Person:Mike Laitas (1)

Watchers
Mike Laitas
b.8 Jan 1915 Westville, Vermilion Co., IL
d.27 Jul 2002 Westville, Vermilion Co., IL
Parents and Siblings
(edit)
m. 1913
  1. Kazimieras Leita1914 - 1915
  2. Mike Laitas1915 - 2002
  3. Frank Laitas1917 - 1934
  4. Jonas Leita1919 - 1919
  5. Peter Laitas1920 - 1945
  6. Walter Laitas1921 - 2010
Spouse and Children
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m. 28 Oct 1939
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Facts and Events
Name[1][2] Mike Laitas
Gender Male
Birth[3] 8 Jan 1915 Westville, Vermilion Co., IL
Marriage 28 Oct 1939 Westville, Vermilion, Illinois, United Statesto Anne Chromis
Death? 27 Jul 2002 Westville, Vermilion Co., IL
Burial? Lithuanian National Cemetery
Other[4] Holds The Westville High School Track Record Of 10.1 Sec. For The 100 Yd. Dash.Accomplishments 


    Mike (Red) Laitas felt that it was his duty to enlist.  He had 2 brothers, Pete and Walter, already fighting in WWII, but also felt that he had a wife and young son who needed him.  He finally decided to join the Marines and avoided telling his wife, Anne,  until the evening before he left.  According to a clipping from the Danville Newspaper:  "Pfc. Mike LAITAS, 30-year-old Marine serving with the First Marine Division, has been wounded on Okinawa, according to word received here by his wife, Mrs. Anne Laitas.     Private Laitas was one of two marines hit by a Jap sniper with a machine gun as they were enroute to a rest camp after 12 days in the island front lines.  He is now in a hospital on Okinawa.     Laitas, who formerly worked at Hegeler Zinc Company before entering the Marines, is a brother of Pfc. Pete Laitas who was killed in action in Germany two months ago.  He also has a brother, Walter, serving with the Army Medical Corps in the South Pacific.  His wife and their son Jimmy reside here on S. Jefferson St."
    He received the Silver Star Medal in 1948.
References
  1. ↑ Mike Laitas, Citation for the Silver Star Medal, 1948, no. 059162, Headquarters U.S. Marine Corps, Washington, D.C.
  2. ↑ Leita Family History.FTW.
  3. ↑ Leita Family History.FTW.
  4. ↑ Leita Family History.FTW.
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