LynnFriday, November 6
Lynn lays WWII soldier Joseph A. Gala to rest 82 years after he was killed in Burma
The BOStoday team
Lynn welcomed one of its own home Thursday. Army Pvt. Joseph A. Gala, a Lynn English High School graduate, was 21 when he was killed July 14, 1944, in Burma while serving with Merrill's Marauders. He was buried with full military honors at Pine Grove Cemetery.
82 yearsfrom Gala's death in Burma to his burial in Lynn
DNA testing identified his remains on Sept. 10, 2025, the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency said.
Sources: The Boston Globe, WCVB
His remains lay unidentified for decades. Military scientists used dental and anthropological analysis, circumstantial evidence and DNA testing to identify them, and the Army had asked his nieces, Rose DiGregory and Anne Marie Fee, for DNA samples.
- Honors: three-volley rifle salute, “Taps” and a folded flag
- Escort: Lynn police escorted the family to Logan Airport
- Cemetery entrance: flag hung between two Lynn Fire Department ladder trucks
- Honor guard: six members carried his casket
Gala's path from Burma to Lynn took 82 years
- July 1944Gala is killed fighting Japanese forces in Burma.
- Sept. 2025The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency identifies his remains.
- Nov. 5Gala is buried with full military honors in Lynn.
Sources: The Boston Globe, NBC Boston
“We’re happy he’s home in Lynn.”
Sources: The Boston Globe, NBC Boston, WCVB