Paul and Bette Hang Wedding Picture

Many thanks to Paul Hang for mailing the above picture.  Charles Richard “Dick” Waits is on the far left, and his wife, Margaret Anne “Peggy” Phillips is the maid-of-honor, standing next to the bride.  This is the wedding of Paul Joseph Hang and Lucille Elizabeth “Bette” Phillips, Peggy’s sister.

Here is an excerpt from an email Paul sent last week, regarding his father’s service in World War II:

I don’t remember him [Dick Waits] other than hearing about him. He and my Dad [Paul Joseph Hang] were in the Army together, although Dick was in for quite a while. My Dad was only in for a year and a half. He was drafted at 33 with two kids and a business. He was shot, received the Purple Heart, returned to the front, fought in the Hurtgen Forest. He was pulled out with frozen feet (trench foot) in mid November of 44 just before his Division (the 28th Pennsylvania, also known as the Bucket of Blood) was overrun in the Battle of the Bulge. In one of his letters he says he thinks he leads a charmed life given all that he survived. Like a lot of his generation he never talked about his war experiences. He spent many months in the hospital before being discharged in mid 45.

Brian Davis – Christine Davis (Williams) – Ralph Scott Williams Jr. – Nellie Ruth Williams (Waits/ sister of Charles Richard Waits)

Charles Richard Waits and Margaret Anne Phillips Portrait

My research this morning has centered around my great grand uncle, Charles Richard “Dick” Waits.  Dick was born in 1919 in Lancaster, Ohio. He attended Lancaster High School and married Margaret Anne “Peggy” Phillips on 6/16/1941. Dick enlisted with the United States Army on 12/9/1941. He was KIA on 4/6/1945 in Mockmuhl, Germany as a corporal in Company C of the 753rd Tank Battalion. He is buried in the Lorraine American Cemetery in St. Avold, France. Dick was 25 years-old when he was killed. The picture above is of Dick and Peggy Waits. I believe his sleeve patch signifies United States Army ground forces. If you look closely, you can see the tank pin on his hat.

Peggy remarried a few years after his death. I have recently contacted her nephew, Paul, niece, Sue, and daughter, Lisa. After I compile all of their contributions, I will post them here. 

This morning, I have sent requests to the American Battle Monuments Commission for a floral arrangement to be placed at his grave marker. They also provide a photo of the marker after placement, along with a lithograph of the cemetery. I will post the picture after I receive it (probably in several weeks.) Chris Bradford, who runs a website dedicated to the 735rd Tank Battalion (Dick’s picture is in the KIA Gallery Two), has requested Dick’s Deceased Persons File on my behalf. The file should include how he died, where he was buried, reburial details, communication with his kin, etc. I hope to receive this in the near future as well.

Thank you to everyone who has helped with my research on this fallen hero.

Brian Davis – Christine Davis (Williams) – Ralph Scott Williams Jr. – Nellie Ruth Williams (Waits/ sister of Charles Richard Waits)