Wayne Irving Queen

Wayne Irving Queen was born September 27, 1925 in Loving, Oklahoma to Vander Queen and Pearl Kirksey Queen. He passed away November 29, 2021 in Placerville, California. Wayne was a proud tribal member of the Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma.

Wayne was the 2nd of 7 children born to Vander and Pearl Queen and attended school in the Loving community in rural Leflore County and Heavener, Oklahoma. Wayne was proud of his Choctaw heritage and his service to the country. The Loving community, where he was raised, was named after his Great Grandmother Sarah Loving. Her father John Loving fought in Civil War in the 1st Regiment, Choctaw and Chickasaw Mounted Rifles Co. G under Jackson McCurtain.

Life was not always easy for Wayne. He, along with his older brother and their father, spent most of 1935 in the T.B. Sanatorium in Talihina, Oklahoma. Writing home every 2-3 weeks, he missed his family terribly. His mother saved every letter home and returned them to her son, who kept them for the rest of his life.

At the age of 18, in 1943, he was drafted into the Army for WWII and after basic training was assigned to the 106th Infantry Division. In 1944, Staff Sgt. Queen saw combat in the European theater of operations with the “Bloody Bucket” division in the hedgerows of Normandy in the heart of the Reich.

He arrived in the Ardennes region of Europe in early December 1944. In 2015, when he finally received his Bronze Star, he recalled fighting in the Battle of the Bulge. He said his division was sent to the front line to relieve the 2nd infantry Division. On December 15, after walking 5 miles to communicate with another division and returning at 2 a.m., the Germans began to shell them and this was the beginning of a major battle called Watch of the Rhine. The Germans moved in more 200,000 troops and nearly 1,000 tanks. Overwhelmed, several regiments were forced to surrender.

They lost 8,863 out of 11,000 men in the battle. His regiment, which had not surrendered began to march, trying to reach Belgium. They traveled for days through the mountains, being shelled by the Germans along the way, until Gen. Patton sent the 7th and 9th armored division to assist in their rescue. Winter in Europe was especially bad that year, and he recalled often fighting in 5 feet of snow.

In January 1945, the allies were able to push through the German front and Germany surrendered a few months later. The Battle of the Bulge lasted over a month and Queen later described some of the conditions as the worse he had ever seen. He remained in Europe, as a platoon leader, until May 7, 1945.

By 1945 his family had relocated to Arizona, as his father was still suffering the effects of tuberculosis and was advised to move to a drier climate. Wayne joined his family in Arizona.

He came home wearing the Combat Infantryman Badge, Good Conduct Ribbon and the ETO ribbon with four stars and was moved into the 28th division. He finally left his service with the Army on December 22, 1945.

In August of 1945 he married Ruth Alice Stader and remained her loving husband until her death in June 2017. He and Ruth welcomed their only child, Nancy Sue Queen in 1947.

After Wayne returned home from the service he found work as a used car salesman and butcher. He became a grocery store owner, a home builder in the Lake Tahoe area and later real estate developer in California.

After the war, although he was promised the Bronze Star for heroism in a combat zone, he did not receive it until 2015. In 1973 a fire at the National Personnel Records Center destroyed many soldier’s service records including those of Wayne. Hearing his story, an effort was made to make right what was earned and after waiting 70 years, at the age of 89, Wayne Queen finally received his much-deserved Bronze Star on June 15, 2015.

Wayne was preceded in death by his parents, his wife of nearly 72 years Ruth, daughter Nancy, 3 brothers Vester, Clifford and Jimmie Queen and sister Emma Ruth Queen Carnes.

He is survived by his grandson Tony Blassingame, great-grandchildren, Jessica, Holly, Patricia and Zeth Blassingame, 8 great-great-grandchildren, brother Don Queen, sister Janazean Queen Daggs and numerous nieces and nephews.