One hundred years ago today, December 2, 1918, my grandmother Rinda Marie Shetler was buried in the LeRoy, Minnesota cemetery following a funeral in the family home.
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Four thousand miles away on this day, Sergeant First Class Jay E. Shetler and the 301st Engineers crossed the Moselle River and entered the defeated country of Germany. He would not learn of her death for weeks.
Jay in the Great War 
Glad to have found your blog. I’m enjoying reading it. How tragic – that she would die and while he was away at war. I can’t even imagine how he must have felt receiving the news of her death – so, so far away – at war himself – he must have felt so helpless. I appreciate you sharing your family stories. Our loved ones live on through us.
My great-grandfather served in WWI and died at 23 (after he returned to the states) of complications from the gas attacks he had lived through. What I find so interesting is that he was the son (1st generation American) of a Polish / German immigrant to America – who then returned to Europe to fight a war. I’m sure this happened all the time. I would like to know what families like this talked about during this time.
Brave young men – keeping us safe throughout time.
Suz
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