Pvt. Arnold Vander Wilt, son of Mr. & Mrs. Gerrit Vander Wilt of Orange City was among the nineteen men that were killed in the plane crash at Tuscon, Arizona, last Thursday morning. The accident occurred at about seven o'clock in the morning, when two planes collided in mid-air and burst into flames.
Pvt. Vander Wilt is survived by his wife the former Lois Reinders and a small baby, as also his parents and two brothers both in the service; Peter who is in Italy, and Clifford who is in training at Missouri, also two sisters, Mrs. Henry Plender and Anna Mae at home.
Funeral services will be held for him on Thursday afternoon, Dec. 7, at the First Reformed Church at Alton.
Pvt. Vander Wilt was a turret gunner on the plane and was receiving his final training before leaving for overseas service. He is a nephew of Mrs. Harry Dykstra of Orange City.
Source: Sioux Center News, December 7, 1944
There is no point in glossing over the fact that we have had casualties from this county in the past two months of hard fighting. Several men have paid the supreme sacrifice and more have been wounded and hospitalized. Closest home and hardest to take was the news that Ray Friedman had been killed in action over England. He had just received his promotion to staff sergeant and had been on only a few missions. Details are still lacking; but the community feels for the breaved wife, mother and family.
Also for two other young war widows who are Alton girls: Mrs. Neal Jager (nee Catherine Cleveringa) whose husband was killed in action in Belgium, Dec. 23rd; and Mrs. Arnold Vander Wilt (nee Lois Reinders) whose husband, a graduate of Alton high school, was killed in a collison of two B24s.
Source: The Alton Democrat, February 8, 1945
Pvt. Arnold Vander Wilt has a cenotaph in West Lawn Cemetery Sioux County, IA.
Source: ancestry.com
