35th Infantry (Cacti) Regiment Association


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  PFC Delbert Lewis Coe    In memory of our fallen brother

"We few, we happy few, we band of brothers; for he to-day that sheds his blood with me shall be my brother"



Love Company
35th Infantry Regiment
World War II


"Not For Fame or Reward
Not For Place or For Rank
But In Simple Obedience To
Duty as They Understood It"





The 35th Infantry Regiment Association salutes our fallen brother, PFC Delbert Lewis Coe, 35894971, who died in the service of his country on April 29th, 1945 in Luzon. The cause of death was listed as KIA. At the time of his death Delbert was 22 years of age. He was from Pleasant Lake, Indiana.

The decorations earned by PFC Delbert Lewis Coe include: the Combat Infantryman Badge, the Bronze Star, the Purple Heart, the Asiatic-Pacific Service Medal, and the World War II Victory Medal.


He was the son of Frederick Leroy and Beatrice R Abbey Coe-the youngest of seven children. His brothers and sister were, Edward, Willard, Bertram, Josephine, Ruth, and Rupert. He completed grade school and was employed as a bus driver prior to enlisting.

He enlisted for the US Army on 18 Sep, 1943 in Indianapolis, Indiana. After his basic and advanced individual training, he was later assigned to the 35th INF Regiment, 25th INF Division. The division was already operating in the Philippines when he finally linked up with them. By February, 1944 the division was located at New Caledonia, near Australia. The rest of the year from February, 1944 to January, 1945 was used for training.

On the 11th of January 1945, the division landed on Luzon, the Philippines. During the Luzon campaign the division was credited for 165 days of continuous combat. The Allies had taken control of all strategically and economically important locations of Luzon by early March. Small groups of the remaining Japanese forces retreated to the mountainous areas in the north and southeast of the island, where they were besieged for months. Pockets of Japanese soldiers held out in the mountains. PFC Coe was reported killed in action 29 April, 1945.

PFC Coe is buried in the Manila American Cemetery and is the recipient of the Purple Heart Medal Posthumously

Brother James Coe was killed in France June 1944. Another brother Edward Coe was honorably discharged after losing use of right arm.