A monument to Army Lieutenant Victor Leonard Kandle, awarded the Medal of Honor (posthumously) in World War II, will be dedicated at Puyallup High School on Friday, May 24th at 3:30 p.m.
Washington State Senator Hans Zeiger, author of the book, “Puyallup in World War II," is the guest speaker along with Terry Kandle, Leonard Kandle’s son, who was just two years old when his father died.
Kandle was a graduate of Puyallup High School’s Class of 1939. He is buried in the American Cemetery and Memorial, Épinal, France.
Although the Puyallup community mourned Kandle at the time of his death, there is no lasting marker, monument, or mention of him anywhere in the city that he loved and hoped to return to after the war. “He was a hero in Puyallup as well as being a national hero,” his classmate, the late Frank Hanawalt once recalled. Despite earning our nation’s highest military honor, Kandle was largely forgotten.
To correct this oversight, members of Puyallup Valley VFW Post 2224 launched a successful campaign to raise the funds to place a monument to Kandle on the school grounds at his alma mater. Not only is Kandle now permanently remembered, the ceremony and monument will also serve to finally welcome him home.
Contact: Jack Taylor, Puyallup Valley VFW Post 2224; 360-893-8022 or 253-224-5255; eaglenest42@comcast.net