DOB/DOD: March 25, 1926 (Edgewater, NJ) – February 24, 1945; 18 years old
MARITAL STATUS: Unmarried
LOCAL ADDRESS: 5 Church Street, Seymour
ENLISTMENT: January 18, 1944, at 17 years old
SERVICE NUMBER: 556766
UNIT: Company I, 3rd Battalion, 21st Marines, 3rd Marine Division
MILITARY OCCUPATIONAL SPECIALTY: 0746, Automatic Rifleman
FAMILY: Born to Alexander (1890-1940) and Paraskesa Pauline Penkowska Sokoli (1894-1971). Fifth born of six children. Siblings are Andrew (1916-2010), Florence “Tess” Sokoli Zawyer (1918-1980), Anna (1921-1925), Helen Sokoli Ducharme (1924-1997), Irene Sokoli (1930-2021), and Olga Sokoli Uhelsky (1934-2015). 1
CIRCUMSTANCES: Boot camp at Parris Island, South Carolina. Camp Lejeune, North Carolina, for training. Assigned to the 3rd Marine Division, 21st Marines, 3rd Battalion in October 1944. Died from a gunshot wound to the head. 4 PFC Sokoli was in the same company as PFC Frank Souza Jr. and PFC Edward Matava. PFC Souza died on the same day as PFC Sokoli. PFC Matava died 12 days later.
From the Seymour High School (CT) yearbook in 1941, school newspaper staff. 2
From ancestry.com 3
Initially buried in the 3rd Marine Division Cemetery on Iwo Jima, Row 5, Grave 116. At his mother’s request, his remains were returned, and he was buried on April 8, 1948, in Long Island National Cemetery, 2040 Wellwood Avenue, East Farmingdale, New York; Section H, Plot 9513. 4Photo by Jeff DeWitt.
1 – 1940 census https://www.ancestry.com/cs/1940-census
2 – https://classmates.com
3 – https://ancestry.com
4 – USMC Casualty Report received via FOIA request
5 – USMC Muster Rolls: https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/1089/