Duane William Akin, age 85, of Osceola, went to be with his Lord on December 2, 1010 at St. Joseph Regional Medical Center in Mishawaka, Indiana. Duane was born in Elkhart County on November 1, 1925 to Daniel Henry and Cecelia O. (Kring) Akin. He lived in East Gary, Indiana until his father passed away in a work related accident at Carnegie Steel where he worked on the railroad. His family returned to this area following his father''s death. The rest of his life was spent in the Michiana area.
Duane was drafted and he chose to enter the U.S. Navy during World War II. He was at Normandy during the invasion on D-Day. Duane was given a commendation for "Exceptional Performance" in the evacuation of wounded men under enemy fire during and after the invasion of Normandy. The story comes from the Coast Guard Headquarters in Washington D.C. and is titled "Aboard a Coast Guard LST in the English Channel." Following are parts of the story; "All members of the crew of the LST have been given individual commendations from the captain for the exceptional performance in loading 265 wounded men aboard in a 14 hour period during the invasion of Normandy. Behind this record, made under enemy fire, lies the complete coordination of a Navy and Coast Guard crew and tow Coast Guard Pharmacists Mates who worked 48 hours with hardly a period of rest. On the way back across the Channel to England the ship survived an E-Boat attack in mid-channel."
Duane married Marybelle Hunter Swank on November 25, 1959 in Lakeville, Indiana. Marybelle had two children from a previous marriage; John Swank of Osceola and Beth (Swank) Coffel of Mishawaka, Indiana. Duane and Marybelle had a son, William "Bill" (Debbie) Akin of Auburn, Indiana. After Marybelle passed away on May 25, 1992, Duane married Dorothy Purple on May 24, 1996 in Mishawaka, Indiana. Duane has a step-daughter, Christine Fulmer of Nairobi, Kenya, and 5 grandchildren; Matthew (Jenny) Coffel, Troy Coffel, both of Bremen, Indiana, Tami Coffel of South Bend, Indiana, and Jennifer and Erin Akin, both of Auburn, Indiana. Duane is also survived by 4 great grandchildren, Austin, Caleb, Madison and Olivia.
Visitation will be held one hour prior to the 2:00 pm funeral service on Monday, December 6, 2010 at Twin City Baptist Church in Mishawaka. Interment will follow in Chapel Hill Memorial Gardens, Osceola. In Duane''s memory, the preferred memorial is to Twin City Baptist Church. Online condolences may be sent to the family at www.chapelhillmemorial.com.
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