REYNOLDS, HARRINGTON F., JR.
Harry Reynolds, a Marine Raider who stood up for fellow Raiders who were killed in a commando attack in 1942 but whose remains were left on a remote Pacific island, died July 18 [2004] at a Las Vegas hospital. He was 82.
Born Harrington Ford Reynolds Jr. on March 21, 1922, Mr. Reynolds enlisted in the Marines shortly after the U.S. entry into World War II in December 1941, then signed up for a Marine commando unit that became known as the Marine Raiders.
His childhood friend, Robert Maulding, also joined the Raiders.
Maulding was killed along with 18 other Marines when two Raider companies attacked Makin Atoll in the Gilbert Islands, about 2,500 miles west of Hawaii, in August 1942.
The commandos were forced to leave their dead on the beach when they evacuated the island, and their commander paid a local resident to bury them.
Mr. Reynolds did not take part in the raid.
There was no attempt to recover the Marines’ remains until surviving Raiders, including Mr. Reynolds, persuaded the Defense Department to search for them many years later.
An Army team recovered the remains in 1999, after several attempts.
Thirteen of the Raiders were interred at Arlington National Cemetery on Aug. 17, 2001, the 59th anniversary of the raid.
Mr. Reynolds, who participated in the ceremony as Maulding’s next of kin, said at the time, “I’m just tickled to death he finally is here and being buried in American soil. That’s how the whole family feels. It’s nice to have him home.”
Their story was chronicled in a story in The San Diego Union-Tribune on Memorial Day 2001.
Mr. Reynolds saw action during the war at Guadalcanal and Bougainville. After the war he worked as a bartender, film editor and mortgage loan consultant, spending time in Los Angeles, San Diego and Las Vegas.
He and his wife, Yvonne “Kiki” Reynolds, lived in Las Vegas but maintained a home in Rancho Bernardo. Kiki Reynolds said her husband died of renal failure.
Mr. Reynolds is survived by his wife; a daughter, Rae; sons, Gregory of Las Vegas and Robert of Honolulu; brother, Gary Lease of Santa Cruz; three grandchildren; and three great-grandchildren.
No memorial service was planned.