
Chief Warrant Officer 2 Virgil Brinker
Chief Warrant Officer 2 (CWO2) Virgil C. Brinker was no stranger to war as he sailed to Japan in the winter of 1952. He had just finished his second war, fighting in World War Two just a few years prior. Now, leaving with the rest of the 1st Cavalry Division, Brinkler could reflect on a job well down.
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Virgil Cletus Brinker was born on October 21st, 1923, living in the St. Louis, Missouri area. In the years before World War Two broke out, he enlisted into the Missouri National Guard while working in a creamery. He stayed with the National Guard until it was federalized and transferred to the US Army Air Force. It is probable that Brinkler served in a maintenance unit assigned to a European Theatre-based USAAF airfield but the extent of his service in WWII is currently unknown.
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During the Korean War, CWO2 Brinker served as the assistant adjutant of the 8th Engineer Battalion, 1st Cavalry Division. His role within the battalion as the assistant adjutant was to maintain administrative needs for supply requisitions, personnel transfers, and keeping the paper trail of his unit in triplicate at all times. He served in the US Army for over 20 years and is now buried in the Jefferson Barracks Cemetary.
Headquarters & Headquarters Company, 8th Engineer Battalion