WALTER, JOSEPH
Joseph Walter, age 88, of 1838 Clermont St., Manitowoc, died Monday, June 1, 2009, at Holy Family Memorial Medical Center, Manitowoc.
He was born Nov. 25, 1920, in Philadelphia, Pa., son of the late John and Catherine (Sloboda) Walter. Joseph was a Marine for 12 years. He joined the Marine Corps on Aug. 21, 1940, and served with the 5th Marines after boot camp and later with the 1st Marine Division, newly formed, in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba and Puerto Rico. He was reassigned to Camp Lejeune, N.C., in 1941 until WWII started. In 1942 Joseph left for the South Pacific, and in American Samoa he trained with the just organized 3rd Marine Raiders. His first combat duty was in Guadalcanal. Joseph also took part in the Russell Island Raid after which he went back to Guadalcanal. His next assignment was the first wave into Bougainville Island, and after that hard fight, his Raider unit was disbanded and made into the 4th Marine Regiment. The 4th went into Guam where Joseph received his first of two Purple Hearts and then came down with malaria. He spent the rest of the war in Hawaii and the United States until joining the 28th Marines, 5th Division. He then participated in the first wave into Japan. Following the war, Joseph remained in the Marines as a recruiter serving in Manitowoc, where he met and married his wife, Adeline Theisen, on August 11, 1948. Joseph was transferred to Quantico, Va., and later the 1st Marine Division in Korea where he was awarded his second Purple Heart. He was discharged from the Marines in November of 1952. Joseph returned to Manitowoc and worked as a tool and die maker at Aluminum Specialty Co. until retiring in 1986. Joseph and Adeline enjoyed traveling and spending time at their summer home in Door County.
Survivors include his wife: Adeline, Manitowoc; one son and daughter-in-law: Michael and Marlene Walter, Menasha; three daughters and sons-in-law: Deborah and Richard Sass, Sheboygan; JoAnn and George DeNardis, Cleveland; Phyllis and James Hall, Sagamore Hills, Ohio; six grandchildren: Timothy (Melissa) Walter, Nashville, Tenn.; Steven Walter, Menasha; Michael Sass, Sheboygan; Rebecca DeNardis, Cleveland; Christine DeNardis, Cleveland, Andrew Hall, Sagamore Hills, Ohio; one sister: Dorothy Bartow, Pa. Nieces, nephews, other relatives and friends also survive. He was also preceded in death by two brothers and six sisters.
Funeral services will be held at 11 a.m. Friday June 5, 2009, at St. Francis of Assisi on Waldo. Officiating at the Mass of Christian Burial will be the Rev. Gerald Foley. Burial will take place at Calvary Cemetery, where graveside military rites will be accorded by the VFW Otto Oas Post 659.
The family will greet relatives and friends at The Pfeffer Funeral Home, Manitowoc, from 4 to 7 p.m. Thursday, June 4, 2009. Visitation will continue Friday, June 5, 2009, at St Francis of Assisi on Waldo from 10 a.m. until the time of service at 11 a.m.