The Brave Rodney P. Wenzel

Rodney D. Wenzel was a 21 year old Private E-2 for the United States Army Infantry. He was part of the 31st Infantry Regiment and the 7th Infantry Division. He served in the Korean War, where he was killed fighting for his country, in Korea on Triangle Hill. Rodney was born on June 27, 1931 and died on October 14, 1952. His parents were Frieda and Henry Wenzel and he had 3 brothers, Glenn Wenzel, Gerald Wenzel, and Ronald Wenzel. He also had 2 sisters, Joann Lange and Carol Nelson.

All of his life, Rodney had lived on a farm between Hewitt and Marshfield. He worked on a farm for most of his life, and then eventually worked in Milwaukee at A.O. Smith, an electrical parts manufacturer. His family knew him as "Tink" of course that was just his nickname. Rodney attended Marshfield High School; as soon as he graduated he joined the army. To a lot of people, he was a very good looking man, short and thin. Rodney always put other people first. He enjoyed making bookcases and such out of wood, which he learned in one of his high school courses. Rodney also enjoyed carving patterns into sticks.

Rodney's brother Gerald had been over in Korea before Rodney went over and Gerry wrote Rodney a letter saying that if he was to make it for the first week, that he would be good to go and eventually make it home.

Within the first couple of days over in Korea, he was shot in the shoulder, hitting the main artery and eventually bled to death. Rodney is buried at the Marshfield Hillside Cemetery, in Marshfield, Wisconsin. Since Rodney was killed in war, he was awarded the Purple Heart for honoring his country. His family and friends will remember him for his honor and glory and for his bravery!

Written by: Lauryn Johansson
Marshfield Senior High