Stanley Dean White

Stanley Dean White was the youngest of seven kids and was raised in Charles City. He graduated Charles City High School in the class of 1964 and went on to study at North Iowa Area Community College in Mason City. White entered the Army in June 1966. The following year he graduated from Officer Candidate School in Fort Sill, OK. 1LT White began his first tour in Vietnam in June 1968 and served with A Battery, 2nd Battalion, 19th Artillery, 1st Cavalry Division. 1LT White was killed on January 3, 1969 while serving as an observer on an OH-6A Cayuse helicopter. The chopper was transporting a prisoner from a Navy vessel in the Song Vam Co Dong River back to the headquarters’ base. After departing the boat, the helicopter followed the river toward its destination. During the trip a skid made contact with the water and the aircraft crashed, killing White and a fellow serviceman. The helicopter pilot and prisoner survived the crash. White was 23 years old at the time of his death. His body was returned to Iowa and buried at the Sunnyside Memorial Garden in Charles City.