Paul Magro
January 5, 1920 — August 16, 2014
Paul Magro
Paul Joseph Magro, 94, passed away on August 16, 2014. He was born in Worcester, MA on January 5, 1920 to Sebastiano and Josephine (Ciurcina) Magro. Mr. Magro was a member of Our Lady of Good Counsel Catholic Church in Little Rock. He served in the United States Army serving in World War II and was a Principal with the Little Rock School District for thirty-three years.
His connection to Arkansas will be discussed later. Paul graduated from high school and attended a trade school, where he learned to use a lathe and milling machines. He soon went to work at the Springfield Arsenal in Springfield, Massachusetts, where they produced guns and parts.
Paul was drafted in April of 1942. When he reported for duty the first time, he was rejected because of a punctured eardrum. Six months later, he was called up again and this time he was accepted. Paul was sent to several training camps around the country and became part of the 66th Panther Division. During his service at Camp Robinson in North Little Rock, he met his future wife. At that time, there were three U.S.O. locations in Little Rock. The Catholic U.S.O. was located at 7th and Main Street. That's where Paul met Anna Marie Highsmith, a beautiful young nurse. They were married on June 4, 1944. The Jewish U.S.O. was located at 4th and Main Street and the third location was for people of other faiths. It was set up at 3rd and Main Street. The sidewalks in downtown Little Rock were filled with soldiers in the early 1940's.
The Army pulled men out of units all over the United States to create a new infantry. Paul was chosen from the Quartermasters to be in this group. He was sent to a location in California, near San Francisco for a short time. While waiting there, he helped load canned goods onto ships that would go overseas. He later reported to Camp Anza in Riverside, California, where many soldiers were gathering for the trip to an undisclosed location in the Pacific. His wife visited him at the California locations and returned to Little Rock when Paul shipped out. The trip involved three weeks of travel and many of the men became seasick. Paul suffered from this malady himself. The undisclosed location was New Caledonia, where the men stayed for a few weeks. Paul remembers that the mud was especially bad there and all the men's boots would sink deep into the muck. The men were soon shipped to the Philippines, where they served under General Douglas MacArthur. On October 21, 1944, the troops were waiting on troop transports. As the men were ordered to climb over the edge of the transport and go down the rope ladders, the Battle of Leyte began. Japanese aircraft flew low and shooting. Paul wedged himself in between two steel beams for safety and soon the planes were gone. Then he started down the rope ladder again and the Japanese planes returned. The men on the ladders couldn't go anywhere. They were stranded on the ladders with gunfire all around. Paul survived and got into a small boat and headed for shore. The infantry's mission was to secure the Tacloban Airstrip on the Philippines. The battle for this airstrip lasted for several days. Finally, the Americans took and secured the airstrip. Afterwards, the men had to patrol the island and find the remaining Japanese soldiers. Often the Japanese were hidden in the underground trenches. Some trenches had dummy soldiers in them to trick the enemy.
For a short time, Paul's 17th Regiment was pulled out and sent to Subic Bay. They started a twenty mile march to Manila but were ejected before they completed the march. They returned to Leyte to patrol the area. The men did lots of walking and dug may foxholes for protection.
Paul's regiment was once again loaded on a ship and this time they head for Okinawa. The island-hopping campaign of the Americans was coming to a close. Okinawa would be the last battle before Japan itself. The island was the perfect location for staging an attack on Japan. The Americans knew that the battle for Okinawa would be particularly difficult and that it would be one of the bloodiest battles fought. 120,000 Japanese soldiers were entrenched on the island. They were hiding and waiting in dugouts and underground tunnels. The Japanese had 10,000 aircraft committed to the defense of this island, along with their largest battleship, the Yamato. On April 1, 1945, Paul's regiment landed on the beaches of Okinawa. Again, the men climbed down rope ladders to smaller boats. When they landed near the beach, the ramp would not open and the men had to jump off of the boat into the water. Paul was worried, as he did not know how to swim. Luckily, he landed in waist-deep water and was able to walk to the beach. The landing force on Okinawa was the largest force in the Pacific fighting. It included three Marine and four Army divisions. Before it was all over, 300,000 Allied Troops would be involved in this battle.
Paul developed a bad fungus on his feet. Many soldiers suffered with this condition as they waded through water in their boots frequently. Paul was assigned to the U.S.S. Comfort, a hospital ship. The ship was on its way to a hospital in Guam, when it was attacked by a Kamikaze plane. The explosion set the ship on fire and killed many of the doctors. The blast threw Paul out of his bunk onto the floor. As he tried to get away from the fire, he spotted a nurse who was trapped behind a steel door. Paul was able to move the door and another man pulled the nurse to freedom. She eventually lost one leg to the attack. Another ship came and helped put out the fire. Once the fire was out, the men could see the aircraft embedded in their ship. Then the ship headed for Guam.
Paul was in the Guam hospital and then sent to a hospital in San Francisco, California. He received a pass and returned to Little Rock for a short time. He returned to San Francisco and was later assigned to Brooks General Hospital in San Antonio, Texas. It was there that he was discharged from the Army.
The first thing on Paul's agenda was to return to Little Rock to be with his wife, Anna Marie. He took her to Massachusetts to meet his family and then they made their home in Little Rock. Paul attended Little Rock Junior College and earned an Associate Degree. He worked for a while and then returned to college at Arkansas State Teacher's College. He received his degree in Education and did his "practice teaching" at Little Rock High School. The Little Rock School District offered Paul a job at the high school and he worked there for a number of years. Later he served as Vice-Principal at Booker Intermediate School and as principal at Mitchell Elementary School. With 33 years of service, Paul retired. Clearly, he served as a community leader and a beloved teacher.
Paul and his wife continued to enjoy life in Little Rock, until she passed away in 2006. They had been married for 62 years. She had graduated from St. Vincent School of Nursing. In her honor, Paul created an Endowment so that other young women could study Nursing.
He is survived by his brother, Anthony Magro; sister, Mary Joyce, Evelyn Dyer and daughters by mutual agreement, Janet Lowe and Jane Lang and a host of nieces and nephews. He is preceded in death by his parents, wife, Anna Marie Magro; sisters, Frances Bellerive, Anna Verdoloino, Pauline Pellegrino, Rosemary Buduo and his twin sister, Josephine Giaquinto.
Mass of Christian burial will be at 10:00 a.m. on Tuesday, August 19th at Our Lady of Good Counsel Catholic Church in Little Rock with Father Warren Harvey officiating. Burial will be in Black Springs Cemetery in Black Springs, AR. Visitation will be held on Monday, August 18th at 6:00 p.m. with Rosary service starting at 7:00 p.m. at Little Rock Funeral Home.
In lieu of flowers memorials may be made to Our House Shelter, 302 E. Roosevelt Rd., Little Rock, AR 72206, (501)374-7383, Our Lady of the Holy Souls Catholic Church, 1003 N. Tyler St., Little Rock, AR 72205, (501) 663-8632 or Our Lady of Good Counsel Catholic Church, 1321 S. Van Buren St., Little Rock, AR 72204, (501) 663-5073.
Special thanks to Katz Morrison, Mike Margolis, Deloris Williams and Terry Mashing for all of their loving care given to Paul.
Arrangements by Little Rock Funeral Home, 8801 Knoedl Ct., (501)224-2200. Mr. Magro's online guestbook may be signed at www.littlerockfuneralhome.com.
8801 Knoedl Ct
Little Rock, AR, 72205
8801 Knoedl Ct
Little Rock, AR, 72205
1321 S. Van Buren
Little Rock, AR, 72204
His connection to Arkansas will be discussed later. Paul graduated from high school and attended a trade school, where he learned to use a lathe and milling machines. He soon went to work at the Springfield Arsenal in Springfield, Massachusetts, where they produced guns and parts.
Paul was drafted in April of 1942. When he reported for duty the first time, he was rejected because of a punctured eardrum. Six months later, he was called up again and this time he was accepted. Paul was sent to several training camps around the country and became part of the 66th Panther Division. During his service at Camp Robinson in North Little Rock, he met his future wife. At that time, there were three U.S.O. locations in Little Rock. The Catholic U.S.O. was located at 7th and Main Street. That's where Paul met Anna Marie Highsmith, a beautiful young nurse. They were married on June 4, 1944. The Jewish U.S.O. was located at 4th and Main Street and the third location was for people of other faiths. It was set up at 3rd and Main Street. The sidewalks in downtown Little Rock were filled with soldiers in the early 1940's.
The Army pulled men out of units all over the United States to create a new infantry. Paul was chosen from the Quartermasters to be in this group. He was sent to a location in California, near San Francisco for a short time. While waiting there, he helped load canned goods onto ships that would go overseas. He later reported to Camp Anza in Riverside, California, where many soldiers were gathering for the trip to an undisclosed location in the Pacific. His wife visited him at the California locations and returned to Little Rock when Paul shipped out. The trip involved three weeks of travel and many of the men became seasick. Paul suffered from this malady himself. The undisclosed location was New Caledonia, where the men stayed for a few weeks. Paul remembers that the mud was especially bad there and all the men's boots would sink deep into the muck. The men were soon shipped to the Philippines, where they served under General Douglas MacArthur. On October 21, 1944, the troops were waiting on troop transports. As the men were ordered to climb over the edge of the transport and go down the rope ladders, the Battle of Leyte began. Japanese aircraft flew low and shooting. Paul wedged himself in between two steel beams for safety and soon the planes were gone. Then he started down the rope ladder again and the Japanese planes returned. The men on the ladders couldn't go anywhere. They were stranded on the ladders with gunfire all around. Paul survived and got into a small boat and headed for shore. The infantry's mission was to secure the Tacloban Airstrip on the Philippines. The battle for this airstrip lasted for several days. Finally, the Americans took and secured the airstrip. Afterwards, the men had to patrol the island and find the remaining Japanese soldiers. Often the Japanese were hidden in the underground trenches. Some trenches had dummy soldiers in them to trick the enemy.
For a short time, Paul's 17th Regiment was pulled out and sent to Subic Bay. They started a twenty mile march to Manila but were ejected before they completed the march. They returned to Leyte to patrol the area. The men did lots of walking and dug may foxholes for protection.
Paul's regiment was once again loaded on a ship and this time they head for Okinawa. The island-hopping campaign of the Americans was coming to a close. Okinawa would be the last battle before Japan itself. The island was the perfect location for staging an attack on Japan. The Americans knew that the battle for Okinawa would be particularly difficult and that it would be one of the bloodiest battles fought. 120,000 Japanese soldiers were entrenched on the island. They were hiding and waiting in dugouts and underground tunnels. The Japanese had 10,000 aircraft committed to the defense of this island, along with their largest battleship, the Yamato. On April 1, 1945, Paul's regiment landed on the beaches of Okinawa. Again, the men climbed down rope ladders to smaller boats. When they landed near the beach, the ramp would not open and the men had to jump off of the boat into the water. Paul was worried, as he did not know how to swim. Luckily, he landed in waist-deep water and was able to walk to the beach. The landing force on Okinawa was the largest force in the Pacific fighting. It included three Marine and four Army divisions. Before it was all over, 300,000 Allied Troops would be involved in this battle.
Paul developed a bad fungus on his feet. Many soldiers suffered with this condition as they waded through water in their boots frequently. Paul was assigned to the U.S.S. Comfort, a hospital ship. The ship was on its way to a hospital in Guam, when it was attacked by a Kamikaze plane. The explosion set the ship on fire and killed many of the doctors. The blast threw Paul out of his bunk onto the floor. As he tried to get away from the fire, he spotted a nurse who was trapped behind a steel door. Paul was able to move the door and another man pulled the nurse to freedom. She eventually lost one leg to the attack. Another ship came and helped put out the fire. Once the fire was out, the men could see the aircraft embedded in their ship. Then the ship headed for Guam.
Paul was in the Guam hospital and then sent to a hospital in San Francisco, California. He received a pass and returned to Little Rock for a short time. He returned to San Francisco and was later assigned to Brooks General Hospital in San Antonio, Texas. It was there that he was discharged from the Army.
The first thing on Paul's agenda was to return to Little Rock to be with his wife, Anna Marie. He took her to Massachusetts to meet his family and then they made their home in Little Rock. Paul attended Little Rock Junior College and earned an Associate Degree. He worked for a while and then returned to college at Arkansas State Teacher's College. He received his degree in Education and did his "practice teaching" at Little Rock High School. The Little Rock School District offered Paul a job at the high school and he worked there for a number of years. Later he served as Vice-Principal at Booker Intermediate School and as principal at Mitchell Elementary School. With 33 years of service, Paul retired. Clearly, he served as a community leader and a beloved teacher.
Paul and his wife continued to enjoy life in Little Rock, until she passed away in 2006. They had been married for 62 years. She had graduated from St. Vincent School of Nursing. In her honor, Paul created an Endowment so that other young women could study Nursing.
He is survived by his brother, Anthony Magro; sister, Mary Joyce, Evelyn Dyer and daughters by mutual agreement, Janet Lowe and Jane Lang and a host of nieces and nephews. He is preceded in death by his parents, wife, Anna Marie Magro; sisters, Frances Bellerive, Anna Verdoloino, Pauline Pellegrino, Rosemary Buduo and his twin sister, Josephine Giaquinto.
Mass of Christian burial will be at 10:00 a.m. on Tuesday, August 19th at Our Lady of Good Counsel Catholic Church in Little Rock with Father Warren Harvey officiating. Burial will be in Black Springs Cemetery in Black Springs, AR. Visitation will be held on Monday, August 18th at 6:00 p.m. with Rosary service starting at 7:00 p.m. at Little Rock Funeral Home.
In lieu of flowers memorials may be made to Our House Shelter, 302 E. Roosevelt Rd., Little Rock, AR 72206, (501)374-7383, Our Lady of the Holy Souls Catholic Church, 1003 N. Tyler St., Little Rock, AR 72205, (501) 663-8632 or Our Lady of Good Counsel Catholic Church, 1321 S. Van Buren St., Little Rock, AR 72204, (501) 663-5073.
Special thanks to Katz Morrison, Mike Margolis, Deloris Williams and Terry Mashing for all of their loving care given to Paul.
Arrangements by Little Rock Funeral Home, 8801 Knoedl Ct., (501)224-2200. Mr. Magro's online guestbook may be signed at www.littlerockfuneralhome.com.
Visitation
AUG 18. 6:00 PM (CDT)
Little Rock Funeral Home8801 Knoedl Ct
Little Rock, AR, 72205
Rosary Service
AUG 18. 7:00 PM (CDT)
Little Rock Funeral Home8801 Knoedl Ct
Little Rock, AR, 72205
Funeral Mass
AUG 19. 10:00 AM (CDT)
Our Lady of Good Counsel Catholic Church1321 S. Van Buren
Little Rock, AR, 72204
To order memorial trees or send flowers to the family in memory of Paul Magro, please visit our flower store.
In light of increasing scams, all guestbook entries will now be approved by us. At Smith Family Funeral Homes, safeguarding the privacy and personal memories of your loved ones for family and friends is our top priority. We appreciate your understanding and patience.
Guestbook
Visits: 20
This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the
Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.
Service map data © OpenStreetMap contributors
