WWII Hero's Remains to Find Temporary Rest in Los Gatos

The much-anticipated arrival of the remains belonging to U.S. Army SFC Joseph David Steinberg was scheduled for Monday evening aboard an Alaska Airlines flight, but got postponed until Tuesday morning due to tropical storm Flossie, according to airport staff.

Steinberg will be buried at 11 a.m. Thursday Aug. 1 at Golden Gate National Cemetery in San Bruno, said U.S. Army officer spokesman Scott Ghiringhelli.

His remains will rest in Los Gatos until Thursday, Ghiringhelli said.

There will be a full local law enforcement/CHP assistance to transport the remains to the cemetery and The Patriot Guard/riders will be escorting, Ghiringhelli added.
 
According to his obituary on the legacy.com website, Steinberg died when he was 31 years old on April 30, 1951 after becoming a prisoner of war at Camp Bean in North Korea and succumbing to exposure and malnutrition.

Steinberg's niece, Marlene Baisa, will be receiving the remains at SJO. She is the closest living relative, Ghiringhelli said.

The remains are coming from Hawaii, where the DNA testing was done to identify them. On 24 June, 1991, the Republic of Korea turned over the remains of 11 soldiers who had died in Korea. It is not stated where they were found exactly, Ghiringhelli explained.

On April 30, 2013, Steinberg's remains were identified and the family was notified. The family, however, learned that Steinberg was MIA on March 4, 1951, Ghiringhelli noted.

Steinberg was a member of Battery C, 15th Field Artillery Battalion, 2nd Infrantry Division and was taken prisoner of war while fighting the enemy near Hoengson, South Korea on Feb. 13, 1951, the obituary said.

"For his leadership and valor, SFC Steinberg was awarded the Bronze Star, Purple Heart, United Nations Service Medal, Korean Presidential Unit Citation, and the Republic of Korea War Service Medal," the obituary added.

In WWII, Steinberg served in New Guinea and the Philippines under General Douglas MacArthur, the obituary continued.

He was drafted into the peace time Army before the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor.

In 1946, he was assigned to the Occupation Forces in Japan, enjoying that duty as he could play baseball, a game he loved, the death notice said.

In a letter written to his sister, Dorothy, in March 1949, he stated, "At least after I put my time in I'll have a pension every month and I don't have to worry about food and where to sleep."

"This was coming from a young man that had been raised during the Great Depression and up to that point had only been able to find employment at the California Conservation Corps. While in Japan, the Korean War broke out. His unit was the first to be deployed," the obituary said.

Ghiringhelli said one of the soldiers in his regional 63rd support command of the U.S. Army Reserve was responsible for casualty assistance related to the case.