Reiff Is February 2023 Veteran Of The MonthA Warsaw man who was drafted into the U.S. Army in the 1950s is the February 2023 Kosciusko County Veteran of the Month.
Samuel Ralph Reiff was presented the honor by the Kosciusko County Commissioners on Tuesday after Veterans Service Officer Darryl McDowell read Reiff’s biography.
Reiff was born in Pierceton on March 1, 1928, to Ralph and Lilly Reiff. He was one of five siblings who attended Pierceton School and worked on the family farm.
After school, he worked for Arnolt Corp. and continued farming until he was drafted into the U.S. Army on Oct. 9, 1950, McDowell said. Reiff attended basic training at Fort Benning, Ga., and then was shipped directly to Frankfurt, Germany. He was assigned to a medical company in the 8th Infantry Division known as the Pathfinders. Reiff was a combat medic, which is a job by itself, McDowell said, who was assigned as a driver as well for the commander of his medical company. “Which is not a bad gig either,” McDowell said.
Cpl. Reiff served two years in the Army and was honorably discharged on Sept. 12, 1952.
After proudly serving his country, Reiff returned to Warsaw and the Barbee Lakes area to continue farming and work at the DeGood Tractor Sales in Warsaw.
He was married to Geraldine for 69 “wonderful years together,” McDowell stated. They raised four children and have seven grandchildren and 10 great-grandchildren.
Reiff continues to live in the Irish Lake area of Warsaw.
Asked to say a few words about his service, Reiff said, “I don’t have much to say. It was something I didn’t really care about doing but I’m glad I did. It made a man out of me. I can’t say what I would have turned into otherwise, but I got a good experience. I had a pretty nice job in the Army. I drove the company commander-in-chief.”
Reiff said a highlight of the Army was that his division shipped out in 1952 and they paraded down 5th Avenue in New York in a ticker tape parade before shipping out.
“That was quite an experience,” Reiff said. “I had to have my haircut before the parade. It cost me $5 and I never have got over that.”
