Youngest child of Ida C. Covington and John A. McNeill. John Charles was nicknamed "Hap", short for Happy. He had four sisters and one brother. The family initially lived in Roberdell, Richmond County, but later moved to Hamlet.
Hap enlisted in the US Army on 15 September 1941. At the time of his death, he was a Sergeant with the 105th Infantry, 27th Division. He was a casualty of World War II, killed during the battle of Saipan.
The collection of photos, poem (written by Hap for his mother) and newspaper obituary were found in 2013 in an old family trunk that had belonged to friends and were kindly forwarded to family. The photos and poem date from 1942, when Hap was stationed in the Hawaiian Islands.
Click on photos to read reverse side captions. It appears they were originally sent to Hap's girlfriend Rebecca "Becky" Keel. [Artifacts are courtesy of the Rebecca Keel Pait and Frances Elizabeth Keel Everett Families.]
Hap enlisted in the US Army on 15 September 1941. At the time of his death, he was a Sergeant with the 105th Infantry, 27th Division. He was a casualty of World War II, killed during the battle of Saipan.
The collection of photos, poem (written by Hap for his mother) and newspaper obituary were found in 2013 in an old family trunk that had belonged to friends and were kindly forwarded to family. The photos and poem date from 1942, when Hap was stationed in the Hawaiian Islands.
Click on photos to read reverse side captions. It appears they were originally sent to Hap's girlfriend Rebecca "Becky" Keel. [Artifacts are courtesy of the Rebecca Keel Pait and Frances Elizabeth Keel Everett Families.]
Youngest child of Ida C. Covington and John A. McNeill. John Charles was nicknamed "Hap", short for Happy. He had four sisters and one brother. The family initially lived in Roberdell, Richmond County, but later moved to Hamlet.
Hap enlisted in the US Army on 15 September 1941. At the time of his death, he was a Sergeant with the 105th Infantry, 27th Division. He was a casualty of World War II, killed during the battle of Saipan.
The collection of photos, poem (written by Hap for his mother) and newspaper obituary were found in 2013 in an old family trunk that had belonged to friends and were kindly forwarded to family. The photos and poem date from 1942, when Hap was stationed in the Hawaiian Islands.
Click on photos to read reverse side captions. It appears they were originally sent to Hap's girlfriend Rebecca "Becky" Keel. [Artifacts are courtesy of the Rebecca Keel Pait and Frances Elizabeth Keel Everett Families.]
Hap enlisted in the US Army on 15 September 1941. At the time of his death, he was a Sergeant with the 105th Infantry, 27th Division. He was a casualty of World War II, killed during the battle of Saipan.
The collection of photos, poem (written by Hap for his mother) and newspaper obituary were found in 2013 in an old family trunk that had belonged to friends and were kindly forwarded to family. The photos and poem date from 1942, when Hap was stationed in the Hawaiian Islands.
Click on photos to read reverse side captions. It appears they were originally sent to Hap's girlfriend Rebecca "Becky" Keel. [Artifacts are courtesy of the Rebecca Keel Pait and Frances Elizabeth Keel Everett Families.]
