Loren Warthman was born May,13,1916 in Kirkland, Indiana to Wilbmen and Anna Warthman. Loren had three brothers and three sisters. His three brothers were Paul, Donald and Date; Paul would go and serve in the Navy during WWII. His three sisters were Edna, Donabell and Alberta. Later Loren would marry a women named Crystal Christnet. Loren completed his High school education at Kirkland High School. He had a love for basketball, but played baseball for the school. His sister, Edna remembers that Loren would often set up a game and invite all the other children to play. She also fondly remembers walking to school each day with Loren. Loren was drafted on November 17, 1942; then was sent to Camp Wheeler in Georgia for training. Loren was then placed in the 30th Infantry 3rd Division of the U.S. Army. He participated in the North African, Sicily and Italian Campaigns. During his service he had his feet and legs frozen, and was wounded. For his injuries, Loren was awarded the Purple Heart. On March 16, 1944 after a counter-attack with the enemy at Carono, Italy he went missing. A group of soldiers went out to find Loren, and came back empty handed. Loren was then declared Missing In Action (MIA). On August,1,1944 he was declared dead. In 1949 a farmer went out to work on his land and discovered Loren's remains. It turns out that Loren was in a foxhole with a fellow soldier in the counter-attack when a bomb exploded in the hole, killing them both. He is laid to rest at Oakland Cemetery in Indiana. For his service, Private Warthman has been awarded the WWII Victory Medal, American Theatre Campaign Service Medal, and the European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Service Ribbon. Information researched and collected by Becca Gunter, 2014.
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Indiana Historical Bureau, comp. Gold Star Honor Roll: Adams County. Bloomington: Indiana War History Commission, 1949. Print. Vol. 1 of Indiana in World War II.
"Loren A. Warthman Declared Dead." Decatur Daily Democrat [Decatur] 1 Aug. 1944, 175th ed., Column 4: 1-2. Print.