KOREAN WAR

President Truman ordered U.S. air and naval forces to help defend South Korea on June 27, 1950. All fighting ended on July 27, 1953 when a truce agreement was signed
 
 

Bonnett, William R. Lalor, William T.
Briggs, Raymond I. Morrison, James F.
Cope, Richard A. Oliver, Rudolph W., Jr.
Gardner, Lawrence B. Ollom, L. Charles
Goede, Robert G. Plachko, Richard E. 
Herzberger, Frederic T. Popovich, John James
Johns, Philip E. Popovich, Raymond Richard
Keeler, Dwight Charles Romilly, Llewellyn John
Kepic, Frank M. Spisko, Rudolph J.
Kuhn, David P.

 
 
Bonnett, William R.  Army? Sgt.  9-12-1953
17003 Albers Avenue Middlesex, England H.S.1932
Sgt. William Bonnett died of a skull fracture in West Strayton, Middlesex, England. The family held a funeral service for William at the Lakewood Congregational Church.

 
Briggs, Raymond I. Army M/Sgt. 4-30-1951
1475 Newman Avenue Korea
Sgt. Raymond Briggs was taken prisoner during the battle of Sangju. He died in Korea on April 30, 1951.

 
Cope, Richard A. Army  1st Lt. 10-6-1951
1547 Olivewood Avenue Korea
Lt. Richard A. Cope was killed in action while serving with Company K, 9th Infantry Regiment, 2nd Infantry Division near Kung-Dong, Korea. He disregarded his own personal safety and led a reserve platoon into enemy fire to stop a break through by enemy troops. He was mortally wounded in completing his mission. Lt. Cope was a veteran of eight years in the Army and was wounded in the Battle of the Bulge in World War II. His wife and three year old son were presented with the posthumously awarded Distinguished Service Cross.

 
Gardner, Lawrence B. Army  Pfc. 5-23-1953
1555 Westwood Korea
Pfc. Lawrence Gardner was drafted Aug. 28, 1952.  He was a member of the 65th Infantry Regiment and was killed by enemy artillery while defending his company's position.  Pfc. Gardner saw his little son for the last time, when the child was five months old.  The ship that carried his body home and those of 154 others was named the Lakewood Victory.  It was named for Lakewood, N.J.

 
Goede, Robert G. Army     Pvt. 5-19-1947
1385 Cook Avenue Korea
Pvt. Robert Goede was killed on the 38th parallel. He was shot by a Russian sniper just before the Korean War started.

 
Herzberger, Frederic T. Navy Air Petty Officer 2/c 6-6-1954
1236 French Avenue At sea H.S.1947
Petty Officer Frederic Herzberger lost his life at sea when his plane crashed in Japanese waters. He was an electronics technician and had been in the Navy three and half years. He never saw his three month old son Fred.

 
Johns, Philip E. Army  Pvt. 9-27-1951
1447 Lewis Drive Sungam-Ni, Korea
Pvt. Phillip Johns was last seen by his unit when he was going over a ridge firing from the hip and fighting the enemy at point-blank range.  He was missing in action for eleven years.  His body was eventually found and he is now buried in Arlington National Cemetery.  Pvt. Johns was awarded a Silver Star.  The citation reads in part, "Pvt. Johns, as lead scout, led his squad to a flanking ridge and started toward the top of the hill in an effort to destroy the positions pinning down the troops.  Crawling ahead of the rest of the squad he reached an enemy communications trench.  Dropping into the emplacement, he surprised three men and killed them with a hand grenade and rifle fire.

 
Keeler, Dwight Charles AAF 2nd Lt. 11-18-1952
2219 Brown Road Georgia H.S.1947
Lt. Dwight Keeler entered cadet training at Hondo Air Force Base, Texas, and won his commission September 14, 1952. He was training in Jet interceptor work at Moody Air Force Base when his plane crashed and he was killed.

 
Kepic, Frank M. Navy  Yeoman 4-16-1957
1618 Hopkins Avenue Ohio H.S.?
Frank Kepic served in World War II and was in the Pacific when the atomic bomb was dropped on Hiroshima, August 6, 1945. When the war came to and end, Frank stayed in the service. It was at this time that he became ill. He was eventually diagnosed as having leukemia the malignant blood disease. He was in Lakewood Hospital when he died.

 
Kuhn, David P. Army? 1-11-1955
1586 Elmwood Avenue Korea H.S. 1947
Very little is known about David Kuhn's military career.  However, his name does appear on the official list published by the state of Ohio, and he did graduate from Lakewood High School.  For those reasons we have added his name to the list.

 
Lalor, William T. Navy Aviation Ordnance 2-13-1958
1358 Edwards Avenue French Morocco Wd.H.S.
William T. Lalor was in Africa serving as the manager of a service club. He died instantly when the car he was riding in was in an accident. He was a career Navy man and served in the Pacific as a gunner's mate during World War II. He is buried in Calvary Cemetery.

 
Morrison, James F. Army Pfc. 8-6-1950
1368 Westlake Avenue Korea Wd.H.S.1947
Pfc. James Morrison's last letter home was dated a few hours before he died .... "This is a sad excuse for a country .... I don't know what we're fighting for .... Maybe just to save our own hides... The rest of the fellows feel the same." He enlisted in December, 1947, when he was 17. He was with the 64th Field Artillery, 25th Infantry Division.

 
Oliver, Rudolph W., Jr. Army Pvt 5-28-1952
14315 Delaware Avenue Korea
Pvt. Rudolph Oliver proudly left for the service on his birthday. He was assigned to Ranger training and excelled in every way. Pvt. Oliver was pleased to be with the 31st Infantry, 7th Infantry Division. After a short leave, he went to Korea and was dead thirteen days later. He died in the Kumhwaa Valley. The officer who wrote to the family told them that he lived for about an hour after being shot in the stomach. He is buried in St. Mary's Cemetery.

 
Ollom, L. Charles Army? 9-7-1951
1567 Spring Garden Avenue Korea H.S. 1947
According to the official list published by the state of Ohio, Charles Ollom lost his life on September 7, 1951.

 
Plachko, Richard E. AAF  Pfc. 9-3-1951
1489 Olivewood Avenue Ohio H.S.1949
Pfc. Richard Plachko was in Radio School in 1951, and very pleased to be home on leave. It was a time to catch up with his friends before being shipped out. It was too short a time for Pfc. Plachko to do all that he wanted to do, and he fell asleep while driving on the Shoreway. He was killed instantly.

 
Popovich, John James Army  S/Sgt. 6-13-1952
2140 Richland Avenue Korea W.D.H.S.?
Sgt. John Popovich served thirteen months in Korea. He took his training at Breckingridge, Kentucky. He died in Korea June 13, 1952.

 
Popovich, Raymond Richard Navy Seamen 1/c 4-2-1952
2140 Richland Avenue Massachusetts
Raymond Popovich enlisted in the Navy on July 15, 1947. He served three and a half years aboard the aircraft carrier, Shangri La. He was killed in an accident when he fell from a scaffold aboard the escort carrier, Santee.

 
Romilly, Llewellyn John AAF     ? 12-3-1952
16701 Seneca Avenue Mississippi H.S.1947
Llwellyn Romilly lost his life in a plane crash at the Air Force Base at Biloxi, Mississippi.

 
Spisko, Rudolph J. Army? 10-24-1951
1504 Roycroft Avenue Korea
Rudolph J. Spisko is buried in Calvary Cemetery.  He was twenty three years old when he died.  He was a member of St. James Church.

The Korean War Veterans Association, Inc. lists 54,236 men as dead. Another 103,000 wounded, and 15,177 missing in action and prisoners of war. They list 389 men still unaccounted.

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