Posted on 05/31/2008 5:13:36 AM PDT by Dawnsblood
The Baron (as he was called throughout his military career) was born in Long Beach, California in 1925. Baron attended Hollywood High School (how cool is that, eh?) and was drafted into World War II out of Los Angeles City College Art School. He served as a medic, earning a Combat Medical Badge fighting in the Pacific and CBI theaters.
He attended UCLA on the GI Bill and attained the rank of cadet colonel and was a Distinguished Military Graduate in the Army ROTC program there. After school and service in Korea, where he earned a Combat Infantryman's Badge to go with his CMB, he married Joanne Paul in 1951. The von Schlemmers had a pretty classic WWII-generation military career in the Infantry. They served overseas and around the nation a lot - Joanne gave birth to children in Okinawa, Japan; Fort Benning, Georgia; Frankfurt, Germany; and Fort Leavenworth, Kansas.
His career was split between schooling at Fort Benning and Fort Leavenworth, and infantry and intelligence jobs in the US, overseas, and he got stuck at the Pentagon, as most Colonels do. His career included commands in Korea and notably with the Old Guard in Washington, D.C., for President Kennedy. If you've seen the footage of President Kennedy's funeral - you've seen the Baron's work. After more than 30 years service to the nation, he retired from the Army to continue his service in a different vein - to his adopted home of Leavenworth and Fort Leavenworth.
(Excerpt) Read more at thedonovan.com ...
Lovely tribute to a fine man.
This is a noble tribute to a noble man. Rest in peace, Col. Schlemmer.
Thanks posting this, Dawnsblood.
TEN-HUT!!!
Rest in peace, soldier!
At Ease.....
Miltant
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