TRAVERSE CITY – World War II veteran and longtime Grand Traverse County resident Raymond Weber died Sunday at the age of 103.
Weber, who was featured as a Veterans Day “Profile in Courage” on the Record-Eagle front page last year, was a technical sergeant in the U.S. Army from 1942 to the end of the war in 1945.
“My siblings and I were all born and raised in Kingsley,” he told the Record-Eagle last year. “Nine boys, two girls – and I was fourth from the top.”
Weber was born May 20, 1921, in Hannah, the son of Jacob and Anna (Zenner) Weber. Those were tough times, during years of Depression, and he recalled how hard his family worked. “Living was frugal back then, of course. But living on a farm we had all of our basic needs.”
He completed school through the eighth grade and then went to work on the family farm. Eventually he moved to Detroit, as some of his friends did, in search of job opportunities. Then, on Dec. 7, 1941, “I remember coming out of the theater that night, and there on the marquee was a big sign that said ‘Japanese attack Pearl Harbor.’ ”
A day or two later, Weber said he and his friends went to the local recruiter. At the age of 20, he became a member of the “Famous Five Fifty-Fourth,” also known as the “Michigan Engineers.” Their mission was to build bridges anywhere they were needed, along with other jobs when called upon.
After crossing the English Channel, his unit made its way through France, Belgium, Holland, and then into Germany, following the Roer River. Doing so ensured that the 9th Army made it all the way into Mageburg, Germany.
At the war’s end, he returned home in 1945. On May 13, 1950, he married Bernadine Fasel, who preceded him in death in 2001. He worked most of his career at Cone Drive Gear. After retiring, he was a school bus driver and then he drove cars for Bill Marsh. He also volunteered at the Cancer Center. He returned to school to complete his GED in 2008 at the age of 87.
At the age of 102, when he was interviewed by the Record-Eagle, Weber looked back on his own history with a smile, as he expressed both pride and humility for the life he had lived – and for his service to country.
“We felt that we owed it to this nation to serve,” he said. “…We just did what we were asked to do.”
A Mass of Christian burial will be celebrated at noon Thursday at St. Mary of Hannah Catholic Church, 2912 West M-113, in Kingsley.
Visitation will take place from 5 to 7 p.m. Wednesday at Beacon Cremation & Funeral Service, 200 N. Brownson Avenue, in Kingsley. Visitation also will take place from 11 a.m. until time of Mass on Thursday at the church.