Lester Clifford Borst was born on July 29,1920 in Schenevus, New York to Alvin D. Borst (1893-1970) and Katherine “Katy” West (1892-1978). His parents were married September 22, 1915 in Otsego County, NY. The 1930 US Census recorded that his father was a truck driver. His mom was a homemaker. According to the 1940 U.S. Census and Find a Grave records, he lived on Main St. in Schenevus, NY, completed 3 years of High School and had a younger brother Burton and an older sister Dorothy.

He enlisted in the New York State National Guard on July 22, 1940 and later, on October 15, 1940, when the Guard was sworn into Federal service, he was assigned to Company G.,106th Infantry Regiment, 27th Infantry Division in the U.S. Army. He was single at the time of enlistment.

For its service in World War II, the 106th had 12 companies, all initially recruited from the communities of upstate New York. Companies A, B, C, and D of the first battalion were all from Albany. Companies E and H were recruited from Binghamton. Companies F, G, I, and K were recruited from Walton, Oneonta, Mohawk, and Oneida respectively and companies L and M were formed in Utica. Additional Regimental troops were drawn from Catskill, Hudson, and Rome.

The 106th departed for Hawaii on March 10, 1942 and arrived there on March 15, 1942. The Regiment was designated as a floating reserve for the projected Marshall Islands' operations and on December 14, 1943 was attached to the V Amphibious Corp. for training. The Regiment’s 2nd battalion, which Pfc. Borst was part of, occupied Majuro Atoll on February 1, 1944, expecting to encounter strong resistance, but instead finding that the Japanese had withdrawn their troops months earlier. The battalion remained there until March 5, 1944 when it was sent back to Oahu.

The Regiment landed on Saipan on June 20, 1944, several days after the rest of the Division. The 106th was heavily involved in the fighting for Saipan’s dominant terrain feature - a 1,554-foot mountain called Mount Tapotchau. The 106th initially fought along a ridge line near the mountain’s base and in an open valley at the base of the ridge line, two terrain features that were grimly dubbed Purple Heart Ridge and Death Valley. Later in the fight, following the reduction of most of the Japanese defenses and the failure of their Banzai charge, the 106th was instrumental in repelling the second and final Japanese counterattack. The 106th departed Saipan on September 4, 1944, bound for Espiritu Santo for rest and re-supply. The Regiment arrived on September 13, 1944 and after refitting and replenishing its numbers, departed on March 20, 1945. 

Pfc. Borst also saw action on Tarawa, Makin and Eniwetok before being sent to Okinawa. While in Okinawa the 106th fought hard for possession of Rotation Ridge and in conjunction with the 105th Infantry Regiment captured a hill called The Pinnacle, a large spire of rock, honey combed with Japanese defenses. The 106th participated in the last of the 27th Division’s major fighting when on April 22, 1944 the 1st Battalion put down a small Banzai charge from the western sector of the pinnacle.

In a letter (see below) sent to his parents by 1st Lt. Stoeckley, Lester was described as well liked, faithful and courageous. A reverend man who did his duty. PFC Borst was killed instantly by an artillery round about ten o'clock on the night of April 25, 1945. For details on Company G’s role during this action, Chapter 8 of “Okinawa: The Last Battle”, by Burns, Gugeler, and Stevens (https://www.history.army.mil/books/wwii/okinawa/) can be referred to.

Lester was awarded the Bronze Star Medal and the Purple Heart Medal posthumously. His name is memorialized on the Peace Park Memorial on Okinawa, Japan. His body was returned home in June of 1949 aboard the Private John R Towle (T-AK-240) transport and interred in the Schenevus Cemetery, Schenevus, NY. Stores in Schenevus were closed for the day to honor him.

Thank you, PFC Lester “Buddy” Borst, for your service and sacrifice. You will not be forgotten. Special thanks to Bob Parmerter, Town of Maryland Historian for the pictures and letters he provided. They added a great deal to Pfc. Borst's story.

If you noticed anything erroneous in this profile or have additional information to contribute to it, please contact Jim Greenberg at nez13820@gmail.com

Sources

27th Infantry Division (United States), Wikipedia Entry, accessed at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/27th_Infantry_Division_(United_States), May 5, 2022

106th Infantry Regiment, New York State Museum and Veterans Research Center, https://museum.dmna.ny.gov/unit-history/conflict/world-war-2-1939-1945/106th-infantry-regiment, accessed May 21, 2022

Ancestry.com.1940 United States Federal Census[database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2012. Year:1940; Census Place:Schenevus, Otsego, New York; Roll:m-t0627-02716; Page:4A; Enumeration District:39-17

Ancestry.com.1930 United States Federal Census[database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2002. Year:1930; Census Place:Maryland, Otsego, New York; Page:1B; Enumeration District:0016; FHL microfilm:2341370

Appleman, Roy E., Burns, James M., Gugeler, Russell A., Stevens, John, Okinawa: The Last Battle, United States Army in World War II, The War in the Pacific, accessed at https://www.history.army.mil/books/wwii/okinawa on September 12, 2022. 

Box #:281; Box Info:Blubaugh - Bozsin; Archive Collection #:I-52 Alphabetical Master Cards, 1942–1947; Series VI, Card Files—Bureau of War Records, Master Index Cards, 1943–1947; National Jewish Welfare Board, Bureau of War Records, 1940–1969; I-52; boxes 273–362. New York, New York: American Jewish Historical Society, Center for Jewish History.

Find a Grave, database and images (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/94753791/lester-c-borst: accessed 12 September 2022), memorial page for PFC Lester C “Buddy” Borst (1920–1945), Find a Grave Memorial ID 94753791, citing Schenevus Cemetery, Schenevus, Otsego County, New York, USA; Maintained by Sue Haron (contributor 47801230) .

"First Schenevus Yank Gives Life on Okinawa, 2 Others Are Killed", Press and Sun Bulletin, Binghamton, NY, June 4, 1945.

Marriage Records. New York Marriages. Various New York County Clerk offices. 

National Archives at Washington DC; Washington DC, USA;Applications for Headstones for U.S. Military Veterans, 1925-1941; NAID:A1, 2110-C; Record Group Number:92; Record Group Title:Records of the Office of the Quartermaster General

"One of 'Old Originals' of Co. G Home After Seeing Much Action in Pacific", Oneonta, NY, Oneonta Herald, June 28, 1945, pg. 2.

The Pinnacle, Battle of Okinawa, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Pinnacle,_Battle_of_Okinawa, accessed May 21, 2022.

USNS Private John R. Towle (T-AK-240), accessed at, http://www.navsource.org/archives/09/13/130240.htm September 12, 2022.

Supporting Documents