Pvt. George Fox died in Italy in 1944. But even after his remains returned to Unalaska, they were buried in an unmarked grave despite years of work pushing the government to recognize his sacrifice.
For decades, Gertrude Svarny has spent every Memorial Day placing small flags around the Unalaska cemetery by the graves of family members who served in the military. Even now, in her 90s, the annual rounds include hiking up a hill to an unmarked gravesite where, buried below the overgrown grass, lies her childhood acquaintance George, the only Unangan killed fighting during World War II.
In spite of losing his life during the war, Fox’s grave lacks any of the military honors typically bestowed on soldiers killed in action. The transfer of his remains back to his home in the Aleutians was delayed and unceremonious. He, his family and community, according to people who have watched the story of his life and death unfold in recent years, have still not been given what they are owed.
After learning about Fox’s service, Livingston was frustrated that the Unangax̂ war hero’s story bore no formal recognition. Fox’s name was not on memorial lists of soldiers killed in action in the war. Livingston tried over and over to convince the dense federal bureaucracy handling veterans benefits and records to acknowledge Fox, in the process compiling pages of decades-old evidence attesting to his service.
Eventually he connected with Rachel Bylsma, who at the time directed constituent services in U.S. Sen. Dan Sullivan’s office. She and others on Sullivan’s staff had worked similar cases getting veterans in Western Alaska the grave markers their military service entitled them to. As a result, Bylsma took a keen interest in Fox’s case, in part because she knew what a difficult, arduous process it was to navigate.
“In the Unangax̂ culture, when a warrior dies protecting our villages, we’re supposed to make a big deal out of it,” Livingston said, noting the person would traditionally be commemorated in songs and dances. “We’re supposed to do things to make sure the warrior is remembered for many generations.”
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