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Any photos not otherwise credited are from the personal collection of Frank Passic, Albion Historian.
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Morning Star, August 13, 1995, pg. 8 With the 50th anniversary of the end of World War II recently, we pause this week in our Historical Notebook to remember those who gave their lives in the service of our country during that massive conflict that lasted several years, which resulted in the enslavement of half European continent under Communism for decades. A special Victory Report was prepared by the U.S. War Department and was distributed across the country. This book gave a chronology of the events leading to the Allied victory, and is filled with interested campaign maps and other items. Entitled “General Marshall’s Victory Report On the Winning of World War II in Europe and the Pacific,” this 241 page soft cover book was bound with a plastic ring, such as is commonly done today--and I thought that was a more recent invention! In the back of the book are pages with each local community added, listing their war casualties and those who served. Albion’s book was distributed by the local Post No. 3672 Veterans of Foreign Wars Auxiliary, with Eva Osburn as its president. The inside cover page lists the local auxiliary officers of the VFW at the time which were: Eva Osburn, president; Mary DeForest, Sr., vice-president; Ester Connelly, chaplain; Dorothy Kellogg, conductress; Lovena Damas, guard; Thelma Wixon; Anna Mae Hancock; Iris Ball; and Shirley Van Buren as color bearers; Ollie DeForest as historian; Minnie Markham, patriotic instructor; and Margaret Fox, musician. This book originally sold for $1.00, and is an excellent reference for lists of Albion men and women who served in World War II. Special thanks to Gladys Rossin for supplying this book to me for my Albion history archives, from the estate of Ruth Schenman. From our Historical Notebook this week we illustrate the title page of this Albion version of General Marshall’s Victory Report. We close with a listing of those Albion men and women who gave their lives for their country during World War II, as listed in the Victory Report. Many Albionites still remember these persons, their fellow classmates at Washington Gardner High School during the 1930s and early 1940s, who never returned from the service. Each family would have a small sign in their window with stars, signifying the number of men form that house who were serving. A gold star meant that a person in that house gave their life in service to their country. Gold Star Park at Five Points was erected in their memory. Those “gold stars” from Albion were: Richard M. Alexander, Lynford Austin, Herman L. Bechstein, George Bennett, Joseph D. Brabant, Vernon R. Brock, Everett L. Brown, James Casey, George C. Crowder, George E. Dean, Charles D. DeForest, James Carl DeMaggio, Russell W. Elushik. Raymond D. Everett, Jonnie Fields, Robert Gill, Shirley C. Grifith, Jay M. Huff, George Kimler, Melvin L. King, Richard C. Letts, Ralph E. Lindemann, Russell Marshall, Leston L. Muzzy, Nicholas Pavluchik (the first Albion soldier to died in WWII), Albert L. Pollman, Bernard J. Rinne, Arthur Schenman, Edward Wells, and Joe K. Williamson. 
General Marshall’s Victory Report, Albion Version All text copyright, 2024 © all rights reserved Frank Passic
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