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VETERAN- —► Continued from page 1the United States, where he was treated for a year before coming home in the summer of 1946. Six months later, in December, he and Bemita were married.Today, Mr. Kleinschmidt has regained use of all but his left leg. He spends much time refinishing and building furniture. The couple’s family room includes a long table of sassafras wood, copied after a table designed by Frank Lloyd Wright.The glass-fronted cabinets and corner whatnot” cupboards — many made by Mr. Kleinschmidt — are filled with figurines made in occupied Japan. Small items — a truck, a grand piano — fashioned of tiny bits of sterling wire also hold places of honor.In 1984, when the Kleinsc-hmidts first returned toLeyte, the men of the 96thInfantry noticed that the Philippines had good schools and good teachers, but no libraries.So they took up a collection and paid a contractor to build four libraries at $23,000 each. Later, the group collected books — seven cargo containers’ worth — and had them sent to fill the libraries.Mr. Kleinschmidt will check on the libraries during the couple’s trip, as well as visit the cemetery at old Fort McKinley, where many of his buddies are buried.Perhaps most importantly, the couple hopes to see a Philippine woman whom they met in 1984. Then a 14-year-old Girl Scout, the girl said she wanted to become a doctor, but couldn’t afford the tuition. The Kleinschmidts stepped in to help, and now the woman — who writes about every 10 days — has finished her internship and is in residence at an islandhospital.
Newspaper Details
Jacksonville Journal Courier
Jacksonville, Illinois, US
Thu, Sep 22, 1994
Page 12
Full Page
Clipped by
Mary D.
IL, USA 16 Apr 2019
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