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Video by Scott Sturkol

Rendering honors to former World War II Army Private Robert Skaar during military burial in La Crosse

Fort McCoy Public Affairs Office

Oct. 1, 2024 | 2:38

A speaker cites a words of remembrance during the graveside service for World War II Army Pvt. Robert Skaar on Oct. 1, 2024, in La Crosse, Wis. Skaar died in France in 1945 during the war and was recently identified and returned home. According to the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA), Skaar was identified June 7, 2024. In early 1945, Skaar was assigned to Company C, 1st Battalion, 222nd Infantry Regiment, 42nd Infantry Division, a DPAA release states. On March 10, 1945, Skaar was killed in action while his unit was on patrol near Wildenguth, France. The Germans never reported Skaar as a prisoner of war, and his remains were not immediately recovered. Skaar’s name is recorded on the Walls of the Missing at Epinal American Cemetery in Dinozé, France, along with others still missing from WWII. A rosette will be placed next to his name to indicate he has been accounted for. Dozens of people were on hand for Skaar's service in La Crosse as he was finally brought home. (Video by Scott T. Sturkol, Public Affairs Office, Fort McCoy, Wis.)