George F. Vonderheide
Master Sergeant
United States Army Finance Corps
George F. Vonderheide, the son of George and Lulu Vonderheide, attended South High School in Denver, Colorado. He later worked for the Great Western Sugar Company and a grain elevator company.
In June 1937, George enlisted in the United States Army. After three months at Fort Warren, Wyoming, he was selected to attend the Army's Finance School at Baltimore, Maryland. Upon completion of training, George returned to Fort Warren to serve in the finance department.
In October 1938, he was sent overseas to serve two years at Fort Statsenburg, Pampanga, 65 miles north of Manila, Philippines. He was scheduled to return to the United States in December 1941 on an evacuation ship that was later sunk in the Pacific.
In December 1941, George's parents received word that he came through the bombing of Fort Statsenburg without injury and he cabled greetings to his family at Christmas. After the fall of Corregidor, the War Department reported him Missing In Action. On 31 December 1942, George's parents received word that he was listed as a Prisoner of War.
On 2 July 1943, George's parents received word that he had died of disease in a Japanese prison camp on 20 September 1942.
George was survived by his parents; two sisters, Adelaide and Edith; and a half-brother, Alfred Eddy Custer.
Master Sergeant George F. Vonderheide, United States Army, is buried in the Manila American Cemetery, Manila, Philippines.
Source of information:
1. The Denver Post, 2 July 1943, page 1.
4. American Battle Monuments Commission (ABMC) web site, http://www.abmc.gov/home.php.