WWII  SAILOR  HONORED  AFTER  82  YEARS

Starring Brooks Winfield was born July 1, 1919, in Alameda, California.  Readily available historical records contain little concerning him, but it appears he graduated from high school with an older sister after he skipped two grades and may have worked as a miner before enlisting in the Naval Reserve in September 1940.  Following recruit training in San Diego he completed training at radioman school and was then assigned to the battleship USS Oklahoma (BB-37) where he attained the rate of Radioman Third Class.  In September 1941 while on leave Winfield married the sister of his best friend.  Less than three months later he was killed when the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor.  The Oklahoma capsized after receiving several torpedo hits and Winfield went down with the ship.  His remains were later recovered but could not be identified so they were buried as an unknown at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific in Honolulu, Hawaii.  In 2015, advances in forensic techniques prompted the reexamination and eventual identification of RM3 Winfield's remains.  DNA samples obtained from his sister assisted in positively identifying on June 24, 2019, the remains as her brother.  On May 9. 2024, the remains of RM3 Winfield were permanently reburied with military honors at Arlington National Cemetery, a place that can only be earned and cannot be bought.

                                                 Winfield  and  future  wife  -  1941

Submitted by CDR Roy A. Mosteller, USNR (Ret)