Orville F. Bierl

Korean War

Orville Bierl was born in Carroll, IA on March 8, 1930, to Edward and Teresa (Heithoff) Bierl. The family lived on a farm near Templeton until 1933 when they moved to Carroll. Orville attended Sts. Peter and Paul School in Carroll. He started high school at Conception Seminary in Missouri and later at Divine Word Seminary in Epworth, IA. He ultimately graduated from Carroll High School with the class of 1948.

The North Korean invasion of South Korea on June 25, 1950, started the Korean War. Orville was inducted into the US Navy on January 8, 1951, at Des Moines. He was assigned serial number 323 98 91. He was sent to San Diego, CA for boot training and was a part of Company 51-067. After completion of boot training on March 27, 1951, Orville was transferred to the Naval Auxiliary Air Station at Monterey, CA. There he was a part of the 6th Division and supported the Navy Postgraduate School that operated there.

On March 20, 1953, Orville was sent to Fort Slocum just north of New York City to attend the Armed Forces Information School. He completed the Information and Education Course on May 27, 1953 and received a rating of PN3 (personnelman petty officer 3rd class). This training related to working with Navy personnel, their service records and finances.

In early June, 1953, Orville was assigned to the crew of the destroyer escort USS Chester T. O’Brien (DE-421) at Key West, FL. This ship had been part of the Fleet Sonar School in the Gulf of Mexico. By July 8, 1953, the ship had sailed to Newport, RI. It then departed for a midshipman cruise to Bergen, Norway, Copenhagen, Denmark and Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. It returned to Newport on September 5, 1953, for overhaul. During that cruise, the armistice was signed that ended fighting in Korea.

Orville was subsequently assigned to the crew of the USS Hyman (DD-732). This was a destroyer with a significant service record in the Pacific during World War II. Orville joined the ship at its home port in Boston, MA. The USS Hyman was part of the Atlantic Fleet and conducted antisubmarine operations in the Atlantic and Caribbean. Orville was discharged at Boston on November 4, 1954, with a rating of PN2 (personnelman petty officer 2nd class) (E-5 equivalent).

During his time in Boston, Orville met Marion DiTullio. The two were married at Most Precious Blood Church in Hyde Park, MA (a Boston suburb) on September 5, 1955. The couple lived in Carroll until moving to Boston in 1957 where Orville worked in sales. They returned to Carroll in 1969 where Orville worked in insurance and real estate.

Orville died in Carroll on August 23, 2010 at age 80. He was buried in Sacred Heart Cemetery in Templeton.