At 100, World War II Veteran Samuel Seizert Reflects a Lifetime of Service
Brig. Gen. Ravi Wagh came to Samuel “Sam” Seizert’s 100th birthday celebration Oct. 24 expecting a chance to sit with a fellow soldier and talk informally.
Instead, Wagh later recalled, Seizert rose from his chair and saluted him.
The moment stayed with Wagh. Seizert, a World War II Army veteran, stood before the commander of the Michigan Army National Guard more than 80 years after leaving home to serve in the Pacific. For Wagh, a student of Pacific Theater history, meeting Seizert offered a personal connection to our nation’s past.
Friends, family and neighbors gathered at Cornerstone Evangelical Presbyterian Church in Brighton to mark Seizert’s 100th birthday. Genoa Township also recognized the veteran and retired pastor for his life of service and faith.
Looking over the gathering, Seizert said, “Words cannot describe the joy that’s in my heart after seeing all my friends and neighbors.”
Seizert was born Oct. 19, 1926, in Adrian, Michigan, and grew up on a farm near Blissfield during the Great Depression. He attended a one-room schoolhouse before going to Blissfield High School. He later recalled morning chores, drawing water from a well, using an outhouse and reading by kerosene lamp before electricity reached the family home.
Seizert was drafted during his senior year of high school after marrying his high school sweetheart, Edna Hockin. He trained at Fort Knox, Kentucky, where he learned to operate tanks, tractor-trailers and other heavy equipment. His discharge identifies him as a Technician Fifth Grade assigned to Company A, 706th Tank Battalion.
His young adulthood was part of a much larger Michigan experience of kindred peers. More than 600,000 Michiganders served in uniform during World War II, while the state’s farms, factories and communities supported the national war effort.
Seizert’s family said he served in the Philippines, including the Manila area. In an August profile by The Livingston Post, Seizert said he spent about a year in the Philippines and recalled a serious fight near Ipo Dam on the island of Luzon.
The fight for Ipo Dam was part of the Luzon campaign in May 1945. The dam supplied water to Manila, and Army forces fought through mountainous terrain, fortified positions and caves before securing the key infrastructure after two weeks of battle. History is rife with examples of Japanese soldiers defending their fighting positions to the last man against U.S. forces and Filipino guerillas.
The efforts of Seizert and his fellow service members cannot be discounted. To loosely quote the late President Theodore Roosevelt's "Citizenship in a Republic" address, their legacy is one of the men in the arena who set themselves apart from the timid souls that knew neither victory nor defeat. Seizert’s generation of soldiers was committed to an end; doing the bidding of a nation fighting a multi-front war against numerous adversaries in complex, geo-political terrain. The moniker and accolade of “The Greatest Generation” only begins to depict the service and sacrifices of these Americans.
Throughout his tour, Seizert served as a Sherman tank driver and machine gunner. The M4 Sherman was among the most widely used Allied medium tanks of World War II and operated with a crew of five: commander, gunner, loader, driver and assistant driver.
An archival collection from another soldier assigned to Company A, 706th Tank Battalion, documents the company’s presence near Manila in late 1945 and early 1946. The collection describes garrison duty, supply movement and security support near a Japanese prisoner-of-war camp. The archive does not identify Seizert or establish his personal duties, but it provides context for the work performed by soldiers in his company during the war’s final months and its aftermath.
In his interview with The Livingston Post, Seizert spoke about the memories he carried home from the Philippines. He remembered fellow soldiers who were killed and others who survived with lasting wounds. He also described the emotional weight of experiences that remained with him long after the war.
After returning to Michigan, Seizert completed high school, attended Adrian College for two years and earned a bachelor’s degree from Michigan State University. He later taught high school English and history.
His education reflected a wider transition taking place across Michigan after the war. In January 1946, Michigan State College—now Michigan State University—reported that more than 2,000 World War II servicemen were enrolled. The school temporarily housed 380 veterans in Jenison Gymnasium while preparing additional housing for veterans and their families.
Seizert’s next calling was ministry. He attended Garrett Theological Seminary in Chicago, commuting by train from Durand while Edna taught school and cared for their children. He later served churches in Michigan and Florida, including 25 years at Englewood United Methodist Church.
According to The Livingston Post, Seizert also helped raise money to save two Michigan retirement homes from bankruptcy and established an endowment for his Florida church. His final ministry role focused on serving seniors at Cornerstone Evangelical Presbyterian Church, where friends and family later gathered to celebrate his 100th birthday.
Seizert and Edna were married for nearly 70 years. After her death, he later met Mary Lou through a senior ministry program at Cornerstone. They married in 2016 and continued to travel together.
In a birthday letter to Seizert, Wagh wrote that the Army Values are “measured through a lifetime of choices.” He recognized Seizert’s military service, ministry and commitment to others as an example of loyalty, duty, respect, selfless service, honor, integrity and personal courage.
Seizert’s story reflects the service of many Michiganders of his generation. He left school for war, served with honor and distinction, returned home to finish his education, raised a family and spent decades serving congregations and communities.
At 100, he still stood to salute a leader and fellow soldier.
His uniform came off long ago. His sense of service has not.
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