Growing up we always knew about our Uncle Alvin. We had heard the story of his death many times, and it made us feel as though we actually met him.
During WWII, both my Dad and my Uncle Chet were in the military. . .my Dad, Leo, was in the Army in Europe, and my Uncle Chet was a Marine in the Pacific battle and eventually in Korea. Alvin was the youngest Brother and he so wanted to be a part of the war. Being that my Grandfather was sickly, he was not required to go, but he begged my Grandmother to let him join, to a point that she finally gave in and signed the papers for him.
Alvin joined the Marines and ended up in the Battle of Peleliu, in the Pacific Island of Palau in 1944. He was missing in action. We never really knew what had actually happened. . .there were stories, but we didn’t know what was actually true.
Years later, when I worked at a dealership, I got an email one morning from a man who said that he had information from his Father about my Uncle Alvin. . .I was ecstatic to say the least!! I replied to him and he told me a story. . .his Father was Alvin’s commanding officer. Alvin’s platoon was sent to the beach to fight, but Alvin was to stay back and wait for them to return. He wasn’t happy with that and begged his commanding officer to let him go. . .again, Alvin was relentless, until the Commander agreed to let him go. He was sent with another Marine to the beach. . .they barely got there when they were hit by fire and blown up. . .his remains were never recovered.
His Commanding Officer eventually sent me a letter. . .he felt guilty for all those years. I told him it wasn’t his fault, Alvin did the same thing to my Grandmother, begging relentlessly. I hoped that would give him some closure, as his story did for us.
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| PFC. Alvin Alton Bielat |
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| PFC. Leon Joseph Bielat |
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| Sgt. Chester Francis Bielat |
