|
 William
E. Pollock, 89, was received into the loving arms of our Lord on
Wednesday, Feb. 16, 2011. William was a beloved father, husband, World
War II Combat Veteran, and Scholar. He is survived by his loving wife,
Mary; sons, Roger, Eric, and Patrick Dull; and daughters, Lore Pollock
and Karin Lawson; grandchildren, Brendan Lawson, Gibran Soufan, Jakob
and Peyton Dull, Juliann and Sara Dull, Pamela Dennison, Christina Shaw,
Tabitha Pollock and Glory Pollock; and five great-grandchildren.
He was preceded in death by his first wife, Margaret Elizabeth Pollock;
and sons, Michael and Albert Pollock.
Barstow best remembers
William as the Deputy Director of the Repair Division at the Marine
Corps Logistics Base where he served from approximately January 17, 1973
to his retirement in 1989. His employees admired and respected him. He
made it a point to meet and greet as many of the employees as he could.
Every day he would arrive early and was seen walking around the Marine
Base speaking to employees and inquiring about their families' welfare.
He was an approachable person who had an open door policy which made no
distinction between the lowest and highest ranking personnel. He was a
champion for women's rights and listened attentively to their concerns.
And he would right wrongs whenever possible.
William earned his
Bachelors of Arts Degree from the University of Maryland, his Masters
Degree in Aerospace Operations Management from the University of
Southern California, his Masters Degree of Science in Education from the
University of Southern California. His Masters Degree in Business
Administration was from the University of Utah.
Mr. Pollock served
honorably and valiantly during World War II spearheading the Invasion of
Normandy on D-day as a member of the 508th Parachute Infantry Regiment H
Company. Many of these brave soldiers were unable to make it to the
ground alive.
Mr. Pollock was drafted
into the United States Army in November of 1942. He attended basic
combat training at Camp Blanding, Florida; parachute training at Fort
Benning, Georgia and advanced Infantry training at Camp McCall [sic],
North Carolina. At the end of 1943 he was shipped overseas and landed at
Belfast, Northern Ireland where he stayed for three months; then was
shipped to England. It was noted that in one day he had breakfast in
Northern Ireland, lunch in Scotland and dinner in England. William once
lamented that the fog was so thick in Nottingham that one could not see
one's nose.
By the first of June 1944
his division was moved to the airport in preparation of D- Day, June 6.
On that day, William along with other members of the 508th were dropped
out of airplanes at 2:26 a.m. in the tracer filled night sky. German
troops had flooded the field with water as a defensive tactic. Only the
roads and high places were above the water. Machine guns were mounted at
crossroads and on rubber boats scanning the area for Allied Solders in
the water. About 90 of the paratroopers finally assembled and were cut
off from the other troops for at least nine days - they only had rations
for five days. The day before returning to England, Mr. Pollock was shot
in the thigh.
On September 17, 1944, his
division was flown to Holland to hold five bridges - Operation Market
Garden. This would have been a success if the operation had been
accomplished with reasonable dispatch. As stated before, paratroopers
had rations for five days but, it was 14 days before they were relieved.
There were two more allied divisions beyond his who were wiped out. Mr.
Pollock was returned home with anti-aircraft and hand grenade shrapnel
received during a night and early morning attack.
He also participated in
Operation Dragoon in Southern France and the Battle of the Bulge. This
occurred in the Ardennes Forest in Belgium located six kilometers from
Bastogne. This battle lasted to about January 16, 1945. Here again they
were cut off from their supplies due to supply and mail trucks being
blown up by German 88's. During this time Mr. Pollock and the other
Soldiers were ordered to shave and clean up. They used Champaign from
the cellar of a castle where they were set up. Towards the end, Mr.
Pollock again got shot and had frostbite on his toes. He recounts that
one could dig a slit trench and as it was finished, the wind would blow
it full of snow.
Funeral services will be
Wednesday, February 23, 2010 with viewing from noon to 1 p.m. followed
by a religious service at the Free Methodist Church, 800 Yucca St.,
Barstow, Calif. Funeral services are under the direction of Victor
Valley Mortuary located at Eleventh Street in Victorville, Calif. In
lieu of flowers, please make donations to our local Barstow Visiting
Nurses Association.
Published in the Daily
Press on February 22, 2011 |
