Samuel Edward Oots – Major, United States Marine Corps

4 Aug 1934 – 7 May 1998

My father enlisted in the Marine Corps in 1952.  He served as a Drill Instructor at Paris Island just before attending OCS in Quantico.  He served  two tours in Vietnam with Infantry units. The first was in 1968 as a Captain  with G-2/26.  The second tour, I think, was 1970 as an advisor. He retired in  1972.

His site in Arlington is section 54, Row 0, Site 4679.

He passed away on his sail boat in Fajardo Puerto Ricco on May 7, 1998. After flying down there, I learned that his body was donated to the medical school.  I was also told that there would be no remains to claim.  I just found out this past May, almost four years to the day that there were in fact some remains and the school had buried them that week in a public cemetery.  I flew down immediately, had him exhumed, cremated and took him to Arlington.  He was interned there with Honors on June 27, 2002.

seoots-1204

Read our general and most popular articles

Leave a Comment