Private First Class William Robert Caperton was only 22 when he boarded the HMT Rohna, a British merchant vessel being used to transport troops to India for the purpose of building B-29 bomber bases. A day after the ship’s departure from Oran, Algeria, she was struck by a German guided glider bomb, the first successful strike by a remote-controlled, rocket-boosted bomb on a vessel of this type. Of the 1,981 U.S. soldiers aboard, it is believed approximately 300 died instantly. Due to the severe damage, only eight of the 22 lifeboats could be launched and only two of them remained afloat due to overcrowding. All told, 1,050 U.S. troops died in what is still one of the greatest losses at sea in military history. William Robert Caperton was one of those who perished, his date of death fixed on November 27, 1943, one day after the initial strike. Although his body was never recovered, his name is included on the Tablets of the Missing in the North Africa American Cemetery and Memorial in Carthage Tunis, Tunisia. His parents, unable to bury their son, requested and received his military bronze plaque which is installed in Memory Gardens of Hardin County in Savannah, Tennessee.
Lest We Forget . . . Memorial Day ~ 2023
For the past several years, I’ve taken the week before Memorial Day to focus on the true reason for this day of remembrance, choosing to do this by briefly telling the stories of several military personnel who gave their lives in service to our country. After all, that’s the real reason we have this upcoming long weekend . . . not to celebrate, but to remember and to honor.
It’s hard, looking for those whose stories I plan to tell. Reading of their deaths and the circumstances under which they died is difficult, but there is something I find even more disturbing . . . how many there are who made the ultimate sacrifice and about whom I can find very little. No pictures online. No history of their service. Often, not even a cause of their death. It’s as though they are already forgotten by everyone except those who loved them the most. And someday, they too will be gone.
There is a monument in Bethel Cemetery that bears the inscription “The life of the dead is placed in the memory of the living.” I believe it is our responsibility to honor all those who gave their lives, and to do what we can to preserve their memories and to tell their stories.
Donnie Edward Horton was the son of Edward and Mary Louise Reaves Horton, born on November 20, 1949. His father had served his country as a member of the United States Army during World War II, a path Donnie followed with his enlistment during the Vietnam War. As an Infantry Indirect Fire Crewman, his job was to carry out scouting missions in search of enemy positions and gun locations and to relay battle orders via two-way radios and other signaling equipment. His tour of duty began on November 22, 1969; he was shipped to Thừa Thiên Huế province . . . and his death occurred there a little over five months later on April 30, 1970, a ground casualty resulting from an explosive device. Sgt. Donnie Edward Horton’s body was recovered and brought home to Wayne County, Tennessee where he was buried with military honors in Cromwell Crossroads Cemetery. At the head of his grave sits a monument placed there by his parents, showing his name and dates of birth and death, with a picture of their beloved son in uniform; at the foot of his grave is his bronze plaque provided by the military. And if you’re ever in Washington, D.C., be sure to visit the Vietnam Veterans Memorial. His name is inscribed on Panel W11, Line 73. He was 20 years old at the time of his death.
Samuel Sisco enlisted in the United States Army in September of 1949; slightly less than a year later he left Fort Benning, Georgia, headed to Korea. Arriving there on August 25, 1950, he immediately wrote to his family, telling them he would be leaving early the next morning for the front lines. He was about to be involved in the Battle of Pusan Perimeter, a large-scale offensive pitting the United Nations troops against the North Korean forces in what would be one of the first major engagements of the Korean War. Nine days later, Pvt. Sisco died in action, one of over 60,000 UN troops who were killed, wounded, or captured. His official date of death is September 3, 1950, but his body was not returned to his family until 1954. Funeral services were held on March 22nd of that year at the Hebron Baptist Church with burial following in Hebron Cemetery. At the age of 19, Pvt. Sisco was listed as the first Hardeman County, Tennessee casualty of the Korean War.
About the author: Lisa Shackelford Thomas is a fourth generation member of a family that’s been in funeral service since 1926. She has been employed at Shackelford Funeral Directors in Savannah, Tennessee for over 40 years and currently serves as the manager there. Any opinions expressed here are hers and hers alone, and may or may not reflect the opinions of other Shackelford family members or staff.
