Scharf, Russell

Description

Russell Scharf

Russell Scharf was born November 28, 1922 in Westchester, New York, to Elsie Carlson and John Scharf. He had one brother and one sister and in Rye his family lived at 34 Halsted Place.

Russell enlisted May 20, 1943 in U.S. Army during World War II. Russell served in the 3198th Signal Service Battalion, it was a United States Army unit that provided critical communications support in the China-Burma-India (CBI) Theater during World War II.

The battalion specialized in maintaining Allied communications across the CBI theater, one of the most challenging geographical areas of the war. In 1945, the unit traveled along the Ledo Road from Burma to Kunming, China. This route was a vital supply line constructed to bypass Japanese-occupied territory. The battalion operated out of APO 627 in Kunming, China which served as a major headquarters for U.S. forces and the “Flying Tigers”.

Veterans of the 3198th reported harsh conditions, including sleeping in tents within rice paddies while traversing the jungle. They faced constant environmental hazards such as leeches, monsoon rains, and tropical diseases, alongside military threats like Japanese booby traps.

Russell received his honorable discharge March 17, 1946. He came back home and was living and working in Harrison, NY as a presser for a laundry company. He would move to the upstate town of Bloomington, NY and lived there for decades and was very infolved in the China-Burma-India Veterans Association.

Russell Scharf died in 2001 in Poughkeepsie, New York, at the age of 79. He is buried in Greenwood Union Cemetery, Rye, NY.