WWII soldier laid to rest after 80 years

IOLA — U.S. Army Air Forces Tech Sgt. Elton L. Gomillion was buried at Lake Grove Cemetery in Iola, next to his parents, Joe John and Tennie Davis Gomillion, 80 years after he was killed in action during WWII.

Iola students lined the fence at Lake Grove Cemetery to witness Gomillion’s burial with full military honors.

“It is truly amazing to be able to be here and see all of this with your own eyes and not just reading about it,” said Iola student Blaire Smithey.

“I thought it was crazy to see how our nation works so hard to find veterans from so long ago," said another student, Cullen Walton. “They put so much effort into finding their remains and giving them a proper burial which they deserve.”

Gomillion was assigned to the 409th Bombardment Squadron (Heavy), 93rd Bombardment Group (Heavy), 9th Air Force in the summer of 1943. One hundred and seventy-seven B-24 Liberators took off from Benghazi, Libya, for the raid. Gomillion was the engineer on a Liberator nicknamed “Jose Carioca” (serial number 42-40617-N).

The mission required them to attack targets from unprecedented low altitudes of 100-300 feet. American officials believed low-altitude bombing would be much more precise and would also minimize civilian casualties. It was a daring plan that also proved costly in terms of American lives.

When Operation TIDAL WAVE aircraft arrived over Ploiesti, pilots were surprised to find German defenders expecting them. Hovering above the city were large barrage balloons, tethered with metal cables. The Germans had also placed anti-aircraft guns along railroad tracks leading to the refineries, amongst the oil tanks themselves and in fields outside of town. Finally, the Germans opened smoke pots in the fields and set oil tanks around the refineries aflame, sending dense clouds of black smoke to blind the bombers.

On Aug. 1, 1943, the bomber was hit by enemy anti-aircraft fire and crashed. The bomber was one of 51 planes that failed to return.

Gomillion’s remains were not identified following the war. Unidentifiable remains were buried as Unknowns in the Hero Section of the Civilian and Military Cemetery of Bolovan, Ploiesti, Prahova, Romania.

During postwar operations there, the American Graves Registration Command exhumed unknown remains, eventually reinterring those that could not be identified at the Ardennes American and Henri- Chapelle American Cemeteries in Belgium. In 2017, DPAA began exhuming those unknowns for comparison with the unaccounted-for airmen lost during Operation TIDAL WAVE. Those remains were sent to the DPAA Laboratory for examination and identification.

Scientists from DPAA used anthropological analysis. Additionally, scientists from the Armed Forces Medical Examiner System used mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) and autosomal DNA (auSTR) analysis.

The Army contacted Gomillion’s nieces, Sandra Cook Rotello and Ellen Cook Dyer two years ago. They submitted DNA samples and his remains were positively identified March 30, of this year. Rotello said five bone fragments are all that remained of Gomillion including portions of his left and right arms, a portion of his hip, legs and wrist.

“This is what we looked for all these years, to be able to bring him back home to his resting spot,” said Rotello.

Grimes County Judge Joe Fauth II said he has attended four funerals in two weeks but wouldn’t have missed Gomillion’s burial.

“It is absolutely impressive to have this opportunity,” said Fauth. “It is a bit of a sad opportunity because you would have hoped that the issues of lost loved ones from war would have been resolved by now. Thank goodness we have organizations today that will spend the time, the money and the effort to bring peace to families eventually. And it might be one, two, three or four generations later, but I think these people will all sleep a little more comfortably tonight.”

Fauth said he is grateful Iola ISD brought two busloads of students to witness the historic event. “What a historical lesson for them to hear about and to experience because they are not going to get it out of their schoolbooks,” said Fauth. “To hear real life situations, they’ll get a flavor for it in the history books, but this is real life and what a tremendous showing for the community of Iola to have those kids here today.”

The burial was officiated by Clyde Larrabee, the retired pastor of First Baptist Church in Navasota. “We are at an unusual place,” said Larrabee. “None of those loved ones who knew Elton are probably still breathing, but because of the miracle that happened a few short months ago, we can join together and honor this man.”

Gomillion was survived by his half-sister Joyce Gomillion Williams; nieces, Ellen Cook Dyer of Yantis, TX, Sandra Cook Rotello of Navasota, TX, and Charlene Gomillion Sanders of Conroe, TX; and nephews Robert Glen Gomillion of Eustace, TX, and Joe Cook of Bastrop, TX.

He was preceded in death by his mother, Tennie Davis Gomillion.