Received this letter. Yes, another fine seahorse has passed away. Wished I could have met him. All the best to Doreen and her family. Please accept my condolences.

Marion,

 

letting you know my father, Manuel Ramos passed away peacefully last night of congestive heart failure which he had several years.

 

Dad was with the 36th Engineer Combat Regiment during WWII 1943 to 1945.

 

Attended the 36th reunion back in the mid 80's in Lebanon PA.

 

We will miss dad.

 

Doreen Ramos

Daughter of Manuel Ramos

Helping Jayne...I wrote back to her and told her what routes to explore and that I would also post this on our forum.

Hello,

I have looked at the amazing site you've created in honor of your dad while looking for info on my own. I was especially interested in locating information on men who served with the U.S. Army, 1612th Engineer Forestry Company during WWII. My dad was a Combat Engineer who took part of the South West Pacific Theater - Allied Operations Campaign but I cannot find any detail on the Internet. He enlisted in September 1943 from western New York, was inducted at Camp Upton in NY > received basic training at Camp Monroe in Louisina > was sent to Camp Stoneman in California > and then was shipped to the Island of New Guinea > Luzon, Phillippines > Island of Morati.

I would be happy to locate any books or online information / memories from the men that were in the 1612th.

Thank you,

Jayne in Buffalo, NY

You can't dispute it, my nature we are drawn to some people more than others and this was no exception.

It took me DAYS to post this, for when I do, it makes it SO final. Does anyone else feel that way too. It's as though if you don't talk about it and don't write about it, he is still here...

I shall miss you TREMENDOUSLY, David Wagner. I am filling up with tears as I write this. I hate this, I really do.

David and I (and his dear wife, Selma), became very, very close over the last 8 years. David was one of my first contacts and we talked via email and phone, frequently. I shall miss hearing his sweet voice and words. Hard to believe I shant hear from him again. But I have very good memories and will be able to hear his voice in my documentary. So glad I got his story.

Selma called me the very next day and left a message telling me of his passing. It took me two days to call her back because...

She told me, "David thought the world of you.." Oh how my heart ached.

So to my wonderful friend. I love you and shall never, never forget you. :(

http://www.6thcorpscombatengineers.com/DavidWagner.htm

Was doing some research for a new forum member and stumbled upon this page which lists a few dozen engineer units. I noticed they also had a reference for the 540th. Hmmmm!

http://www.ibiblio.org/pub/academic/history/marshall/military/mil_hist_inst/e/engr3c.asc

Looks like you would have to contact this address and ask them how to obtain any of the listed materials on the page above. (I DO NOT currently know where these materials are currently kept. - Maybe it's at the university.)

http://www.ibiblio.org/help/contact/

CB #3456, Manning Hall

UNC-Chapel Hill

Chapel Hill, North Carolina 27599-3456

I found this on line, maybe it'll help someone.

November 28, 2006

SWINDELL, WALTER J.

Walter J. Swindell, 86, of Wethersfield, beloved husband for 61 years of Virginia (DeLauro) Swindell, died Monday, (November 27, 2006) at Hartford Hospital. Born in Hartford he lived in Wethersfield for most of his life. He was a WW II veteran of the U.S. Army serving as a combat medic in three invasions with the 367th engineer combat battalion. Early in his career he was employed by Federal Mogul Auto Parts and retired in 1992 as a health inspector from the City of Hartford. He also was a self-employed real estate broker. He was a member of the Gray-Dickinson American Legion Post in Windsor, the Wethersfield VFW Post and the Wethersfield Taxpayers Assn. Besides his wife, he is survived by his son and daughter-in-law, Stephen M. and Theresa Swindell of Holyoke, MA; two grandchildren, Stephanie Brunelle and Jason M. Swindell; and three great-grandchildren, Nicholas, Abigail and Jake. The funeral is Thursday at 9:15 a.m. from the D'Esopo Funeral Chapel, 277 Folly Brook Blvd. Wethersfield with a Mass of Christian Burial at 10 a.m. in Sacred Heart Church, 56 Hartford Ave., Wethersfield. Burial will be in Rose Hill Memorial Park, Rocky Hill with full military honors. The family will receive relatives and friends on Wednesday from 5-7 p.m. at the funeral home.