By Deborah Larsen
Stanley Laverne Austin
Stanley Laverne Austin was born in Mendota, Illinois, on February 2, 1921, the son of Delbert and Edith Hansen Austin. Stanley grew up in Detroit and graduated from Pershing High School in 1938. After high school, he worked at National Twist Drill & Tool Company, and his family moved to Avon Township.
In June 1942, Stanley enlisted in the U.S. Navy, but in December 1942, he transferred to the U.S. Marine Corps and trained as a Marine aviator at Pensacola, Florida. On February 16, 1944, Stanley was on a routine flight from the Miami Naval Air Station when his airplane crashed near Homestead, Florida. He and his passenger were both killed in the crash.
Stanley Laverne Austin died at age 23 on February 16, 1944, and was laid to rest in Mount Avon Cemetery.