Texas Sailors Honor, Pay Respects to World War II Sailor

Center for Information Warfare Training
Courtesy Story

Date: 05.04.2019
Posted: 05.06.2019 13:40
News ID: 320920
Texas Sailors Honor, Pay Respects to World War II Sailor

By Center for Information Warfare Training Det. Goodfellow Public Affairs

SAN ANGELO, Texas – Sailors from the Center for Information Warfare Training (CIWT) Det. Goodfellow, Center for Naval Aviation Technical Training Unit Lemoore Learning Site Goodfellow, and Naval Air Station Fort Worth Joint Reserve Base commands in Texas came together to honor and pay respects to Seaman 1st Class Hale McKissack at the Fairview Cemetery in Winters, Texas, May 4.

McKissack was killed in action Dec. 7, 1941, while stationed aboard USS Oklahoma in Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. Originally from Talpa, Texas, he was 37 years old when his ship was attacked by Japanese aircraft. On July 26, 2018, the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA) announced that the Navy had identified his remains.

More than 77 years after his death, McKissack’s remains were escorted by the Navy Sailors from Dallas to Ballinger, Texas, where he was interred by his family.

The Navy also honored McKissack with a 21-gun salute, the bugle call of “Taps" and the presentation of the U.S. flag that draped his casket to family.

“Not only is it a privilege when our detachment is able to participate in honoring those that go before us to defend freedom and democracy around the world, but it is also a powerful reminder of how rich our Navy’s legacy is,” said CIWT Det. Goodfellow Officer in Charge Lt. Cmdr. Austin Maxwell.

CIWT Det. Goodfellow is one of two detachments assigned to CIWT. With four schoolhouse commands, two detachments, and training sites throughout the United States and Japan, CIWT is recognized as Naval Education and Training Command’s top learning center for the past three years. Training over 21,000 students every year, CIWT delivers trained information warfare professionals to the Navy and joint services. CIWT also offers more than 200 courses for cryptologic technicians, intelligence specialists, information systems technicians, electronics technicians, and officers in the information warfare community.

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