Remains of a World War II soldier are returned home for burial

LA CROSSE, Wis. (WEAU) – More than 100 people gathered at St. Patrick Church in Onalaska for the funeral service for Sergeant Jack H. Hohlfeld of the U.S. Army Air Force.

SGT Hohlfeld, originally from Trempealeau, died on December 26, 1942. His remains were found in May.

SGT Hohlfeld’s family is grateful that he is still honored decades later.

“I drove in and saw the Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts and I was almost completely ecstatic, I wasn’t expecting that. It was just very sweet and the flyovers that were done as a favor were just very touching. It was just gratitude if I had to sum it up in one word,” said Steve Graw, a relative of SGT Hohlfeld.

Hohlfeld was serving in the Philippines when he and many other U.S. and Filipino soldiers were captured. Hohlfeld died about a year after being taken prisoner of war.

The deputy commander of the U.S. garrison at Fort McCoy, Lt. Col. Michael Corkum, says it is important for the military to welcome home every soldier it can.

“The repatriation is a really big deal because one of our vows is that we will never leave a soldier behind. To be able to welcome our soldier back, bring him home and lay him to rest is a really big deal and very important to us. We wanted to show our support for that and show our support to the family and thank the family for their sacrifice that they made not only during World War II but also in the 80-plus years afterward,” says Lt Col Corkum.

Lt. Col. Corkum says it was great to see others supporting the fallen soldier.

“It’s great to be able to welcome and support the greatest generation. There aren’t many of our greatest generation left, so it’s still incredible to see the support of the community that has come out here and just pulled together. It shows how much power this event had then and how relevant it still is today,” says Lt Col Corkum.

Some of Hohlfeld’s family believed they would never see the sergeant return home.

“My mother worked on it for over a decade and I had given up hope that he would ever come back. So it was a big shock for all of us,” says Graw.

On a day when the sound of 21 gunshots and rifle shots filled the air, Sergeant Jack Hohlfeld officially returned home.

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