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PHOTOS: Oregon WWII soldier laid to rest 82 years after death in prison camp
By Jenna Deml,
2 days ago
PORTLAND, Ore. ( KOIN ) — A World War II soldier from Oregon who was missing for over 80 years was officially laid to rest in a memorial service in Hillsboro Friday afternoon.
With full military honors by the Oregon Army National Guard Funeral Honor Guard team, the remains of U.S. Army Pvt. William “Billy” Calkins were buried near his mother’s grave at Fir Lawn Memorial Park after 82 years since his death in November 1942.
Calkins was captured by Japanese forces and died in a prisoner of war camp in the Philippines at the age of 20 after surviving the Bataan Death March earlier that year, the Department of Defense said last month .
Framed family photos, Military Awards and tributes rest on a remembrance table for U.S. Army Private Billy E. Calkins at the Fir Lawn Memorial Cemetery, Hillsboro, Oregon on Sept. 13, 2024. Calkins remains were return to Oregon 82 years after his death in the Philippines where he served with the 31st Infantry Regiment, Company B, and died at the Cabanatuan Prison Camp on Nov. 1, 1942 when he as 17 years old. (National Guard photo by John Hughel, Oregon Military Department Public Affairs)
Oregon Army National Guard Funeral Honors members carry the remains of U.S. Army Private Billy E. Calkins during his memorial service at Fir Lawn Cemetery, in Hillsboro, Oregon on Sept. 13, 2024. Calkins remains were return to Oregon 82 years after his death in the Philippines where he served with the 31st Infantry Regiment, Company B, and died at the Cabanatuan Prison Camp on Nov. 1, 1942 when he as 17 years old. (National Guard photo by John Hughel, Oregon Military Department Public Affairs)
Oregon Army National Guard Chaplain (Col). Jacob Scott, Oregon National Guard State Chaplain officiates the memorial service for U.S. Army Private Billy E. Calkins at the Fir Lawn Memorial Cemetery, Hillsboro, Oregon on Sept. 13, 2024. Calkins remains were return to Oregon 82 years after his death in the Philippines where he served with the 31st Infantry Regiment, Company B, and died at the Cabanatuan Prison Camp on Nov. 1, 1942 when he as 17 years old. (National Guard photo by John Hughel, Oregon Military Department Public Affairs)
Oregon Army National Guard Funeral Honors members conduct a flag folding ceremony to honor U.S. Army Private Billy E. Calkins during his memorial service at Fir Lawn Cemetery, in Hillsboro, Oregon on Sept. 13, 2024. Calkins remains were return to Oregon 82 years after his death in the Philippines where he served with the 31st Infantry Regiment, Company B, and died at the Cabanatuan Prison Camp on Nov. 1, 1942 when he as 17 years old. (National Guard photo by John Hughel, Oregon Military Department Public Affairs)
Oregon Army National Guard Funeral Honors members carry the remains of U.S. Army Private Billy E. Calkins during his memorial service at Fir Lawn Cemetery, in Hillsboro, Oregon on Sept. 13, 2024. Calkins remains were return to Oregon 82 years after his death in the Philippines where he served with the 31st Infantry Regiment, Company B, and died at the Cabanatuan Prison Camp on Nov. 1, 1942 when he as 17 years old. (National Guard photo by John Hughel, Oregon Military Department Public Affairs)
An Oregon Army National Guard Funeral Honor Guard member presents the American Flag to family members of U.S. Army Private Billy E. Calkins during his memorial service at Fir Lawn Cemetery, in Hillsboro, Oregon on Sept. 13, 2024. Calkins remains were return to Oregon 82 years after his death in the Philippines where he served with the 31st Infantry Regiment, Company B, and died at the Cabanatuan Prison Camp on Nov. 1, 1942 when he as 17 years old. (National Guard photo by John Hughel, Oregon Military Department Public Affairs)
An Oregon Army National Guard Funeral Honor Guard member presents the American Flag to family members of U.S. Army Private Billy E. Calkins during his memorial service at Fir Lawn Cemetery, in Hillsboro, Oregon on Sept. 13, 2024. Calkins remains were return to Oregon 82 years after his death in the Philippines where he served with the 31st Infantry Regiment, Company B, and died at the Cabanatuan Prison Camp on Nov. 1, 1942 when he as 17 years old. (National Guard photo by John Hughel, Oregon Military Department Public Affairs)
Family members and others in the Hillsboro, Oregon community attend the memorial service for U.S. Army Private Billy E. Calkins at the Fir Lawn Memorial Cemetery, Hillsboro, Oregon on Sept. 13, 2024. Calkins remains were return to Oregon 82 years after his death in the Philippines where he served with the 31st Infantry Regiment, Company B, and died at the Cabanatuan Prison Camp on Nov. 1, 1942 when he as 17 years old. (National Guard photo by John Hughel, Oregon Military Department Public Affairs)
A funeral procession for U.S. Army Private Billy E. Calkins at the Fir Lawn Memorial Cemetery, Hillsboro, Oregon on Sept. 13, 2024. Calkins remains were return to Oregon 82 years after his death in the Philippines where he served with the 31st Infantry Regiment, Company B, and died at the Cabanatuan Prison Camp on Nov. 1, 1942 when he as 17 years old. (National Guard photo by John Hughel, Oregon Military Department Public Affairs)
His remains were identified earlier this year after being exhumed along with other unknown soldiers buried at the Manila American Cemetery in the Philippines.
The effort to identify the remains of the unknown soldiers associated with Common Grave 704 began in 2018 when the Department of Defense’s POW/MIA Accounting Agency sent them to a lab for DNA testing.
Immediately after the war, the remains were exhumed from the camp, along with the other unknown soldiers, and stored at the Manila American Cemetery at the Philippine capital as “unknown.”
On Sept. 6, Calkins’ remains were brought home to his Oregon relatives with planeside honors at the Portland International Airport, the Oregon Military Department said.
While family and community members gathered to honor Calkins on Friday, Oregon Army National Guard Chaplain Col. Jacob Scott, who officiated the memorial, offered up some words of remembrance.
“The Manila American Cemetery and Memorial in the Philippines occupies 152 acres on a prominent plateau in the capital city. In the center of those peaceful grounds stands a beautiful white marble memorial chapel. A limestone hemisphere monument features the tablets of the missing, and contains 36,286 names,” Scott said. “Billy’s name is permanently inscribed on those tablets. But from now on, his name will forever be adorned with a Brass Rosette, signifying that Billy’s remains will now rest in a known grave.”
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