Declared Dead At War, He Returned Alive To Locate Their World Had Managed To Move On Without Him

Walter Dixon and their son Russ Dixon at their StoryCorps interview in Waynesville, Mo. Modupeola Oyebolu/StoryCorps hide caption

Walter Dixon and their son Russ Dixon at their StoryCorps meeting in Waynesville, Mo.

StoryCorps’ Military Voices Initiative records tales from members of the U.S. military and their own families.

Walter Dixon have been hitched just for five times as he shipped down to Korea for their 2nd war implementation.

About a 12 months later on, at age 22, he had been announced dead. Whenever his obituary ended up being posted within the paper that is local his spouse back in Waynesville, Mo., had not a way of comprehending that the news headlines had been untimely.

The truth is, Dixon had been alive behind enemy lines.

In an meeting at StoryCorps final month, Dixon, a 90-year-old veteran of three wars, talked to their son Russ Dixon on how, after an incident of mistaken identity, he returned house to locate that their globe had managed to move on without him.

Dixon ended up being serving within the Army’s 38th Infantry Division when, he states, he had been captured while wanting to help their fellow troops.

He had been about a half-mile from their post as he saw five males from his device down get shot by the artillery round. “One of ‘em’s feet were both broken, therefore I took my industry jacket and covered around his feet to together hold them,” he states.

As he gone back to their tool, Chinese forces giving support to the North Koreans came up behind him.

“When i acquired captured, those dudes for the reason that opening with my industry coat here, they simply got blown all to heck,” Dixon states.

Once the figures had been later discovered, Dixon’s coat, which carried letters from their spouse when you look at the pouches, had been the piece that mistakenly linked him to a deceased other soldier.

“I am sure that is why they reported me dead as opposed to captured,” Dixon claims.

For the following two . 5 years, he had been held prisoner in A north korean camp.

It absolutely was an experience that is harrowing Dixon recalls. To keep hot, he’d shop around for timber to burn off and, in some instances, prepared rats as sustenance. 1 day, a guard thought he strayed too much.

“we began to make smarter headway and also this guard hollered for me personally to prevent, but i did not,” he states. “therefore, he stuck me personally along with his bayonet. Types of a time that is rough here.”

Dixon escaped five times, but each right time he had been caught, and penalized. When fighting stumbled on a halt, the Red Cross found the camp and notified the prisoners of these launch.

Back, because Dixon have been reported killed, their wife had managed to move on. She remarried and had youngster with another guy.

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At the right time, Dixon states, he did not have much to express.

“we can not blame her. I became dead. Then she discovered I became alive. https://bestbrides.org/russian-brides/ single russian women The sole apparent thing to do would be to divorce certainly one of us.”

Dixon and their spouse would divorce. But he couldn’t resent her, he states.

“Anger do not can you a bit of good on something such as that, you cannot do absolutely nothing about any of it,” he claims. “You simply gotta handle it the simplest way you understand how.”

Despite every thing he experienced, Dixon made a decision to stay static in the army. It really is a choice that their son Russ nevertheless wonders about.

“It ended up being my entire life,” Dixon stated. “when you proceed through all that, you ain’t frightened of nothing.”

Russ stated he could be happy with their dad, whom proceeded to provide in Vietnam. “I tell lots of people about your seven Purple Hearts and all of that, and I also brag he told his father about it just about every day.

In terms of Dixon himself, he states he could not care just just how other people keep in mind him. It is enough he made for him alone to know the sacrifices.

“I am able to keep in mind me personally,” he claims. “I do not have any desires or needs of memory. I recently enjoyed my army solution . We’d try it again. And I also’m happy with it.”

In terms of that regional obituary journalist? Dixon finished up marrying her and achieving three kids together, including Russ.

Sound produced for Weekend Edition by Kelly Moffitt.