Walkersville High School Alumni
Walkersville, Maryland (MD)
Recent Members
| Chris Main | 1971 |
| Debbi Fogle | 1985 |
| Gary Wachter | 1967 |
| Jessica Jessica Charis Diamondstone | 1991 |
| Jessica Lair | 2018 |
| Mike Figgins | 1988 |
| Virginia Gregory | 2011 |
| William Jenson | 1979 |
Military Alumni
Honoring Our Heroes
This area is dedicated to our alumni that have served or are serving in our armed forces!
Lost Class Rings
Have you lost your Walkersville High School class ring? Have you found someone's class ring? Visit our Lions lost class ring page to search for your class ring or post information about a found ring.
Honored Military Alumni
Carl David Biddinger
Class of 1956
Air Force, 3 Years
Carl Biddinger served in the U.S. Air Force as an air traffic controller from 1956 to 1959 and received numerous awards, one being Outstanding Airman of the Year.
Class of 1956
Air Force, 3 Years
Carl Biddinger served in the U.S. Air Force as an air traffic controller from 1956 to 1959 and received numerous awards, one being Outstanding Airman of the Year.
Charles Issac Cartwright
Class of 2001
Marine Corps, 8 Years
Charles Cartwright Obituary
Staff Sgt. Charles Isaac Cartwright, 26, of Oceanside, Calif., and formerly of Union Bridge, died Saturday, Nov. 7, 2009, in the Farah province of Afghanistan.
Born March 23, 1983, in Westminster, he was the son of H. Michael and Carol Ann Cartwright of Union Bridge. He was the husband of Marissa Cartwright, his wife of 11 months.
He was a 2001 graduate of Walkersville High School and joined the U.S. Marine Corps on Sept. 9, 2001, and graduated from Parris Island on Dec. 7, 2001, and the School of Infantry in January 2002.
Staff Sgt. Cartwright was assigned as a member of Marine Special Operations Company A, serving his fifth tour, three previously in Iraq and one in Afghanistan. On Labor Day weekend this year he was wounded in Afghanistan and received his second Purple Heart. He also received the Valor Award during his third tour in Iraq. Other decorations awarded to him were Navy and Marine Corps Achievement Medal, two Combat Action Ribbons, Navy Presidential Unit Citation, Navy Unit Commendation, two Marine Corps Good Conduct Medals, National Defense Service Medal, Afghanistan Campaign Medal, two Iraqi Campaign Medals, Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal, Global War on Terrorism Service Medal, four Sea Service Deployment Ribbons, NATO Medal and two Certificates of Commendation.
He was a member of Johnsville United Methodist Church, Maryland Demolay, Frederick Chapter, where he had achieved the Chevalier status, and the VFW Post 8806, Union Bridge. Charlie enjoyed running, having run the Orange County marathon, as well as having competed in a triathlon. He also enjoyed wrestling, surfing, walking with his wife and their blue tick coon dog, Waylon, on the beach, cooking and having friends over for dinner parties.
Surviving, in addition to his wife and parents, are sister, Rebecca Ann Cartwright of Russell Spring, Ky.; maternal grandmother, Mrs. Ralph G. Eyler Sr., of Prince Frederick; uncles, Ralph G. Eyler Jr. and wife, Judy, of Salida, Colo., and Philip P. Cartwright and wife, Cyndy, of Lexington Park; and four cousins, Catherine Moir and husband, Kenneth, and children Samantha and Luke, Kenneth Eyler and wife, Maria, and children Anthony and Olivia, Suzanne Cartwright-Fiol and husband, Frank, and son Sebastian and Lauren M. Cartwright.
A funeral service will be held at 11 a.m. Monday, Nov. 16, at the Union Bridge Fireman's Building, 8 W. Locust St., Union Bridge. The Rev. Ernest Thayle, his pastor, and the Rev. Richard Michael, pastor of St. James Lutheran Church, Union Bridge, will officiate. The family will receive friends from 3 to 5 and 7 to 9 p.m. Sunday, Nov. 15, at Johnsville United Methodist Church, 11106 Green Valley Road, Union Bridge.
Memorial donations may be made to Wounded Warriors Project, 7020 AC Skinner Parkway, Suite 100, Jacksonville, FL 32256, or Surf Rider Foundation, San Diego Chapter, P.O. Box 1511, Solana Beach, CA 92075. Arrangements are by Hartzler Funeral Home, Union Bridge.
Expressions of sympathy may be made to the family at HartzlerFuneralHome.com.
Published by The Frederick News-Post on Nov. 12, 2009.
Class of 2001
Marine Corps, 8 Years
Charles Cartwright Obituary
Staff Sgt. Charles Isaac Cartwright, 26, of Oceanside, Calif., and formerly of Union Bridge, died Saturday, Nov. 7, 2009, in the Farah province of Afghanistan.
Born March 23, 1983, in Westminster, he was the son of H. Michael and Carol Ann Cartwright of Union Bridge. He was the husband of Marissa Cartwright, his wife of 11 months.
He was a 2001 graduate of Walkersville High School and joined the U.S. Marine Corps on Sept. 9, 2001, and graduated from Parris Island on Dec. 7, 2001, and the School of Infantry in January 2002.
Staff Sgt. Cartwright was assigned as a member of Marine Special Operations Company A, serving his fifth tour, three previously in Iraq and one in Afghanistan. On Labor Day weekend this year he was wounded in Afghanistan and received his second Purple Heart. He also received the Valor Award during his third tour in Iraq. Other decorations awarded to him were Navy and Marine Corps Achievement Medal, two Combat Action Ribbons, Navy Presidential Unit Citation, Navy Unit Commendation, two Marine Corps Good Conduct Medals, National Defense Service Medal, Afghanistan Campaign Medal, two Iraqi Campaign Medals, Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal, Global War on Terrorism Service Medal, four Sea Service Deployment Ribbons, NATO Medal and two Certificates of Commendation.
He was a member of Johnsville United Methodist Church, Maryland Demolay, Frederick Chapter, where he had achieved the Chevalier status, and the VFW Post 8806, Union Bridge. Charlie enjoyed running, having run the Orange County marathon, as well as having competed in a triathlon. He also enjoyed wrestling, surfing, walking with his wife and their blue tick coon dog, Waylon, on the beach, cooking and having friends over for dinner parties.
Surviving, in addition to his wife and parents, are sister, Rebecca Ann Cartwright of Russell Spring, Ky.; maternal grandmother, Mrs. Ralph G. Eyler Sr., of Prince Frederick; uncles, Ralph G. Eyler Jr. and wife, Judy, of Salida, Colo., and Philip P. Cartwright and wife, Cyndy, of Lexington Park; and four cousins, Catherine Moir and husband, Kenneth, and children Samantha and Luke, Kenneth Eyler and wife, Maria, and children Anthony and Olivia, Suzanne Cartwright-Fiol and husband, Frank, and son Sebastian and Lauren M. Cartwright.
A funeral service will be held at 11 a.m. Monday, Nov. 16, at the Union Bridge Fireman's Building, 8 W. Locust St., Union Bridge. The Rev. Ernest Thayle, his pastor, and the Rev. Richard Michael, pastor of St. James Lutheran Church, Union Bridge, will officiate. The family will receive friends from 3 to 5 and 7 to 9 p.m. Sunday, Nov. 15, at Johnsville United Methodist Church, 11106 Green Valley Road, Union Bridge.
Memorial donations may be made to Wounded Warriors Project, 7020 AC Skinner Parkway, Suite 100, Jacksonville, FL 32256, or Surf Rider Foundation, San Diego Chapter, P.O. Box 1511, Solana Beach, CA 92075. Arrangements are by Hartzler Funeral Home, Union Bridge.
Expressions of sympathy may be made to the family at HartzlerFuneralHome.com.
Published by The Frederick News-Post on Nov. 12, 2009.
Cynthia Suzanne Reeser
Class of 1972
Army, 3 Years
Womens Army Corps . A couple medals incl sharpshooter, M16A1. Top Secret Morse Code training. Communications.Outstanding work ev and Letter of Commmendation.
Class of 1972
Army, 3 Years
Womens Army Corps . A couple medals incl sharpshooter, M16A1. Top Secret Morse Code training. Communications.Outstanding work ev and Letter of Commmendation.
David Magaha
Class of 1966
Army, 2 Years
Drafted in August 1969 -- Vietnam from Jan 70 thru July 70 -- Walter Reed Aug - Oct 70 -- Ft Benning Nov 70 - August 71
Advanced through the ranks to make Sargeant in ten months. Wounded in combat twice, decorated for valor all with Ninth Devision in northern Mekong Delta southwest of Saigon. At Benning I was Examinations NCO for the Antitank-Missle Committee of the Advanced Infantry Officer's School and served as NCOIC of the ATM barrack in the School Brigade
Class of 1966
Army, 2 Years
Drafted in August 1969 -- Vietnam from Jan 70 thru July 70 -- Walter Reed Aug - Oct 70 -- Ft Benning Nov 70 - August 71
Advanced through the ranks to make Sargeant in ten months. Wounded in combat twice, decorated for valor all with Ninth Devision in northern Mekong Delta southwest of Saigon. At Benning I was Examinations NCO for the Antitank-Missle Committee of the Advanced Infantry Officer's School and served as NCOIC of the ATM barrack in the School Brigade
David Michael Main
Class of 1965
Marine Corps, 5 Years
David served in the United States Marine Corps from 1966 - 1971, and was in Vietnam.
Class of 1965
Marine Corps, 5 Years
David served in the United States Marine Corps from 1966 - 1971, and was in Vietnam.
Donald Lee Biser
Class of 1970
Navy, 3 Years
Donald joined the Navy after graduation.
Class of 1970
Navy, 3 Years
Donald joined the Navy after graduation.
Frank Stephen Warner
Class of 1966
Army, 2 Years
He was a veteran of the U.S. Army, having been drafted in 1968 and stationed in Bangkok, Thailand until his Honorable Discharge in 1970.
Class of 1966
Army, 2 Years
He was a veteran of the U.S. Army, having been drafted in 1968 and stationed in Bangkok, Thailand until his Honorable Discharge in 1970.
Harry Clifford Crum II
Class of 1960
Navy, 3 Years
Harry enlisted in the Navy and proudly served as a diesel mechanic aboard the USS Proteus for four years, being honorably discharged on July 3, 1964, as the youngest E5 Engineman in the Navy.
Class of 1960
Navy, 3 Years
Harry enlisted in the Navy and proudly served as a diesel mechanic aboard the USS Proteus for four years, being honorably discharged on July 3, 1964, as the youngest E5 Engineman in the Navy.
John Galliker
Class of 1984
Marine Corps, 20+ Years
Served 25 years in the infantry, 19 years enlisted and 6 years as a commissioned officer. Officially retired 1 June 2013.
Class of 1984
Marine Corps, 20+ Years
Served 25 years in the infantry, 19 years enlisted and 6 years as a commissioned officer. Officially retired 1 June 2013.
Joseph Markwood Shelton
Class of 1965
Marine Corps, 2 Years
Joseph Markwood Shelton served in the U.S. Marine Corp between 1966 and 1968.
Class of 1965
Marine Corps, 2 Years
Joseph Markwood Shelton served in the U.S. Marine Corp between 1966 and 1968.
Joseph R. Fogle, Jr.
Class of 1965
Marine Corps, 6 Years
Joseph R. Fogle, Jr., age 75, died October 2, 2023 at the Gardens at Gettysburg. Born November 11, 1947 in Frederick, he was the son of the late Joseph R. Fogle Sr., and Dorothy Virginia Shepley Fogle. He was the husband of the late Linda Fogle who died in 2009.
Prior to retiring he worked as a truck driver for Ideal Farms Dairy, Hahn Transportation and Homerun Inc. He served in the United States Marine Corp. from 1966-1972 during Vietnam in Guam, guarding the B-52 Bombers. He enjoyed collecting anything and everything.
Surviving are children Bill Fogle and wife Kim of Walkersville, James Roderick Jr. of Hagerstown, Letitia Wachter and husband Darren of Smithsburg, Shalon Roderick of New Windsor, Megan DeGrange and Skylar Poole of Emmitsburg, 11 grandchildren and 3 great-grandchildren. Also surviving are many nieces and nephews.
He was predeceased by siblings Richard R. Fogle, Nancy McFarland and Colin McFarland.
The family will receive friends from 6-8 p.m. on Thursday, October 5, 2023 at Hartzler Funeral Home, 11802 Liberty Rd., Frederick.
A graveside service will be held on Friday, October 6, 2023 at Locust Grove Cemetery, 13356 Glissans Mill Rd., Mt. Airy, MD 21771.
The family invites you to leave a message or memory on his "tribute wall" at hartzlerfuneralhome.com. Joseph Fogle Jr.
Published by The Frederick News-Post on Oct. 4, 2023.
Class of 1965
Marine Corps, 6 Years
Joseph R. Fogle, Jr., age 75, died October 2, 2023 at the Gardens at Gettysburg. Born November 11, 1947 in Frederick, he was the son of the late Joseph R. Fogle Sr., and Dorothy Virginia Shepley Fogle. He was the husband of the late Linda Fogle who died in 2009.
Prior to retiring he worked as a truck driver for Ideal Farms Dairy, Hahn Transportation and Homerun Inc. He served in the United States Marine Corp. from 1966-1972 during Vietnam in Guam, guarding the B-52 Bombers. He enjoyed collecting anything and everything.
Surviving are children Bill Fogle and wife Kim of Walkersville, James Roderick Jr. of Hagerstown, Letitia Wachter and husband Darren of Smithsburg, Shalon Roderick of New Windsor, Megan DeGrange and Skylar Poole of Emmitsburg, 11 grandchildren and 3 great-grandchildren. Also surviving are many nieces and nephews.
He was predeceased by siblings Richard R. Fogle, Nancy McFarland and Colin McFarland.
The family will receive friends from 6-8 p.m. on Thursday, October 5, 2023 at Hartzler Funeral Home, 11802 Liberty Rd., Frederick.
A graveside service will be held on Friday, October 6, 2023 at Locust Grove Cemetery, 13356 Glissans Mill Rd., Mt. Airy, MD 21771.
The family invites you to leave a message or memory on his "tribute wall" at hartzlerfuneralhome.com. Joseph Fogle Jr.
Published by The Frederick News-Post on Oct. 4, 2023.
Kevin Eugene Plumer
Class of 1988
Marine Corps, 8 Years
Was stationed in Cherry Point NC. Worked on aircraft. Fought in the Desert Storm war.
Class of 1988
Marine Corps, 8 Years
Was stationed in Cherry Point NC. Worked on aircraft. Fought in the Desert Storm war.
Larry Franklin Brashears
Class of 1966
Marine Corps, 3 Years
Pfc. Larry Brashears died at 19. He was a quiet and happy boy who “accepted everything that came to him,” said his sister, Linda Slifer. Before he served with the Marines in the Vietnam War, Larry showed cattle at The Great Frederick Fair and lived with his parents at their farm on Water Street Road in Walkersville.
Sometimes, like any other teenager, Larry would get tired of his mother’s meals and register a complaint at the dinner table.
“I remember Mom would make vegetable soup and he would say, ‘That old stuff again?’” said his brother, Elmer Lewis. “I mean, he was just a normal kid. Like everybody else.”
Larry’s dream was to buy a Corvette when he got back from Vietnam. Not a Corvair, the car he owned before he left, but a sleeker, sportier model — the kind of car he could cruise the streets in. Sometimes, Slifer said, Larry talked about moving to California, or buying a motorcycle — the type of approachable dream that seemed heady and exhilarating to a teenage boy growing up on a small farm in Maryland.
Larry died at the side of his best friend, Pfc. Jim Puhl, another small-town 19-year-old, from Maumee, Ohio, who wanted to get out of Vietnam alive and buy a Chevrolet Malibu. On April 30, 1968, their unit — the 3rd Battalion, 9th Marines — came under heavy fire from North Vietnamese troops less than 10 miles from the demilitarized zone between North and South Vietnam.
The two men were part of a mortar team, Puhl said, and one of their last actions in Vietnam was to load the weapon with ammunition and return fire.
“I was the gunner, and I remember the last thing I said to Larry was, ‘Make sure the gun’s ready to go because we’re going to be shooting rounds off very shortly,’” Puhl said. “And that’s all I remember. I found out Larry died two weeks later, in Stars and Stripes magazine, where they listed the casualties.”
Months later, Larry’s parents visited Puhl at Walter Reed Medical Center, where he was recuperating from gunshot wounds to his head and shoulders. Puhl didn’t remember much about the meeting, and neither did Larry’s mother — Lewis said she was reluctant to talk about her son’s death until the final years of her life.
Lewis, on the other hand, spent years wondering about the Marines who served with his brother — especially the young man his parents visited in the hospital. Lewis said his parents never told him about the visit and he didn’t press them on it; talking about Larry made his mother too upset. But shortly before her death in 2016, he said, she handed him an envelope of letters and photographs Larry had sent during his time in Vietnam.
Lewis had already tracked down several Marines who served in the same battle as his brother. But after his mother gave him the photos, he wrote to the Marine Corps and requested three months of duty rosters from Larry’s time in Vietnam.
The records helped him track down one retired Marine, Ron Worby, who served in the same platoon as his brother and could name some of the other men in Lewis’ pictures. Worby told Lewis that Puhl was Larry’s best friend in the platoon and gave him a phone number in Michigan.
“After I got my nerve worked up, I called Jim and he called me back,” Lewis said. “And everything kind of snowballed from there. We corresponded back and forth, and then Jim gave me a Christmas present this year — he said he was coming to visit.”
On April 30 — 50 years after Larry’s death in Vietnam — Puhl accompanied Lewis and Slifer to Mount Olivet Cemetery in Frederick to visit his friend’s grave for the first time. Decades had dulled the guilt Puhl carried for years after Larry’s death, but the visit gave him a profound sense of loss — a clearer look at the life and family Larry left behind.
Vietnam, Puhl said, forced young American troops to grow up fast in a strange and hostile country. But while the specter of death lurked behind their shoulders, the men in his platoon rarely talked about danger. The only way to survive the present was to look ahead.
“We did not talk about death,” Puhl said. “We knew what the reality was, but if you sit and dwell on that reality while you’re there, you wouldn’t have made it. We talked about getting married and having kids. What kinds of jobs we may go into. Anything to make it seem like there was life going on after this.”
In Vietnam, Larry always wore the brim of his cap pushed upward, like the smiling upper bill of a duck. He would stockpile the Coca-Colas rationed out to Marines and drink them at the most inopportune times and places.
Once, Puhl said, Larry tied a rope to a sandbag filled with Cokes and pushed the sack into a stream near where he and Puhl were standing guard. When the sodas got cold, he pulled the bag out of the water, through the barbed wire, and guzzled the bottles while in the foxhole.
“Which was totally against regulation,” Puhl said. “But that’s just how he was. He would find some way to take the most difficult situation and find something we could just start laughing about.”
Even Lewis, nine years older, learned more about what Larry left behind in the years after his death. His brother never brought a girlfriend home to meet the family, he said. But after Larry’s funeral, a young woman who wrote to him in Vietnam called his mother and asked to speak with her.
Lewis remembered that his mother turned her down. But in 2013, he located the guest book from his brother’s burial and tracked down the woman — no small feat, given that she had married and changed her last name three times since Larry’s death.
Lewis wrote her a short letter and received a three-page response. The woman, Karen Palmer, said she met Larry in the weeks after he returned from basic training, before he was sent to Vietnam. Palmer’s mother was strict about dating, but Larry would drive by her house and honk the horn of his Corvair until she turned around and waved.
Once he got her attention, he would find a pay phone and call Palmer at the house. The two would talk and talk, she said, before her mother made her hang up the phone.
In letters to Lewis, Larry would complain if Palmer took too long to write back to him. He sent her a tapestry from a visit to Mexico and a pink parachute he made for her in Vietnam. He carried Palmer’s high school photo in the band of his helmet. He was young and smitten. He was 19.
When Puhl returned home to Ohio from Walter Reed, his father told him he looked like a 40-year-old man. He worked for 42 years as a letter carrier for the U.S. Postal Service and got married and moved to Temperance, Michigan, where he later retired and became a minister.
Every year, on Veterans Day, Puhl visits Monroe Road Elementary School in Temperance and teaches the students about the Vietnam War. He brings photos of Larry and tells them to remember him. At the end of his talk, he reminds them of the pictures and tells them that the boy in the duckbill hat is dead, that he died six months after he went to Vietnam.
“I always say that Larry is teaching this generation that, ‘Yes, if we’re going to send our young people off to war, there is a price to pay,’” Puhl said. “And he is one of the greatest teachers I have.”
Every day, Puhl still asks Larry whether he’s doing good work in the life that he — by God’s grace or good fortune — was able to keep. Someday, he knows, they’ll meet again over a Coke or a beer and pick up exactly where they left off.
“I still keep in contact with him,” Puhl said. “And I know I always will.”
Follow Kate Masters on Twitter: @kamamasters.
Class of 1966
Marine Corps, 3 Years
Pfc. Larry Brashears died at 19. He was a quiet and happy boy who “accepted everything that came to him,” said his sister, Linda Slifer. Before he served with the Marines in the Vietnam War, Larry showed cattle at The Great Frederick Fair and lived with his parents at their farm on Water Street Road in Walkersville.
Sometimes, like any other teenager, Larry would get tired of his mother’s meals and register a complaint at the dinner table.
“I remember Mom would make vegetable soup and he would say, ‘That old stuff again?’” said his brother, Elmer Lewis. “I mean, he was just a normal kid. Like everybody else.”
Larry’s dream was to buy a Corvette when he got back from Vietnam. Not a Corvair, the car he owned before he left, but a sleeker, sportier model — the kind of car he could cruise the streets in. Sometimes, Slifer said, Larry talked about moving to California, or buying a motorcycle — the type of approachable dream that seemed heady and exhilarating to a teenage boy growing up on a small farm in Maryland.
Larry died at the side of his best friend, Pfc. Jim Puhl, another small-town 19-year-old, from Maumee, Ohio, who wanted to get out of Vietnam alive and buy a Chevrolet Malibu. On April 30, 1968, their unit — the 3rd Battalion, 9th Marines — came under heavy fire from North Vietnamese troops less than 10 miles from the demilitarized zone between North and South Vietnam.
The two men were part of a mortar team, Puhl said, and one of their last actions in Vietnam was to load the weapon with ammunition and return fire.
“I was the gunner, and I remember the last thing I said to Larry was, ‘Make sure the gun’s ready to go because we’re going to be shooting rounds off very shortly,’” Puhl said. “And that’s all I remember. I found out Larry died two weeks later, in Stars and Stripes magazine, where they listed the casualties.”
Months later, Larry’s parents visited Puhl at Walter Reed Medical Center, where he was recuperating from gunshot wounds to his head and shoulders. Puhl didn’t remember much about the meeting, and neither did Larry’s mother — Lewis said she was reluctant to talk about her son’s death until the final years of her life.
Lewis, on the other hand, spent years wondering about the Marines who served with his brother — especially the young man his parents visited in the hospital. Lewis said his parents never told him about the visit and he didn’t press them on it; talking about Larry made his mother too upset. But shortly before her death in 2016, he said, she handed him an envelope of letters and photographs Larry had sent during his time in Vietnam.
Lewis had already tracked down several Marines who served in the same battle as his brother. But after his mother gave him the photos, he wrote to the Marine Corps and requested three months of duty rosters from Larry’s time in Vietnam.
The records helped him track down one retired Marine, Ron Worby, who served in the same platoon as his brother and could name some of the other men in Lewis’ pictures. Worby told Lewis that Puhl was Larry’s best friend in the platoon and gave him a phone number in Michigan.
“After I got my nerve worked up, I called Jim and he called me back,” Lewis said. “And everything kind of snowballed from there. We corresponded back and forth, and then Jim gave me a Christmas present this year — he said he was coming to visit.”
On April 30 — 50 years after Larry’s death in Vietnam — Puhl accompanied Lewis and Slifer to Mount Olivet Cemetery in Frederick to visit his friend’s grave for the first time. Decades had dulled the guilt Puhl carried for years after Larry’s death, but the visit gave him a profound sense of loss — a clearer look at the life and family Larry left behind.
Vietnam, Puhl said, forced young American troops to grow up fast in a strange and hostile country. But while the specter of death lurked behind their shoulders, the men in his platoon rarely talked about danger. The only way to survive the present was to look ahead.
“We did not talk about death,” Puhl said. “We knew what the reality was, but if you sit and dwell on that reality while you’re there, you wouldn’t have made it. We talked about getting married and having kids. What kinds of jobs we may go into. Anything to make it seem like there was life going on after this.”
In Vietnam, Larry always wore the brim of his cap pushed upward, like the smiling upper bill of a duck. He would stockpile the Coca-Colas rationed out to Marines and drink them at the most inopportune times and places.
Once, Puhl said, Larry tied a rope to a sandbag filled with Cokes and pushed the sack into a stream near where he and Puhl were standing guard. When the sodas got cold, he pulled the bag out of the water, through the barbed wire, and guzzled the bottles while in the foxhole.
“Which was totally against regulation,” Puhl said. “But that’s just how he was. He would find some way to take the most difficult situation and find something we could just start laughing about.”
Even Lewis, nine years older, learned more about what Larry left behind in the years after his death. His brother never brought a girlfriend home to meet the family, he said. But after Larry’s funeral, a young woman who wrote to him in Vietnam called his mother and asked to speak with her.
Lewis remembered that his mother turned her down. But in 2013, he located the guest book from his brother’s burial and tracked down the woman — no small feat, given that she had married and changed her last name three times since Larry’s death.
Lewis wrote her a short letter and received a three-page response. The woman, Karen Palmer, said she met Larry in the weeks after he returned from basic training, before he was sent to Vietnam. Palmer’s mother was strict about dating, but Larry would drive by her house and honk the horn of his Corvair until she turned around and waved.
Once he got her attention, he would find a pay phone and call Palmer at the house. The two would talk and talk, she said, before her mother made her hang up the phone.
In letters to Lewis, Larry would complain if Palmer took too long to write back to him. He sent her a tapestry from a visit to Mexico and a pink parachute he made for her in Vietnam. He carried Palmer’s high school photo in the band of his helmet. He was young and smitten. He was 19.
When Puhl returned home to Ohio from Walter Reed, his father told him he looked like a 40-year-old man. He worked for 42 years as a letter carrier for the U.S. Postal Service and got married and moved to Temperance, Michigan, where he later retired and became a minister.
Every year, on Veterans Day, Puhl visits Monroe Road Elementary School in Temperance and teaches the students about the Vietnam War. He brings photos of Larry and tells them to remember him. At the end of his talk, he reminds them of the pictures and tells them that the boy in the duckbill hat is dead, that he died six months after he went to Vietnam.
“I always say that Larry is teaching this generation that, ‘Yes, if we’re going to send our young people off to war, there is a price to pay,’” Puhl said. “And he is one of the greatest teachers I have.”
Every day, Puhl still asks Larry whether he’s doing good work in the life that he — by God’s grace or good fortune — was able to keep. Someday, he knows, they’ll meet again over a Coke or a beer and pick up exactly where they left off.
“I still keep in contact with him,” Puhl said. “And I know I always will.”
Follow Kate Masters on Twitter: @kamamasters.
Lucas Bedard
Class of 2003
Navy, 8 Years
Currently stationed in Virginia Beach, VA.
Graduated from Navy basic in Great Lakes, Illinois in 2004. Deployed aboard the carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt to the middle east. Also served in Dubai.
Class of 2003
Navy, 8 Years
Currently stationed in Virginia Beach, VA.
Graduated from Navy basic in Great Lakes, Illinois in 2004. Deployed aboard the carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt to the middle east. Also served in Dubai.
Mark Anthony Plumer
Class of 1999
Army, 8 Years
served in the army as a vet tech done tours in Kosovo, traveled to other foriegn countries to administer care to animals
Class of 1999
Army, 8 Years
served in the army as a vet tech done tours in Kosovo, traveled to other foriegn countries to administer care to animals
Michael Wachter
Class of 1993
Navy, 25 Years
Michael Wachter, 48, of Hope, NJ passed away on Monday, April 1, 2024. Michael was born on July 2, 1975, in Frederick, MD to Gary and Kay Wachter.
He was a graduate of Walkersville High School class of 1993. Shortly after graduation he joined the United States Navy on July 18, 1995, and retired on July 31, 2020 where he achieved the rank of Chief. He became a Deep-Sea diver medical tech then Independent Duty Corpsman (IDC), which allowed him to travel the world, experience the wonderful sights, and permit him to work alongside some of the greatest divers in the world.
Once retired, he finished his bachelor’s in science nursing degree and cared for patients in several disciplines including correctional, hospice and inpatient care.
Michael is survived by his fiancé, Dr. Terry Clancy, daughter, Cortney Henderson, grandson, Noah Henderson and his parents Gary and Kay Wachter, sister, Dawn Garvey and husband Matt and family as well as many aunts, uncles and extended family.
Family and friends may pay their respects from 10AM to 11AM, on Monday, April 15, 2024 at the Keeney and Basford Funeral Home, 106 E. Church Street, Frederick, MD. The funeral will follow at 11AM.
Interment with military honors will be at 1:00PM on Tuesday, April 16, 2024 at Garrison Forest Veterans Cemetery, 11501 Garrison Forest Road, Owings Mill, MD.
In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made in Michael's name to Cold Nose Warm Heart Dog Rescue, PO Box 43, Succasunna, NJ 07876.
To send an online condolence, please visit www.keeneybasford.com.
Class of 1993
Navy, 25 Years
Michael Wachter, 48, of Hope, NJ passed away on Monday, April 1, 2024. Michael was born on July 2, 1975, in Frederick, MD to Gary and Kay Wachter.
He was a graduate of Walkersville High School class of 1993. Shortly after graduation he joined the United States Navy on July 18, 1995, and retired on July 31, 2020 where he achieved the rank of Chief. He became a Deep-Sea diver medical tech then Independent Duty Corpsman (IDC), which allowed him to travel the world, experience the wonderful sights, and permit him to work alongside some of the greatest divers in the world.
Once retired, he finished his bachelor’s in science nursing degree and cared for patients in several disciplines including correctional, hospice and inpatient care.
Michael is survived by his fiancé, Dr. Terry Clancy, daughter, Cortney Henderson, grandson, Noah Henderson and his parents Gary and Kay Wachter, sister, Dawn Garvey and husband Matt and family as well as many aunts, uncles and extended family.
Family and friends may pay their respects from 10AM to 11AM, on Monday, April 15, 2024 at the Keeney and Basford Funeral Home, 106 E. Church Street, Frederick, MD. The funeral will follow at 11AM.
Interment with military honors will be at 1:00PM on Tuesday, April 16, 2024 at Garrison Forest Veterans Cemetery, 11501 Garrison Forest Road, Owings Mill, MD.
In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made in Michael's name to Cold Nose Warm Heart Dog Rescue, PO Box 43, Succasunna, NJ 07876.
To send an online condolence, please visit www.keeneybasford.com.
Ray Thomas Lescalleet
Class of 1965
Air Force, 13 Years
After graduation, Tom entered the U.S. Air Force in March 1966 at Lackland Air Force Base in Texas. Tom's technical training was in Wichita, Kan. and from there, he was assigned to the 99th Bomb Wing at Chicagee, Mass. as crew chief for the 8th Air Force Commander. In 1969, Tom served with the 311th "Bookie Birds" in Vietnam at DiNang.
Tom served at Seymore-Johnson 68th Bomb Wing. In 1973, he cross-trained in to full time flight engineer on C-130's, in Little Rock, Ark. In 1973 to 1975, in Abilene, Texas, he served with the 72nd Airlift Wing. In 1975 to 1978, he was stationed in Woodbridge, England with the 67th Rescue, flying C-130's H/P/N Air refueling tankers.
In 1978 to 1979, Tom served with the 432nd D.W. wing flying C-13's Drones. In 1979, he returned to Little Rock as a flight engineer instructor, 16 Tactical Airlift Training Squadron, and the 34th Technical Training Squadron, 34th Tactical Airlift Training Group, 314th Tactical Airlift Wing from March 23 to April 30, 1986.
A gifted instructor, the students Tom trained reflect his dedication to the highest standards of integrity and performance. The course structure he designed and implemented stands as testimony to his technical expertise and his administrative talents. The completed construction and renovation of the academic and squadron office and classrooms will stand as a lasting monument of his dedication and presence as a manager.
Tom received the following awards for his service: Master Crew Wings, Mertorial Service, Unit Presidential Award, Longevity Award, Good Conduct Award, Small Arms Expect, NCO Leadership, NCO Academy, Vietnam Campaign, Vietnam Award, and Joint Service Award.
Class of 1965
Air Force, 13 Years
After graduation, Tom entered the U.S. Air Force in March 1966 at Lackland Air Force Base in Texas. Tom's technical training was in Wichita, Kan. and from there, he was assigned to the 99th Bomb Wing at Chicagee, Mass. as crew chief for the 8th Air Force Commander. In 1969, Tom served with the 311th "Bookie Birds" in Vietnam at DiNang.
Tom served at Seymore-Johnson 68th Bomb Wing. In 1973, he cross-trained in to full time flight engineer on C-130's, in Little Rock, Ark. In 1973 to 1975, in Abilene, Texas, he served with the 72nd Airlift Wing. In 1975 to 1978, he was stationed in Woodbridge, England with the 67th Rescue, flying C-130's H/P/N Air refueling tankers.
In 1978 to 1979, Tom served with the 432nd D.W. wing flying C-13's Drones. In 1979, he returned to Little Rock as a flight engineer instructor, 16 Tactical Airlift Training Squadron, and the 34th Technical Training Squadron, 34th Tactical Airlift Training Group, 314th Tactical Airlift Wing from March 23 to April 30, 1986.
A gifted instructor, the students Tom trained reflect his dedication to the highest standards of integrity and performance. The course structure he designed and implemented stands as testimony to his technical expertise and his administrative talents. The completed construction and renovation of the academic and squadron office and classrooms will stand as a lasting monument of his dedication and presence as a manager.
Tom received the following awards for his service: Master Crew Wings, Mertorial Service, Unit Presidential Award, Longevity Award, Good Conduct Award, Small Arms Expect, NCO Leadership, NCO Academy, Vietnam Campaign, Vietnam Award, and Joint Service Award.
Ray Thomas Lescalleet
Class of 1965
Air Force, 13 Years
After graduation, Tom entered the U.S. Air Force in March 1966 at Lackland Air Force Base in Texas. Tom's technical training was in Wichita, Kan. and from there, he was assigned to the 99th Bomb Wing at Chicagee, Mass. as crew chief for the 8th Air Force Commander. In 1969, Tom served with the 311th "Bookie Birds" in Vietnam at DiNang.
Tom served at Seymore-Johnson 68th Bomb Wing. In 1973, he cross-trained in to full time flight engineer on C-130's, in Little Rock, Ark. In 1973 to 1975, in Abilene, Texas, he served with the 72nd Airlift Wing. In 1975 to 1978, he was stationed in Woodbridge, England with the 67th Rescue, flying C-130's H/P/N Air refueling tankers.
In 1978 to 1979, Tom served with the 432nd D.W. wing flying C-13's Drones. In 1979, he returned to Little Rock as a flight engineer instructor, 16 Tactical Airlift Training Squadron, and the 34th Technical Training Squadron, 34th Tactical Airlift Training Group, 314th Tactical Airlift Wing from March 23 to April 30, 1986.
A gifted instructor, the students Tom trained reflect his dedication to the highest standards of integrity and performance. The course structure he designed and implemented stands as testimony to his technical expertise and his administrative talents. The completed construction and renovation of the academic and squadron office and classrooms will stand as a lasting monument of his dedication and presence as a manager.
Tom received the following awards for his service: Master Crew Wings, Mertorial Service, Unit Presidential Award, Longevity Award, Good Conduct Award, Small Arms Expect, NCO Leadership, NCO Academy, Vietnam Campaign, Vietnam Award, and Joint Service Award.
Class of 1965
Air Force, 13 Years
After graduation, Tom entered the U.S. Air Force in March 1966 at Lackland Air Force Base in Texas. Tom's technical training was in Wichita, Kan. and from there, he was assigned to the 99th Bomb Wing at Chicagee, Mass. as crew chief for the 8th Air Force Commander. In 1969, Tom served with the 311th "Bookie Birds" in Vietnam at DiNang.
Tom served at Seymore-Johnson 68th Bomb Wing. In 1973, he cross-trained in to full time flight engineer on C-130's, in Little Rock, Ark. In 1973 to 1975, in Abilene, Texas, he served with the 72nd Airlift Wing. In 1975 to 1978, he was stationed in Woodbridge, England with the 67th Rescue, flying C-130's H/P/N Air refueling tankers.
In 1978 to 1979, Tom served with the 432nd D.W. wing flying C-13's Drones. In 1979, he returned to Little Rock as a flight engineer instructor, 16 Tactical Airlift Training Squadron, and the 34th Technical Training Squadron, 34th Tactical Airlift Training Group, 314th Tactical Airlift Wing from March 23 to April 30, 1986.
A gifted instructor, the students Tom trained reflect his dedication to the highest standards of integrity and performance. The course structure he designed and implemented stands as testimony to his technical expertise and his administrative talents. The completed construction and renovation of the academic and squadron office and classrooms will stand as a lasting monument of his dedication and presence as a manager.
Tom received the following awards for his service: Master Crew Wings, Mertorial Service, Unit Presidential Award, Longevity Award, Good Conduct Award, Small Arms Expect, NCO Leadership, NCO Academy, Vietnam Campaign, Vietnam Award, and Joint Service Award.
Richard M. Toms
Class of 1946
Air Force, 21 Years
Richard M. Toms, 85, of Walkersville, died Monday, March 31, 2014.
Born Aug. 28, 1928, in Woodsboro, he was the son of the late E. Norman and Helena Young Toms. He was the husband of the late Catherine R. Toms, his wife of 59 years.
He attended school in New Midway and worked on the family farm. He was a 1946 graduate of Walkersville High School. He joined the Air Force in May 1948 and upon completion of basic training, he was stationed at Kessler Field in Mississippi, where he completed aircraft and engine school. Upon completing school he immediately departed for Germany as a participant in the Berlin Airlift. Returning to the United States, he was stationed at Andrews Air Force Base for four years. That was followed by an assignment in Japan during the Korean War, where he served as a test flight engineer on B-26s after major inspections and maintenance and later as a flight engineer flying to and from Korea completing weather and recon flights over the Yellow Sea.
In 1954, he was able to return to the U.S., where he met his then one-year-old daughter for the first time. He transitioned onto F-100 jets at George AFB in California before returning to Andrews AFB. While at Andrews, he served as honor guard for President Eisenhower and Premier Khrushchev during a visit in 1959. In 1963, he was deployed to Saudi Arabia for mission duty and later returned to California to an F-101 Squadron at Oxnard AFB, in an Air Defense Command. At Oxnard AFB, he received a promotion to master sergeant and was distinguished as non-commissioned officer of the year for the 28th Air Defense Command. This award was presented annually at the Air Force Association awards ceremony in Washington, D.C., and in recognition for his service he traveled to the ceremony on a T-39.
In 1965, he and his family moved to England for a three-year tour of duty in a NATO Fighter Squadron. After being promoted to senior master sergeant, he spent time on alert in Turkey and Italy and was responsible for a crew of men and nine aircraft; three of which were on alert status, armed for immediate action, with at least one uploaded with nuclear weapons.
While living in England, he enjoyed collecting clocks and exploring Europe with family. Returning from England, he was stationed at McGuire AFB in New Jersey, where he was assigned to C-141 aircraft, and later retired after 22 years of service. He was awarded a Commendation Medal, Berlin Airlift-Germany Occupation Medal, Korean Service Medal, United Nations Korean Service Medal, National Defense Service Medal, Air Force NCO Academy Service Medal, Good Conduct Medal with Bronze loop and more.
After retiring from the Air Force, the first day of December 1969, he accepted the position of plant manager for the Central Chemical Company in Hagerstown. He was promoted to branch manager for the Chemicals and Fertilizer division, which included plants in Pennsylvania, New York, New England and Ohio. While there he enjoyed returning to Germany, visiting the Mercedes plant and purchasing company cars as a Central Chemical representative. In 1983, he accepted a position with Crop Production Services in Keymar and retired in 1986 to become the transportation officer for the Way Station in Frederick, a nonprofit dedicated to providing behavioral health care. In 1993, he fully retired to his home, garden and small farm in Woodsboro.
He was a member of Air Force Sergeants Association, Retired Enlisted Association, Glen Eyler Post 282 of American Legion of Woodsboro, The Frederick County Genealogy Society and Korean War Vets Association (Chapter 142 of Frederick). Since January 1970, he had been a member of South End Baptist Church, where he served as Sunday school teacher, deacon and building committee member and chairman. He also served as manager of the church's softball team for 10 years, taking the team to the Baptist National Softball Tournament six of those years.
Surviving are brothers Charles Toms and wife Libby, of Frederick, George Toms and wife Doris, of Walkersville, Roland Toms and wife Evelyn, of New Oxford, Pa.; sisters Nancy Horner and husband Fred, of New Windsor, and Phyllis Naundorf and husband Ernie, of Walkersville; and a sister-in-law, Marion Toms, of Sacramento, Calif., son Richard Toms Jr. and wife Pam, of Woodsboro; daughter Deborah and husband Wayne Peterson, of Walkersville; grandchildren Jeremy Peterson and wife Jennifer, of Walkersville, Timothy Peterson and wife Danielle, of Great Falls, Va., Chelsey Sleeter and husband Dan, of San Antonio, Texas, and Ashlen Cotterman and husband Chad, of Spokane, Wash.; great-grandchildren Abigail, Madison, Audrey, Owen, Cole, Koltan, Sadie, Faith, Brynn, Landon and Silas; step-grandchildren Shelley, Brooke and Katie; and numerous step great-grandchildren.
He was predeceased by brothers Norman Jr. and John Toms; and a sister, Judy Carl.
Visitation will be held from 2 to 4 and 7 to 9 p.m. Thursday at Stauffer's Funeral Home, 1621 Opossumtown Pike, Frederick.
A memorial service will be held at 11 a.m. Friday at South End Baptist Church, 506 Carrollton Drive, Frederick. Interment will be held at a later date in Arlington National Cemetery.
In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be sent to South End Baptist Church, 506 Carrollton Drive, Frederick, MD 21701; or the Korean War Vets Association, Chapter 142 of Frederick at www.kwva.org.
Online condolences may be offered at www.staufferfuneralhome.com.
Class of 1946
Air Force, 21 Years
Richard M. Toms, 85, of Walkersville, died Monday, March 31, 2014.
Born Aug. 28, 1928, in Woodsboro, he was the son of the late E. Norman and Helena Young Toms. He was the husband of the late Catherine R. Toms, his wife of 59 years.
He attended school in New Midway and worked on the family farm. He was a 1946 graduate of Walkersville High School. He joined the Air Force in May 1948 and upon completion of basic training, he was stationed at Kessler Field in Mississippi, where he completed aircraft and engine school. Upon completing school he immediately departed for Germany as a participant in the Berlin Airlift. Returning to the United States, he was stationed at Andrews Air Force Base for four years. That was followed by an assignment in Japan during the Korean War, where he served as a test flight engineer on B-26s after major inspections and maintenance and later as a flight engineer flying to and from Korea completing weather and recon flights over the Yellow Sea.
In 1954, he was able to return to the U.S., where he met his then one-year-old daughter for the first time. He transitioned onto F-100 jets at George AFB in California before returning to Andrews AFB. While at Andrews, he served as honor guard for President Eisenhower and Premier Khrushchev during a visit in 1959. In 1963, he was deployed to Saudi Arabia for mission duty and later returned to California to an F-101 Squadron at Oxnard AFB, in an Air Defense Command. At Oxnard AFB, he received a promotion to master sergeant and was distinguished as non-commissioned officer of the year for the 28th Air Defense Command. This award was presented annually at the Air Force Association awards ceremony in Washington, D.C., and in recognition for his service he traveled to the ceremony on a T-39.
In 1965, he and his family moved to England for a three-year tour of duty in a NATO Fighter Squadron. After being promoted to senior master sergeant, he spent time on alert in Turkey and Italy and was responsible for a crew of men and nine aircraft; three of which were on alert status, armed for immediate action, with at least one uploaded with nuclear weapons.
While living in England, he enjoyed collecting clocks and exploring Europe with family. Returning from England, he was stationed at McGuire AFB in New Jersey, where he was assigned to C-141 aircraft, and later retired after 22 years of service. He was awarded a Commendation Medal, Berlin Airlift-Germany Occupation Medal, Korean Service Medal, United Nations Korean Service Medal, National Defense Service Medal, Air Force NCO Academy Service Medal, Good Conduct Medal with Bronze loop and more.
After retiring from the Air Force, the first day of December 1969, he accepted the position of plant manager for the Central Chemical Company in Hagerstown. He was promoted to branch manager for the Chemicals and Fertilizer division, which included plants in Pennsylvania, New York, New England and Ohio. While there he enjoyed returning to Germany, visiting the Mercedes plant and purchasing company cars as a Central Chemical representative. In 1983, he accepted a position with Crop Production Services in Keymar and retired in 1986 to become the transportation officer for the Way Station in Frederick, a nonprofit dedicated to providing behavioral health care. In 1993, he fully retired to his home, garden and small farm in Woodsboro.
He was a member of Air Force Sergeants Association, Retired Enlisted Association, Glen Eyler Post 282 of American Legion of Woodsboro, The Frederick County Genealogy Society and Korean War Vets Association (Chapter 142 of Frederick). Since January 1970, he had been a member of South End Baptist Church, where he served as Sunday school teacher, deacon and building committee member and chairman. He also served as manager of the church's softball team for 10 years, taking the team to the Baptist National Softball Tournament six of those years.
Surviving are brothers Charles Toms and wife Libby, of Frederick, George Toms and wife Doris, of Walkersville, Roland Toms and wife Evelyn, of New Oxford, Pa.; sisters Nancy Horner and husband Fred, of New Windsor, and Phyllis Naundorf and husband Ernie, of Walkersville; and a sister-in-law, Marion Toms, of Sacramento, Calif., son Richard Toms Jr. and wife Pam, of Woodsboro; daughter Deborah and husband Wayne Peterson, of Walkersville; grandchildren Jeremy Peterson and wife Jennifer, of Walkersville, Timothy Peterson and wife Danielle, of Great Falls, Va., Chelsey Sleeter and husband Dan, of San Antonio, Texas, and Ashlen Cotterman and husband Chad, of Spokane, Wash.; great-grandchildren Abigail, Madison, Audrey, Owen, Cole, Koltan, Sadie, Faith, Brynn, Landon and Silas; step-grandchildren Shelley, Brooke and Katie; and numerous step great-grandchildren.
He was predeceased by brothers Norman Jr. and John Toms; and a sister, Judy Carl.
Visitation will be held from 2 to 4 and 7 to 9 p.m. Thursday at Stauffer's Funeral Home, 1621 Opossumtown Pike, Frederick.
A memorial service will be held at 11 a.m. Friday at South End Baptist Church, 506 Carrollton Drive, Frederick. Interment will be held at a later date in Arlington National Cemetery.
In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be sent to South End Baptist Church, 506 Carrollton Drive, Frederick, MD 21701; or the Korean War Vets Association, Chapter 142 of Frederick at www.kwva.org.
Online condolences may be offered at www.staufferfuneralhome.com.
Ronnie Eugene West
Class of 1965
Army, 2 Years
I was drafted on June 30, 1966. I went for
8 weeks of Basic Training at Ft. Jackson, S.C. After that I was sent to AIT Traiining at Ft. Eustis, VA. I was then sent to Vietnam for a year from November 1966 through November 1967, with the 25th & 4th Infantry Divisions. After Vietnam I spent my last 6 months at Ft. George G. Meade, MD with the Legal Department. I was Honorably Discharged on June 28, 1968.
Class of 1965
Army, 2 Years
I was drafted on June 30, 1966. I went for
8 weeks of Basic Training at Ft. Jackson, S.C. After that I was sent to AIT Traiining at Ft. Eustis, VA. I was then sent to Vietnam for a year from November 1966 through November 1967, with the 25th & 4th Infantry Divisions. After Vietnam I spent my last 6 months at Ft. George G. Meade, MD with the Legal Department. I was Honorably Discharged on June 28, 1968.
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Our Walkersville High School military alumni are some of the most outstanding people we know and this page recognizes them and everything they have done! Not everyone gets to come home for the holidays and we want our Walkersville High School Military to know that they are loved and appreciated. All of us in Walkersville are proud of our military alumni and want to thank them for risking their lives to protect our country!