Marine Corps Private First Class Glenn White is home.
The 19-year-old soldier, killed during the later stages of World War II, was returned to Emporia via a law enforcement and American Legion Riders motorcycle procession around 3:30 pm Friday. Several area residents lined the escort route into Emporia, including Friday’s overnight stop at Roberts-Blue-Barnett Funeral Home.
A second procession begins at 10:30 am Saturday and takes White from the funeral home to Memorial Lawn Cemetery for burial, including Marine Corps honors, beginning at 11 am. The public is encouraged to attend the procession and/or the burial.
White was killed in action during fierce fighting in the Gilbert Islands, part of the Pacific Theater, in November 1943. White’s unit and other Allied forces eventually drove the Japanese defenders off the island chain, but not before nearly 1,000 American soldiers in the Second Marine Division — White included — died during the fighting. All told, over 6,400 soldiers, including Americans, Japanese and Koreans, were killed.
