Remembering World War II Heroes: Hubbardston men killed in France, Iwo Jima

HUBBARDSTON – As difficult as military deaths of young soldiers are to endure; some stories are even more heartbreaking than others.

In the case of Private Arne Rasinen, he was an only child, twice wounded in action before he returned to action, only to die of his wounds in France.

Private Robert Shaffer was another sad story in a family beset by tragedy. When he was only 15 years old, his mother, Gertrude, died of a short illness and, prior to his own death on Iwo Jima, he also lost an infant sister.

His father, William “Jake” Shaffer, was well-known in town as a reserve police officer, but he was also beloved by many schoolchildren as the affable custodian for many years at the Hubbardston Center School.

Many of the children who encountered the smiling, cheerful “Jake” likely never knew the sadness he has experienced from earlier in his life.

This is the continuation of the series Remembering Local World War II Heroes.

Pfc. Arne A. Rasinen (1915-1944)

Arne Arthur Rasinen was born on Dec. 15, 1915, the only child of Elijas and Lydia M. (Hellman) and lived on a farm on Petersham Road in Hubbardston. His parents were both born in Finland, and his father was a member of the Hubbardston Co-operative.

Pfc. Rasinen had been employed by the Farmers’ Cooperative Trading Association when he entered the Army on Jan. 16, 1942. He received his training at Camp Croft, South Carolina, and later went overseas to participate in the Sicilian and Italian campaigns before going to France.

He was wounded in Sicily on July 14, 1943. Then, while in Italy, he was wounded on two other occasions, receiving the Purple Heart and cluster and the Combat Infantryman badge.

Tragically, he was killed in action in France on Oct. 8, 1944 at the age of 28, and was buried in Long Island National Cemetery in East Farmingdale, New York.

Pfc. Robert Whitney Shaffer (1921-1945)

Robert Whitney Shaffer was born Nov. 4, 1921 to William Jacob “Jake” and Gertrude A. (Whitney) Shaffer and lived on Elm Street. He had two older sisters, Ruth and Margaret, an older brother Albert and a younger sister Helen.

When he was 4 years old, his sister Dorothy died at the age of 1½ in 1926 after a brief bought with bronchitis. Then, while he was attending Athol High School, his mother died of an illness in December of 1936.

After his graduation, he was employed by the Charles G. Allen Co. in Barre before he enlisted on July 17, 1942, the first Hubbardston man to join the Marine Corps in World War II.

He received his boot training at Parris Island, South Carolina, and was later stationed at Camp Lejeune, North Carolina, and Camp Joseph Pendleton in California.

In June of 1943, he was accepted for training as a Paramarine, and underwent a rigorous course of instruction at the Parachute Training School of the Marine Training Center in New River, North Carolina.

It was noted at the time that candidates were eligible for the Parachute School only after completing all phases of recruit training and had to pass the same physical examination given to Naval pre-flight men. He was also required to make at least six jumps from an airplane before being considered for the Paramarines.

He was sent overseas in August of 1944 with the 27th Marines, Fifth Division.

While serving on Iwo Jima, the 23-year-old Private Shaffer was reportedly killed in action on Feb. 21, 1945. A Navy Department telegram received by his father confirmed his son’s death.

Two days earlier, the U.S. invaded Iwo Jima as part of its island-hopping strategy to defeat Japan. While that island was not initially a target, the quick fall of the Philippines left the Americans with a longer-than-expected lull prior to the planned invasion of Okinawa.

Iwo Jima is located halfway between Japan and the Mariana Islands, where American long-range bombers were based, and was used by the Japanese as an early warning station, radioing warnings of incoming American bombers to the Japanese homeland.

The ensuing Battle of Iwo Jima reportedly lasted for five weeks. In some of the bloodiest fighting of World War II, it’s believed that all but 200 or so of the 21,000 Japanese forces on the island were killed, as were almost 7,000 Marines.

In the iconic photo of the raising the flag on Iwo Jima, six U.S. Marines were depicted raising the U.S. flag atop Mount Suribachi during the battle in the final stages of the Pacific War. It was later learned that three of the six soldiers in the photo would later go on to die in the war.

The photograph, taken by Joe Rosenthal of the Associated Press on Feb. 23, 1945, was first published in Sunday newspapers two days later and reprinted in thousands of publications. It was the only photograph to win the Pulitzer Prize for Photography in the same year as its publication.

Besides his father, Pfc. Shaffer also left a brother Pvt. Albert Shaffer, who was with the 8th Armored Division in Germany, and three sisters: Mrs. Aldea Johnson and Mrs. Ruth Doane of Hubbardston, and Mrs. Helen Chioda of Worcester.

Pfc. Shaffer had been a lifelong friend of Sgt. Elmer Mannisto, also 23, of Hubbardston, who died in action in Germany less than a month later on March 17 and was depicted in an earlier profile in this series.

Shaffer was buried in Rural Glen Cemetery, Hubbardston alongside his mother, with a designation on his gravestone that he was killed at Iwo Jima.

One other area soldier claimed at Iwo Jima was Templeton-born Lloyd J. Mitchell, who was brought up in Petersham where he spent most of his life. Corporal Mitchell of the U.S. Marine Corps was killed on March 20, 1945 at the age of 23.

Comments and suggestions for Remembering Local World War 2 Heroes can be sent to Mike Richard at mikerichard0725@gmail.com or in writing Mike Richard, 92 Boardley Rd. Sandwich, MA 02563.

This article originally appeared on Gardner News: Hubbardston's Arne A. Rasien, Robert Shaffer killed in action in WWII