Page 19 - Georgetown Preparatory School Alumnews Winter 2021

now 191⁄2 years old and a private first class, was reported missing in action. On December 14, his body was identified simply as “Casualty: Battle”; “Causative Agent: Unknown.” Since his days with the Prep Victory Corps, Bill
had sought to contribute to the nation’s “great undertaking”: victory over the Axis powers. He did so valiantly at the cost of his life five months short of VE Day. The youngest of Prep’s WWII fatalities, Bill was laid to rest at Arlington National Cemetery. **
**William’s brother, John A. Roberts, was a Prep senior at the time of William’s death. He graduated from Georgetown University and then became a pilot in the U. S. Navy in 1949. On October 17, 1952, while stationed
in England, Lt. Roberts was killed in a traffic accident. His parents and two sisters once again had to return to Arlington National Cemetery to bury another son and brother. The Wills- Roberts Medal, awarded every year to that Prep senior graduate who has shown the greatest
academic improvement over his four years
at Prep, was established by the Class of ’45
to honor John, and classmate Captain James Washington Wills, Jr., United States Air Force. Both men had died in the service of their country during the Korean War. H
Read the full article on Georgetown Prep's website- www.gprep.org/GPWWII
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