Sgt John Betzala family photo

Sgt John Betzala Family photo
Killed in Action, 2 Mar 1945
Aged 31
John Betzala was a resident of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania when he enlisted in the Marine Corps in December 1936. Trained at Parris Island, S.C., his first duty assignments were at Marine Barracks Quantico. In 1938, he boarded the U.S.S. Henderson bound for Shanghai, China, where he was assigned to Company B, 1st Battalion, 4th Marines. Betzala would remain with the unit until September 1940, when he returned to the United States. Having served his initial four year enlistment, he left the Marine Corps briefly in 1941, but reenlisted on 15 December, after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. Promoted (due to his prior service) to the rank of sergeant, Betzala would spend 1943 in the United States training Marines and later served as a guard at the Navy Building, Washington D.C. As manpower shortages become more evident in the Corps in 1944, he was transferred to the 5th Marine Division's 3rd Battalion, 26th Marines (3/26), at Camp Pendleton, California. His unit deployed to the Pacific in October 1944, in preparation for the assault on Iwo Jima.

Betzala landed with 3/26 on BLUE beach, on D-Day, 19 February 1945. Taking part in some of the most savage actions of the war, he was miraculously unscathed until the night of 2 March. A personal letter to his widow from his commanding officer noted that the Marine NCO was shot in the neck and killed by a sniper while receiving orders for his platoon's defense of their positions. By the officer's account, Betzala was well liked by his men and a personal friend of the captain. He was survived by his wife, Frankie Betzala and their seven-year-old son, Joseph.