19, 1993 The Message --for Catholics of Southwestern Indiana
Veterans' Day: Remembering names and faces
By MARY ANN HUGHES mention. During that fight, our
Message staff writer
Last week, when Walt Lewis
spoke at Memorial High School
EVansvi,, -
le, about Veteran's
Da.y, he didn't talk about
qates, or places, or statistics.
,,e Simply talked about two
Vansville brothers who both
u! and died from injuries
" received in World War
One,
Lewis, a '
• " "o-year veteran of
the military and curre
princinal ..... ntly
_t . • = rtarrlson High
?aOOl, Evansville, believes it's
rnpOrtant to emphasi
and fa° ,. - se names
o, o ers
show +_. P onahze to
death: " ln.pt of a soldier's
eol au:l+ n. is tamily and his
re --""'nW s. began his speech b
all ,:Umg the students th: y
,.t .r Stories are t
ae ha,. ,,_ he same
grsr ipar mey are heard from
rett rin:' or from soldiers
fron r, s Irom Somalia or
ver pee:::t Storm: They are
A] ho-":"
' uga the news m
aa pre .... edia
0the sto' War as "just an-
Port ,, ,_ - ewis said it's "
face: nnd "the names anmd
tHl tied do that in his t
to
ng 0.:_ he Students b .... alk
t -era ..-'.- y present-
"roth._ wtn the sto of
• ,ers, hit ry two
uvt "mert and
r "aOUse. i_ Paul
:ias:enWor;t, bi°:dh i born in
o in " ana, and
Were ho-- EVansville The
letic _ a StUdio,.. ". .. y
A_ .' POPUla_ . anct atn-
tl the, _ and well-liked.
army wh outs enlisted in the
!he War en World War 0.
-en00 all Wars, 00o'L
ans believed that if
COuld be defeated,
Would be safe for-
Said. The new
time, airplanes,
and gas, terri-
W and civilians
br0t_ ea the two
1"- ers a--- . runkhouser
18, ' rlveci i
ia aP they foua n l rance in
. Wars h- u What soldiers
• ',e, filth .ave Ibund: barbed
°tPlessJ ",s, mud ic ....
¢x ,tess , -tclon,
all,, r hon1, .vUnkhouser,s
parents
oft With"tewis shared
me Students:
bly 1}ear MOther and Father:
'Your letters that
places in
am still in
company.
n the place you
battalion won a very good
name for itself." I was in com-
mand of guns and also did liai-
son work. Had the pleasure of
seeing the Boche killed on the
other side of the river and let
them know they were not fight-
ing second-class soldiers, as
they have described the United
States troops in their newspa-
pers. I think that is as hot a
place, or was, as I will get in.
During the fight we were initi-
ated in this war. High explo-
sives were rained on our side of
the river along With numerous
gas attacks. We also became ac-
quainted with the feelings of
being shot at by machine guns,
as well as shooting them. Of
course, that fight is over a
month old now. We have been
in action quite regular since
then. Our division is in the
hottest part of the drive now in
action, and it is making a
name for itself that will last.
The Boches are falling back;
they are suffering great casual-
ties and losing many men. The
United States is surprising the
world in the way she is han-
dling the war situation, and is
doing everything to bring an
early close to the war. With
troops coming over as they are,
and the people at home behind
them as they are, I don't see
how the Hun will hold out very
long Some of the Hun soldiers
are worthy of praise, but most
of them are of inferior grade as
soldiers. Have a small collec-
tion of souvenirs taken from the
Boches but can't send anything
home as, of course, you know.
Received letters from all of
you today and from A.C. Am
certainly glad to get them, as
well as I am the newspaper
clippings. I received mail from
you while in action last week.
Read them in my dugout, and,
take it from me, if there is any-
thing that is appreciated here,
it is mail. Of course, I don't
write enough to let you know
all I am doing When a division
is in action and chasing
Boches, there isn't much time,
but remember I have written
you many times that "no news
is good news, "and so you must
think. Of course, it is natural
for you all to worry, but there
isn't any reason for you to do
so. There isn't any Boches
going to get me, and if they
should you will hear of it very
shortly afterward, so don't
worry when you don't hear
from me. I am all O.K. and in
fine spirits and health, and in-
tend to remain the same. Now
both of you just content your-
Walt Lewis, a 28-year veteran of the military and cur-
rently principal at Harrison High School, Evansville,
spoke to students at Memorial High School, Evansville,
about Veteran's Day. Above, are Gerry Adams, Memorial's
principal, Lewis, and Deacon Dave Franklin, a Theology
teacher at Memorial.
-- Message photo by Mary Ann Hughes
selves and think that I'll be
back home and as much in the
way as ever -- even before you
really know I have been away.
You may take it from me that I
think of both of you always and
am trying to live the life that
will make me worthy of being
the son of such a mother and
father as yourselves. The longer
I am away the more I realize
how good and fine you both
are, and, although it is not all
flowers and sunshine, it is
working wonders for all of us
in many ways.
I don't know when I will get
to write to you again, but I will
be thinking of you, and just re-
member I am O.K. I wish you
could send me a small picture
of everyone in the family. My
belongings are strewn from one
end of France to the other, and
I only have photographs I can
carry in my pocketbook.
I guess both Alta and Ruth
think they are being neglected,
but I think they read my letters
home and I think of them, and
when I have time will write
both of them.
Am certainly proud of my
brother, Albert C. He has had a
hard road to travel and has
made good under hard circum-
stances. Am going to write him
this evening.
This brings love to the best
mother and father alive, and
hope to be with you before long.
Your loving son, P. T
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That was Paul's last letter
home. He was killed in action
while leading an attack on Oct.
20, 1918, and he was buried in
the American section of the
cemetery at Ferm de Made-
laine.
Lewis reminded the students
that letters home from the
front, whether from Manassas
during the American Civil War
or from a French soldier, "are
all the same. "
That same October, Albert
Funkhouser was wounded in
his right knee and in his right
hand during battle. He was
awarded the Croix de Guerre
by the French Republic for gal-
lantry. Because of his injuries,
he was removed from heavy
fighting to a more secure area,
but while there, he was gassed.
Although, Albert did re-
turned to the United States in
1919, his lungs were weak
from being gassed and he con-
tracted lobar pneumonia. He
never mentioned his serious
medical condition to his family
and asked a college friend
"don't tell my parents."
His one wish was to live long
enough to get his brother's
body returned to Evansville. In
1919, Paul's body was interred
in Oak Hill Cemetery and
shortly after, Albert's body was
placed beside it.
"These two men are more
like all other soldiers than dif-
ferent," Lewis said, "because
their loss was very significant
to their families and to their
communities.
Wars tend to depersonalize.
It's important to personalize
war. Then we can stop them."
i ii
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11
home in Valparaiso, He was
841He attended all four yes-
sions of the Second Vtican
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