Marine who died in WWII being buried in Massachusetts

SPRINGFIELD, Mass. — A decorated U.S. Marine killed during the Battle of Guadalcanal in World War II is finally coming home to Massachusetts for burial.

A memorial service for Pfc. Francis E. Drake Jr. is scheduled for Friday morning at St. Michael's Cathedral in Springfield. Burial with military honors will follow at the Massachusetts Veterans' Memorial Cemetery in Agawam.

Drake, who was born in Framingham and raised in Springfield, was killed during fighting on the South Pacific island in October 1942 and received a field burial.

The American Graves Registration Service searched for his remains in the years following the war but could not locate them. They were finally located by a local man digging on his land several years ago.

The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency confirmed the remains belonged to Drake.

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Associated Press