The Veterans Community

Preserving history is more than remembering dates and milestones, but rather history is a collection of our stories. Our Veterans Memorial will tell a story of sacrifice, patriotism, and honor. Each of the men and women who have served our country has a story to tell.  Share your story with us on the web site for the La Verne Memorial.  Would you like to tell your father’s story? Mother’s story? Your own story? We want to honor your experiences.  Mail your stories to La Verne Veterans Memorial, 3660 D St., La Verne, CA 91750.

 

Senior Master Sergeant Jefferson E. Hill

Senior Master Sergeant   Jefferson E. Hill enlisted in the Air Force at age 18 with a high school diploma.  He was trained as an airborne radar technician and flew C119's Flying Boxcars in and out of Korea from Japan, prepared SR-71 aircraft for missions in Vietnam, retrieved photo data from  Drones, and prepared U-2 aircraft for missions in South East Asia.  Jefferson retired with a masters degree and 22 years of service.

 

Private First Class Cory F. Hiltz

According to his best friend, Pfc. Cory F. Hiltz “joined the Army because he wanted to be part of something important, something bigger than himself.”  Cory had been in Iraq for 8 months when his tour of duty had been extended.  In exchange he was given three-weeks leave to visit his family.  Ten days after returning to Iraq, Cory died of wounds sustained when his unit was attacked in Baghdad by insurgents using improvised explosive devices. Cory Hiltz was 20 years old.

 

Lieutenant Gerald Deal

Lt. Gerald Deal was the gunnery officer in command of the Navy armed guard unit on the Liberty Ship S.S. Jean Nicolet when it was torpedoed and sunk by a Japanese submarine in the Indian Ocean in 1944.  He made certain his crew members were safely off the ship and was the last one to leave the vessel.  He refused to submit o capture and swam away with several others in the darkness while under machine-gun fire. Lt. Deal subsequently was awarded the Bronze Star for “his outstanding fortitude, courageous leadership, and gallant dedication to duty under extremely perilous conditions.”