Staff Sergeant Donald T. Stanley
U.S. Army Air Force 1944
Stanley, Donald T. - After graduation from Royalton High School Don
Stanley enlisted in the U.S. Army Air Force in 1942. On March 31, 1943
he was certified as a Radio Operator and in June of that same year he
was awarded Silver Wings. Staff Sergeant Stanley was in action in two
areas of Europe - with the 459th Bomb Group in the Balkins and the 756th
Bomb Squadron in RomeArno. During combat in these two theaters Stanley
earned the Air Medal and four Bronze Stars with Oak Leaf Clusters. On
July 2, 1944, while flying his last mission before returning to the
United States, his B24 liberator was struck by German antiaircraft fire
over Budapest, Hungary. He was incarcerated as a Prisoner of War at
Stalag Luft IV for a period of 13 months. In 1945, after the surrender
of Germany, Stanley was released and he returned to his home in Creek
Nation.
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