Arnold Ralph Palmer

Arnold Ralph Palmer of Independence was drafted into the Army and served at Fort Belvoir, VA before being transferred to Fort Sill, OK. He received training in gas turbine and generator repair from the Army Engineering School. PFC Palmer was sent to serve in Vietnam as a field illumination crewman in March 1967. He died four months later on July 4 when he was hit by an enemy grenade near Quang Nam. A funeral service was held at Immanuel Lutheran Church and his body was buried at Mount Hope Cemetery, both located in Independence. He left behind a wife.