John Paul Lonsberg

Lonsberg, John Paul (1918-2013) Decorated World War II Hero John P. Lonsberg, 94, passed away Wednesday, January 30, 2013, in Dubai UAE. He was born in St. Louis, Mo., on March 15, 1918, the son of John George and Clara (Sutter) Lonsberg. Mr. Lonsberg was a graduate of Beaumont High School. A superior baseball player, he was drafted by the St. Louis Cardinals and the St. Louis Browns and would later be inducted into the Missouri Baseball Hall of Fame. He entered the Army in 1941 at Fort Hood, Texas and graduated from OCS in 1943 from Fort Benning, Ga. Prior to service in Europe, Mr. Lonsberg played baseball for the U.S. Army traveling team. Before deployment to the European Theatre, while in New York City, Mr. Lonsberg met and fell in love with Nora Mae Flanagan, promising to return home to her after his duties in the War were honored. He last served as Commander F Company, 398th Regiment, 100th Infantry Division in France, Belgium and Germany. He fought at the Battle of Bitche and the Battle of the Bulge, the bloodiest of the battles that U.S. forces experienced in World War II. Winston Churchill said of the Battle of the Bulge: This is undoubtedly the greatest American battle of the war and will, I believe, be regarded as an ever-famous American victory. Before leaving active duty on April 9, 1946, Mr. Lonsberg was awarded Two Silver Stars, Two Bronze Stars and Two Croix De Guerre for Valor. Within six months of once again touching American soil, on September 14, 1946, Mr. Lonsberg married the love of his life Nora Mae Flanagan in a beautiful ceremony in Erie, Pennsylvania, entering into a marriage that would sustain the couple for sixty-six years. With the resumption of his civilian life, Mr. Lonsberg returned to Monsanto, where he had worked prior to the war, moving from St. Louis to Detroit and then New York before returning to St. Louis with Astro Turf to end his service with Monsanto as Director of Training for MICC, from which he retired at the age of 65. Mr. Lonsberg is survived by his wife, Nora Mae; his daughter and son-in-law, Linda and Bob Franklin of North Carolina; his son and daughter-in-law, John Vincent and Dominika Elzbieta Lonsberg of Dubai, UAE; two grandchildren, Heather O'Connell and Sean Gilbert; six great-grand- children, Delaney, Kyle and Jake O'Connell, and Jacob, Logan and Hannah Gilbert. He was preceded in death by all of his siblings, two sisters, Gertrude Fredrickson and Emily Matthews, and a brother, Vincent Lonsberg. Mr. Lonsberg was predeceased by his daughter Susan Lonsberg in 2001 and will be buried next to her at Bellerive Cemetery in Creve Coeur, Missouri. Mr. Lonsberg was a beloved patriarch who lived his life at the forefront of what Tom Brokaw has called the greatest generation any society has ever produced. The memory of Mr. Lonsberg's sense of duty, honor, and courage lives on as a towering influence from the past and as a dynamic inspiration for the future. Services: The family will receive friends in St. Louis on Sunday, February 10th at Kriegshauser Mortuary West (9450 Olive Blvd., 63132) from 2 pm - 6 pm. The Funeral Mass will be celebrated on Monday, February 11th at St. Monica Catholic Church (12136 Olive Blvd, 63141) at 10 am with interment at Bellerive Cemetery immediately following the service. In lieu of flowers, the family asks that donations be made to: Disabled American Veterans, P.O. Box 14301, Cincinnati, OH 452500301 (www.dav.org). Marines Care, an organization dedicated to serving wounded warriors and their families without regard to the branch of the military in which they have served, P.O. Box 566, West Caldwell, NJ 070070566 (www.marinescare.org). Gateway Warrior Foundation, an organization focused on supporting the military community, 126 Weldon Parkway, Maryland Heights, MO 63014 (www.warriorgateway.org ).