wwii veteran

Hometown Hero: Dr. Don Cantwell, ’47, G’48

United States Navy World War II veteran, two-time Syracuse University alum, and renowned musician Don Cantwell was born in Poughkeepsie, New York in 1924 and graduated from Poughkeepsie High School in 1942. He attended St Lawrence University Navy V12 Officers Training Program from 1943-44 and later Notre Dame University’s Navy Midshipman School in 1944. Don attended the U.S. Navy School of Music in Washington, DC, in 1945 and later served with the Navy Flag Band Mediterranean Fleet before being discharged in 1945.

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Dr. Ruth Chen and COL (Ret.) Ron Novack Attend Ceremony for WWII Veteran Whose Remains Were Recently Identified

S. Army 1st Lt. Myles Esmay ’40 was killed on June 7, 1944, while fighting against Japanese forces in Burma (now Myanmar). He and others were unable to be identified at the time of his death, but in 2021 Esmay was formally identified by the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency. This allowed Esmay to not only be brought back home to the United States, but also buried alongside his brothers in arms at Arlington National Cemetery.