#VeteranOfTheDay Army Veteran Evans Earnest Overbey

Today’s #VeteranOfTheDay is Army Veteran Evans Earnest Overbey.

Evans enlisted in the Army Air Corps in June 1941 at the age of 24. He was assigned to the 93rd Bomb Squadron and deployed at Clark Army Airfield on Luzon Island in the Philippines.

Evans spent three months fighting in the Battle of Bataan. When allied forces surrendered in April of 1942, less than a year after his enlistment, Evans was taken prisoner and forced to march the five day 61 mile “Bataan Death March” to a prisoner of war camp. He died of malnutrition at the camp on November 20 of that year, at the age of 25.

Evans was awarded a Bronze Star and Purple Heart. He was posthumously awarded the Prisoner of War, American Defense Service, Asiatic-Pacific Campaign and the World War II Victory medals. He also received a Presidential Unit Citation with two Bronze Oak Leaf Clusters, the Philippine Defense Ribbon with Bronze Service Star and the Philippine Republic Presidential Unit Citation.

Evans remains were identified in December. He was finally laid to rest July 15 at the VA National Cemetery in Mountain Home, Tennessee.

We honor his service.

Nominate a Veteran for #VeteranOfTheDay

Do you want to light up the face of a special Veteran? Have you been wondering how to tell your Veteran they are special to you? You’re in luck! VA’s #VeteranOfTheDay social media feature is an opportunity to highlight your Veteran and his/her service..

It’s easy to nominate a Veteran. All it takes is an email to newmedia@va.gov with as much of the information as you can put together with some good photos. Visit our blog post about nominating for how to create the best submission.