Howard Allan Parkison
"Parkie"
Marine Corps Reserve | Service Number 427600
May 26, 1943
in Canisteo, NY
Allen John Parkison
Violet Mae (Granger) Parkison
Fairport High School (ex-1943)
New York Central Railroad
August 24, 1942
at Buffalo, NY
October 19, 1942
from 6th Sep. Recruit Bn., New River
February 1, 1944
Killed in action at Namur
February 1, 1944
Killed in action
22 Hurlburt Avenue, Fairport, NY – home of mother, Mrs. Violet Parkison
Service & Campaigns
Boot camp with 6th Separate Recruit Battalion, New River, NC. Outposted directly to HQ Company, First Separate Battalion (Reinforced) on 19 October 1942. Transferred to D Company on 10 November 1942.
Outfit: D/1/24th Marines (2nd MG Platoon)
Rank: PFC
MOS: 504 (Ammo handler) – acting squad leader
Important Events:
February 1, 1944 – killed in action at Namur (gunshot, head) shortly before nightfall, after taking over gunner’s position from wounded buddy
Individual Decorations
Medal
Purple Heart
Campaign
Namur (Feb. 1, 1944)
Citation
Service Stories
“What comes to mind is sometimes I’d hear somebody yell, ‘Where there’s Pope, there’s hope!’ And that guy was killed, incidentally. His name was Parkison….”
“I do not know how many men we lost along the way. I saw the body of Carmen Ramputi, one of the company comedians. Steve Navara was lying on his back, staring at the sky with unseeing eyes. My friend Parkison died, and I noticed he bled all over a picture of his wife to be. They were among my close personal friends. All through the war, when I saw a dead man with his eyes wide open, I wondered what he was looking at when his soul left his body.”
My Dear Mrs. Parkison,
By now you have received official notification that your son Howard gave his life in battle against the Japanese on Namur Island. I write not to reopen old wounds, but with the subsiding of the initial shock and the full realization of your loss I feel you wish more information that contained in the government's official notice.
On Namur Island February 1st our battalion was landed in reserve a short while after the assault waves attacked. We immediately took the initiative and pushed forward to the front – met the Japs – and continued our forward movement forcing the enemy to withdraw before us. They were in considerable numbers and well entrenched but we never stopped pushing until darkness hampered our movement. Shortly before nightfall we had traversed, in our sector, all but 100 yards of the island.
Throughout the day Howie's great physical energy and manifest courage was an inspiration not only to his own men, but his exampled encouraged me, his leader, to greater effort than I might have otherwise displayed. His gun was continually firing when at dusk his position received a sudden volume of fire, the gunner being wounded by the first burst. From another gun position, this fire attracted my attention. I saw the No. 1 gunner wounded and I saw Howie jump into action behind the gun to keep it in action as the gunner crawled clear. A few seconds later I saw your son fall beside his gun. It took me less than 30 seconds to get there but it was too late. He died almost immediately without pain or outcry.
My first assignment following officers training school was the 2nd Platoon of "D" company, 1st separate battalion. That was in December of 1942 and shortly afterward we made your son a squad leader, a corporal's position. From then until our invasion of the Marshalls he helped train those men entrusted to him. Although he never received the extra stripe he was every bit a non-commissioned officer. He was a leader in training and on the battlefield. While quiet, soft-spoken, and unpretentious, he performed his duties with determination and efficiency. These qualities coupled with his amiable personality made him popular with men and officers alike.
He is buried in an American cemetery on a strip of land connecting the islands Roi and Namur. He was laid to rest with full military honors just one grave from the commanding officer of our battalion. The 175 white grave markers bearing the Marine Corps emblem will serve to remind us our job is not yet done.
Among those of us who have been spared, there is not a man untouched by the loss of a friend, and we will not forget that simple cemetery over which flies our National Colors. We will carry the fight to the enemy and we will not stop until we have secured for our people at home the things Howie fought and died to protect.
