SIM, ALEC M.
Colton’s honor roll for the Second World War has another gold star, representing Second Lt. Alec Monroe Sim, United States Marine Corps, whose parents, Mr. and Mrs. Watson R. Sim of 840 Terrace Avenue, have been notified of his death in the South Pacific. They received a telegraph message that Lieutenant Sim had been killed in action [July 20, 1943].
The message, relayed from Marine headquarters at Arlington, Va., by Lt. Gen. T. Holcomb, Marine Corps Commandant, read as follows:
“We regret to inform you that your son, Second Lt. Alec M. Sim, of the U.S. Marine Corps Reserve, was killed in action and in the service of his country. To avoid giving aid to the enemy the post at which he lost his life cannot be divulged. Present situation necessitates interment temporarily in the locality where death occurred and you will be notified accordingly. Please accept my heartfelt sympathy.”
According to his parents, Lieutenant Sim, who was 24, left for service in the Solomons area last January, after having been commissioned at the Quantico, Va., officers’ training school on Dec. 23. He enlisted in the Marine Corps in January of 1942, being at that time a student at the University of California at Berkeley and was permitted to continue his college work to receive his bachelor of science degree. En route to the war zone, Lieutenant Sim volunteered for service in the First Marine Raider Battalion. His parents received a letter, dated July 2, from their son last week and anticipate that another is en route.
Lieutenant Sim’s wife, the former Elizabeth Glasson of Berkeley, whom he married last December, is in Norfolk, Va., with her sister. She received the tragic message from her brother, Lt. Sidney Glasson of Los Angeles, who telephoned her after the word was received here.
Lieutenant Sim was one of six sons, two of his brothers being also in the armed forces and a third, Wesley, only recently received a medical discharge from the Marine Corps. His twin, Willard, is attending officers’ training school at Camp Davis, North Carolina, and another brother, Gordon, is also in the Marines, training at Arizona Teachers College at Flagstaff.
The eldest son, Leslie, is studying for the ministry at Drew Seminary, Madison, N.J., and the youngest boy, Robert, is still at home. He will be a senior at Colton Union High School this fall.
The Sim family long has been prominent in civic, church and social affairs of the community. Mr. Sim is a veteran mail carrier.