1LT Lee A. Branch, 22, U.S. Army Air Corps, born in Louisiana November 5, 1922,
passed away in a non-combat incident on May 1, 1945. In World War II, Branch
served as a P-47 Thunderbolt Fighter Pilot with 507th Bombardment Squadron. He
destroyed multiple ground transports, railroad cars, gun positions, and aircraft,
crippiling enemy supply lines. While taking a Red Cross worker for a ride in a
captured German Arado 96, his wing struck a tree and crashed. For his service, he
earned the Distinguished Flying Cross. Fly high, Hero! Til Valhalla, Brother!