http://www.vermontjournal.com/content/veterans-memorial-dedicated-0
Veterans Memorial Dedicated Submitted by VT Journal on Tue, 11/12/2013 - 3:34pm By MARILYN LEDOUX The Vermont Journal/The Shopper REGION – The new Veterans Memorial Monument at the Veterans Park was dedicated Monday, November 11, at 11 a.m. to the area men who died as a result of their service in WWII, Vietnam, and Desert Storm. Ron Walker, the man responsible for bringing the Vietnam Moving Wall to Springfield, VT. last July, had some funds left over from the donations he received to bring in the wall. Walker used those funds to erect a monument dedicated to the area servicemen who died as a result of those conflicts. Matilda Caldwell, Springfield High School student sang The National Anthem, and the Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 771 presented The Colors, and Earnest “Puggy” Lamphere gave the talk. Lamphere told how when World War I ended, everyone thought that was the end of the wars. “Not too many years later, another conflict arose and America’s best once again went forth to free the oppressed,” Lamphere said. “I remember my father making us stand in front of a tall radio and listen to the President tell the nation that Japan had just bombed Pearl Harbor. I remember seeing pictures on the movie screen of the war. How our men had to dig their own foxholes and get in them. If it rained, their feet were wet in standing in water. If it was cold, their feet were encased in ice. I can tell you – freedom isn’t free. Somebody paid the price.” Lamphere told how the residents in those years had drills to black out the area should enemy planes fly over. A Civil Defense (CD) man lived in each neighborhood and when the siren sounded, residents were put on alert. They had to put out all lights and pull shades. The CD man would walk around and be sure there were no lights. If he saw a light he would knock on your door and have you put it out. If a plane flew over, there were no lights to make the houses a target. Then the CD man would go to a designated spot to watch for planes. Walker had asked the living relatives of those fallen servicemen to come to the dedication. He had them line up and unveil the monument. The stone is free standing and has the emblems of all branches on the front side. The inscription reads, “All gave some, some gave all”. Boy Scouts from Troop 252 Springfield read the names of the fallen servicemen from each war. The names listed on the memorial: WWII – James R. Anderson, Omar A. Austin, Alwin D. Bailey, Wendell W. Carlisle, Robert D. Dow Jr., Otgut V. Dziewialtowaki, Howard T. Gardner, Theodore G. Hall, Albert S. Jensen, Russell C. Martin, Fred K. Phillips, Wallace H. Richmond, Charles V. Romankevich, Clarence I. Sanderson, Loran F. Szsow. In Vietnam: Roger H. Stearns and in Desert Storm: Kurt E. Dechen and Kevin F. Sheehan. The very moving dedication ended with a closing prayer and taps.
Otgut's last name is spelled Dziewialtowski, not Dziewialtowaki. An easy mistake to make. Hopefully they got it right for the actual memorial!
ReplyDeleteA brief history for Otgut V. Dziewialtowski: Otgut was born April 4, 1915 in Springfield, VT. Otgut's father died at an early age and his mother, Kaziemeza married Joseph Lohutko. Otgut graduated from SHS in 1933. He was employed by the Fellows Gear Shaper when he enlisted into the Army Air Corps as an aviation cadet on December 17, 1941. Otgut completed glider pilot training in 1942.
In July 1943 Otgut volunteered to fly as a glider pilot with the British in the invasion of Sicily. After a forced landing into the ocean he swam for 12 hours in order to obtain help for his passengers that remained with the glider. He later took part in the invasions of France and Belgium.
On September 18, 1944 he participated as a glider pilot in Operation Market Garden, the invasion of Holland. His glider was last observed with it's tail in flames and in a spin. Shortly afterward he was declared MIA. He remained MIA until his grave was discovered in early 1946 in Aaldonk, Holland. His mother was officially notified that he was KIA on May 22, 1946 and that he had been reburied in Belgium. In 1949 Otgut was returned to the United States and was buried on June 4th in St. Mary's Cemetery, Springfield, VT
The C-47 that towed him into Holland that fateful day in September, 1944 still flies today. The aircraft is kept at the National Warplane Museum in Geneso, New York.
The spelling is correct where it most counts: Dziewialtowski_mem.jpg
DeleteThanks. During the war since his name was difficult to spell he was called Dewalt by his peers and he changed his name tags to Dewalt. When he was MIA searches were run looking for a "Dewalt" on the prisoner of war rolls.
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