In Memory of

Frank

Wood

Obituary for Frank Wood

Frank Wood S2c USN

Frank Wood was born in Jackson, Ohio on November 16,1916 of parents Ora and Mamie Wood. He had two sisters, Oden Wood Overly and Chella Wood Roshong.

Frank attended school in Jackson and grew up as a fun loving young man who delighted in joking with and teasing his younger niece, Jill, and nephews Jack, Jerry, Philip, and Buckie. Those were depression years and work was difficult to obtain. As a result, Frank joined the Civilian Conservarion Corp and was sent to Idaho where he worked for some time. Later before joining the Navy. he worked in Toledo, Ohio at the Toledo Country Club.

Frank decided that he wanted a career in the Navy but initially could not make the weight requirement. He spent weeks trying to gain weight and eventually was given a weight waiver as he could not get above 124 pounds.

He was finally enlisted in the Navy on July 24, 1940 and underwent training at the Great Lakes Naval Training Center. He reported for duty aboard the USS Oklahoma on October 12, 1940.

On December 7, 1941 the USS Oklahoma was moored in Berth F-5 in Battleship Row in Pearl Harbor, Honolulu, Hawaii when the attack on Pearl Harbor began. The first torpedo hit the ship shortly before 8:00 am followed by multiple torpedoes which caused the ship to quickly capsize and sustain 429 casualties. S2c Wood was listed among the missing.

From December 9, 1941 through June 1944 Navy personnel recovered remains of deceased crewmen from the USS Oklahoma. These thoroughly comingled remains representing as many as 400 individuals were interred as "unknowns" at 52 burial sites in the Halawa Naval Cemetery and the Nu'uanu Naval Cemetery. These unidentified remains were later reburied in the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific in Honolulu.

In 2015 a casket containing comingled remains from the Oklahoma was exhumed. The Navy contacted the closest remaining relatives, niece Jill O. Overly Lee of Franklin, North Carolina, and nephew, Jack R. Overly of Estes Park, Colorado who submitted genetic data (DNA samples) for testing. As a result, the remains of Frank Wood S2c were identified.

Graveside Service will be held at 2 p.m. Saturday, April 14, 2018 at Carson Cemetery. Full Military honors will be conducted by the US Navy, VFW Post 7339 and American Legion Post 108.

The family will gather at Macon Funeral Home from 12:30-1:30 p.m. Saturday, prior to the burial.

Macon Funeral Home is in charge of the arrangements.