V4V-11-05-25-Sgt Joseph Anton Wuestner-The Vic Porcelli Show

This is the VIC 4 VETS, Weekly Honored Veteran.

SUBMITTED BY: Sue Goodman

Sgt Joseph Anton Wuestner
Dad was inducted into the Army on June 18th, 1941. He was released over 4 years later on November, 25th, 1945. He completed his basic training at Fort Leonard Wood in Missouri. He also trained in Louisiana. He then traveled to Hawaii and was transferred by ship to the battleground of New Guinea.

Joseph Anton Wuestner was a Rifleman in the Infantry and fought both in New Guinea and Luzon in The Philippines. In The Philippines, he mentioned (in one of his letters to Mom) that he had been in continuous fighting for over 100 days.

He witnessed horrific scenes and told Wayne that, in one battle, only he and another soldier survived.

He and his fellow soldiers dealt with torrential rains, heat, disease(often transmitted by mosquitos,) and sometimes lack of food. One time, he had only a can of tuna to share with the men in his squad. Dad spent a month in the hospital in The Philippines. We are not sure why he was hospitalized. We do know that he had malaria while he was overseas and also came home with shrapnel in his back. In one of his letters to Mom, he said that he was supposed to receive a Purple Heart for his wounds, but evidently paperwork from overseas became jumbled or lost and he never received this award.

When the war was over and Dad returned to the USA, he was in poor physical shape and spent several months recovering in a military hospital in Texas.

Sergeant Joseph A. Wuestner is Honored with a stone commemorating his service in World War II in Veterans Tribute Park in St. Charles, MO. This was a gift to Mom from her Grandchildren and her Great Grandchildren.
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This Week’s VIC 4 VETS, Honored Veteran on NewsTalkSTL.
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