Private First Class (PFC) Roger Warren Dehring, United States Marine Corps Reserve, Service Number: 402369

Early Life

Roger Warren Dehring was born on 25 February 1922 in Sturtevant, Racine County, Wisconsin. His father, John F. Dehring, born 31 May 1891 in LeRoy, Dodge County, Wisconsin, died 17 July 1981 in Racine, Racine County, Wisconsin, was an Auto Mechanic. He served in the U.S. Army during World War I. His mother, Ella Klebs was born on 18 May 1896 in Oakfield, Fond du Lac County, Wisconsin and died on 13 January 1966 in Racine, Racine County, Wisconsin. John’s parents were married on 24 September 1919. Roger was the eldest of four children in the family; had a younger brother and two younger sisters. He was a 1941 graduate of Horlick High School in Racine, Wisconsin.

Military

Roger Warren Dehring entered the U.S. Marine Corps Reserve in June of 1942 in Racine, Wisconsin. At the time of his death, he was assigned to Company E ("Easy"), 2nd Battalion, 6th Marine Regiment, 2nd Marine Division, operating in the Pacific Theater. He participated in the Battle of Guadalcanal.

From May to July 1941 2/6 reassigned to the 1st Provisional Marine Brigade and deployed to occupy Reykjavík, Iceland to relieve British forces. In March 1942 the battalion returned to San Diego and was reassigned to the 2nd Marine Division. Lieutenant Colonel William A. Worton served as Battalion Commander at the time.

In the fall of 1942, 2/6 sailed to Wellington, New Zealand where it began advanced combat training. This was followed by movement to Guadalcanal on January 1, 1943. The 2/6 also took part in the Battle of Tarawa, beginning on November 21, 1943, the battle's second day.

On June 15, 1944, the battalion landed on Saipan in the Marianas Islands to take part in the Battle of Saipan. Following the end of the war, 2/6 landed at Nagasaki to take part in the Occupation of Japan from September 1945 until July 1946. In August 1946 the battalion relocated to Camp Pendleton, California.

As part of the post war draw down of forces, 2/6 was deactivated on October 1, 1947. The exploits of the 2/6 were immortalized in the World War II classic novel, "Battle Cry", by Leon Uris. Although the characters were fictional, the movements of the 2/6 were historically accurate and were based on Uris' own experiences in the 2/6 during World War II as a PFC.

Death and Burial

Roger Warren Dehring was Killed in Action on 27 November 1943 on Tarawa atoll, Gilbert Islands. He was posthumously awarded the Purple Heart Medal. Initially buried overseas, in 1948 he was later reinterred at West Lawn Memorial Park in Mount Pleasant, Racine County, Wisconsin. In March of 1946, the Sturtevant, Wisconsin American Legion Post was named in his honor.

Sources

https://www.fold3.com/memorial/657809462/roger-warren-dehring

https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/68727579/rodger-warren-dehring

https://www.ancestry.com/discoveryui-content/view/197944:2375?_phcmd=u(%27https://www.ancestry.com/search/?name=roger+w._dehring&event=_wisconsin-usa_52&birth=1922&birth_x=0-0-0&count=50&event_x=_1-0&name_x=1_1&successSource=Search&queryId=d127304a-aa3d-4535-8362-6e9fba00551a%27,%27successSource%27)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2nd_Battalion,_6th_Marines

This story is part of the Stories Behind the Stars project (https://www.storiesbehindthestars.org/). This is a national effort of volunteers to write the stories of all 400,000+ of the US WWII fallen here on Together We Served and on Fold3. Can you help write these stories? Related to this, there will be a smartphone app that will allow people to visit any war memorial or cemetery, scan the faller’s name and read his/her story.

If you have any details, photos or corrections for this story, please email me by clicking on my name. CDR Robert Mulvanny – redandbon@outlook.com Contributing Author, Stories Behind the Stars.

Dehring, Roger Warren, PFC