, Michigan, Van Buren county.
Parents: Jerald W. West
Service era: Vietnam
Date of death: Saturday, January 31, 1970
Death details: Hostile, killed, South Vietnam
Source: National Archives, El Paso Herald Post (1970)
Donald Jr. McGowan from Michigan, Van Buren county.
Service era: Korea
Date of death: Friday, May 25, 1951
Death details: On May 25, 1951, elements of the 187th Regimental Combat Team (RCT) were assigned to secure a bridgehead on the Soyang River in South Korea. The RCT, bolstered by two companies of tanks, launched a counter-attack against Chinese Communist Forces (CCF) that had taken control of the river’s northern shore. Despite fierce enemy resistance, the 187th RCT successfully dislodged the CCF, and then began a cautious push northward in an attempt to locate and destroy other enemy forces. The 187th RCT was still engaged with CCF troops by the end of the day, and suffered several casualties over the course of the fighting.
Corporal Donald McGowan Jr. joined the U.S. Army from Michigan and was a member of the Service Company, 187th Regimental Combat Team. He took part in the fighting on May 25 and was captured by the enemy at some point during that day. He joined a group of prisoners who were marched north into North Korean territory. Corporal McGowan died of malnutrition and illness in June 1951, after his group arrived at the Suan Mining Camp. His remains have not been recovered, and he was not identified among remains returned to U.S. custody after the war. Today, Corporal McGowan is memorialized on the Courts of the Missing at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific.
Source: National Archives, Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency
William Franklin Gillette from Lawrence, Michigan, Van Buren county.
Parents: Electa Gillette
Service era: World War II
Date of death: Monday, December 18, 1944
Death details: He was aboard the destroyer USS Hull as it operated as part of the Fast Carrier Strike Force in the Philippine Sea. On December 17, 1944, the Hull was participating in refueling operations when the ships of its fueling group were engulfed by Typhoon Cobra. The Hull lost its ability to steer amid the enormous waves and began taking on water. The Hull eventually took on too much water to stay afloat and rolled and sank shortly before noon, on December 18. Sixty-two crew members were rescued, but a little more than two-hundred crew members were lost in the sinking.
Source: National Archives, Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency
Wilbur Frank Ballance, age 20, from Paw Paw, Michigan, Van Buren county.
Parents: Leo Charles Balance
Service era: World War II
Military history: Purple Heart
Date of death: Sunday, December 7, 1941
Death details: Killed aboard the USS Oklahoma. Accounted for February 1, 2021
Cemetery: Tablets of the Missing at Honolulu Memorial
Source: National Archives, American Battle Monuments Commission, Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency