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Plaque William & Wallace
Captain William R. Wales, C-47 pilot
PFC Wallace Siarkowski, Task Force Hogan
Memorial · Marcouray

William & Wallace

Two men, two days, one village.
Captain · C-47 pilot · 24 years old
William R. Wales
† December 23, 1944
PFC · 19 years old
Wallace Siarkowski
† December 22, 1944

One defended the village on the ground, the other tried to resupply it from the sky. A nineteen-year-old infantryman and a twenty-four-year-old pilot, fallen one day apart, for the same corner of the Ardennes. Marcouray owes them a monument — it will be erected thanks to you.

23
December 1944 Skies over La Roche · Operation Repulse

William R. Wales,
who came from the sky for the 400

A Captain and C-47 pilot, William took to the air to drop supplies to the encircled men. His aircraft was shot down by flak over La Roche, the day after Wallace's death. He was twenty-four. He knew none of the 400 — he gave his life for them.

C-47 of Operation Repulse dropping supplies over Marcouray
The C-47s of Operation Repulse over Marcouray
His biography
22
December 1944 Marcouray

Wallace Siarkowski,
the youngest of the 400

A PFC in Task Force Hogan, Wallace fell at Marcouray on the very day the encirclement closed. He was nineteen. His name is the first the village carved into its memory.

Grave of Wallace Siarkowski kept in flowers by the collective
His grave, kept in flowers by the collective
His biography
Memorial project · Fundraising campaign

A monument at Marcouray,
erected by you.

Friends of history and defenders of the duty of remembrance — we appeal to your generosity to erect a monument in memory of Cpt. Wales and PFC Siarkowski, so that their sacrifice is never forgotten.

Every donation counts. Whatever the amount, each contribution brings us closer to our goal.

What the donations will fund
01The design and construction of the monument
02The development of the memorial site
03Explanatory plaques recounting their stories
04The inauguration ceremony, with the families

The monument — first draft

Concept mock-up · black marble
In Memoriam
Portrait of Captain William R. Wales
Capt. William R. Wales
C-47 pilot · Operation Repulse · 24 years old
† 23 . XII . 1944
Portrait of PFC Wallace Siarkowski
PFC Wallace Siarkowski
Task Force Hogan · 19 years old
† 22 . XII . 1944
Fallen one day apart, for a village they never knew.
Marcouray · December 1944
Concept draft — polished black marble, gilt engraving, medallion portraits. The final monument will be designed with the stonemason and the families.
They never met.
Marcouray will bring them together.