Elvin Homan, 95, of Hutchinson
Elvin “Speed” Homan, 95, of Hutchinson, passed away Saturday, May 25, at Harmony River Living Center in Hutchinson.
A funeral service was held Saturday, June 1, 11 a.m., at Peace Lutheran Church in Hutchinson with interment at Fort Snelling National Cemetery.
Pastor Matthew Orendorff was the officiating clergy.
Dr. Joan DeVee Dixon was the organist and soloist Jim Wendling performed “On Eagle’s Wings.”
“Battle Hymn of the Republic” and “The Old Rugged Cross” were the congregational hymns.
Members of Glencoe American Legion Post No. 95 were the casket-bearers.
Glencoe American Legion Post No. 95 and American Legion Hutchinson Post No. 96 provided military honors.
Elvin Otto Carl Homan was born May 13, 1924, in Lynn Township, McLeod County, to Otto and Wilhelmina (Plath) Homan. He was baptized June 8, 1924, and confirmed April 14, 1938, at Congregational Church, Brownton. Elvin and his younger brother Harvey grew up in the Brownton area. Their mother died in 1941, so he spent most weekends with his uncle and aunt, Henry and Emma Homan who lived near Biscay. They became parents to both him and Harvey.
In the early-1940s, Elvin and a cousin went to California where they worked in a magnesium plant doing war-related work. The job was good, providing free eats and a place to sleep. While there, they were working undercover for the police. Bootleggers were smuggling booze into the plant and the police recruited Elvin and his cousin to act as informers. They used marked money to buy the “stuff.” They caught the thieves, but after that life wasn’t safe for Elvin and his cousin. After going to court to testify as witnesses, they headed back to Minnesota.
Upon his return to Minnesota, Mr. Homan found work as a herdsman on a farm near Glencoe. He then enlisted in the Army Feb. 23, 1943. Mr. Homan went to Camp Roberts, California for 13 weeks of basic training. He volunteered to be a paratrooper to get $50 extra a month pay. Mr. Homan took four weeks of paratrooper training at Fort Benning, Georgia. After five jumps, he received his wings. From there Mr. Homan was sent to Fort Bragg, North Carolina and then to Camp Shanks, New York where he was put on a troop ship, Liberty, to sail for England. Once there, Mr. Homan was assigned to company C 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 101st Airborne Division. (His regiment was featured in the films, “Saving Private Ryan” and “Band of Brothers.”)
Mr. Homan’s group was dropped on the Cherbourg Peninsula D-Day, June 6, 1944. Their mission was to secure the western end behind Utah Beach, head off toward eastern Germany and advance. The pilots were young and inexperienced and when they encountered flack guns and dense fog, they hit the green light and they jumped. Luckily, Mr. Homan did not land in the water as the Germans had flooded many of the farm fields that had been selected as drop zones. Hundreds of paratroopers dropped into flooded areas and drowned almost immediately. After Mr. Homan landed, he hooked up with other paratroopers and made their way down the line looking for the 101st. It took him four days to get back to his original unit. After spending 14 days in France, the 101st was sent back to England. Mr. Homan immediately began training for his next mission, named Operation Market Garden. The airborne attack, deep in enemy’s territory, was to be launched in conjunction with a ground attack by the British Second Army. The principal objective of the operation was to get allied troops across the Rhine River.
Mr. Homan’s plane was hit and severely damaged and he was given the signal to jump. He was knocked unconscious in the process. When he awoke, he was looking down the barrel of a rifle held by a member of the German SS. He then began a journey to German prison camps. It was his good fortune to be transferred from the SS to the regular German Army. Mr. Homan was taken to a monastery where a priest took their names. He promised to pass them on to the allies. They took their shoes so they could not run away. Mr. Homan was then transported in cattle cars at night into Germany. First, he was taken to Stalag XII-A in southern Germany and later moved to Stalag III-C, about 18 miles north of Berlin. Mr. Homan was imprisoned for about five months. When he landed he weighed about 140 pounds, he dropped to about 90 pounds after his imprisonment.
The commandant of the camp was a German Harvard-educated lawyer, who treated the POWs fairly. A hundred men slept on straw on wooden pallets, as close to each other as possible to preserve body heat and share their blankets. It was extremely cold, both his hands and feet froze. They were given two meals a day, mostly thin soup. They received rations from the Red Cross and used cigarettes as money to barter with the guards. In late March 1945, the lights went on in the camp in the middle of the night. They were told to fall out or there would be shooting. They were told to take all their belongings and be ready to march, a forced march, five miles out of camp. They were released March 31, 1945, by a Russian tank column of nine tanks led by a woman major.
Mr. Homan and two other prisoners then walked through Poland to Warsaw. From Warsaw, they made their way to Odessa, Russia, located on the Black Sea. They boarded an English freighter that transported them to Port Said in Egypt. Mr. Homan got his first hot shower since September. From Egypt, they sailed to Naples, Italy. They were finally under U.S. control. They turned themselves into the military police. The three men were in pretty bad shape, so they kept them for about a month. He was finally sent home April 14, 1945.
Elvin married Rosa (Goulet) from Sumter, Aug. 15, 1945. He became employed with Glencoe Mills Company. Mr. Homan was called back into the Army Sept. 26, 1950. Mr. Homan was shipped to Korea with the 187th Combat Team under the 11th Airborne. He was released from the Army on a hardship discharge May14, 1951. By this time, he had three children. Rosa and Elvin added two more children to their family, for a total of five.
After 19½ years with Glencoe Mills, Mr. Homan worked for a time with Rutz Plumbing & Heating and then for the Glencoe School District, where he retired in 1986 after serving as a custodian for 22½ years.
Mr. Homan was always an active member of the VFW posts in Glencoe and Hutchinson, American Legion Hutchinson Post 96, DAV Chapter 37, Ex-POW Chapter from St. Cloud. He served a term as commander at Glencoe VFW Post 5102.
Cpl. Elvin Homan received Combat Infantry Badge, three clusters; American Campaign Medal, American Middle Eastern Campaign, three clusters; EAME ribbon with three bronze stars; American Theater Ribbon, Good Conduct Medal, Prisoner of War Medal, 101st Unit Citation, two clusters; Korean Service Medal, Korean Medal given by the Korean government, Korean United Nations Medal, Distinguished Unit Badge GO 26 1st U.S. Army, June 17, 1944; National Defense Medal, WWII Medal, Normandy Jubilee Liberty Medal, Cold War Victory Commemorative Medal, Parachute Wings - three star; Orange Lanyard (for the Netherlands), Award of the Croix De Guerre with Palm (Liberation of France), and Knight of the Legion of Honor (French Medal).
Mr. Homan graduated in June of 2000 with the Brownton High School graduating class, finally receiving his high school diploma.
Mr. Homan lost the love of his life, Rosa, to cancer Aug. 23, 2002. They enjoyed 57 years of marriage. They had five children, all four of his sons served in the military. A son-in-law, daughter-in-law, and four grandchildren also served. Mr. Homan set a strong military standard for all of his family.
Mr. Homan made a decision in 2003 to move to Orchard Estates in Glencoe. He had been so happy there, wondering why he did not make the move earlier. Mr. Homan served as a council member there and played cards many nights.
He enjoyed fishing, his camper at Lake Washington, and later in life Mr. Homan enjoyed painting, playing cards, bingo, his grand & great grandkids, wintering in Edinburg, Texas, and all his life-long friends. He also enjoyed Taco Tuesday at Biscay, and having lunch with Pastor Joe Clay every Wednesday.
Mr. Homan fell and broke his back at the campground while “putting another log on the fire.” He then moved to Harmony River Living Center for treatment and healing, where he continued to reside.
On Nov. 18, 2017, Elvin was presented the Knight of the Legion of Honor. French Consul, Gen. Guillaume Lacroix, at Harmony River, knighted him. It is a medal originated by Napoleon Bonaparte in 1802 and is the highest honor given by the French government.
Elvin “Speed” Homan, of Hutchinson, Minnesota, passed away Saturday, May 25, at Harmony River Living Center in Hutchinson, at the age of 95.
Mr. Homan was a kind, gentle, and generous person. He loved and supported his family and was a friend to all.
He leaves behind to mourn, one daughter, Barbara (Hartley) Rosebrock of Hutchinson, MN; three sons, James Homan (his friend Lenny Dorsett) of Tell City, Ind., Michael (Gina) Homan of Abilene Texas, Patrick Homan of Yukon Okla.; sister-in-law, Kathleen Huesmann of Provo, Utah; 16 grandchildren and 19 great-grandchildren; his military family; Lakewood Campground family; many other family and friends.
Mr. Homan is preceded in death by his parents, Otto and Wilhelminia Homan; wife, Rosa; son, Robert Homan; daughters-in-law, Linda Homan and Barbara Homan; brother, Harvey Homan; sisters-in-law, Mrylo Homan and Christine Funderburke; brothers-in-law, Basil Funderburke and William Huesmann.
Blessed be his memory.
The Dobratz-Hantge Chapel in Hutchinson handled the arrangements. Its website is www.hantge.com where obituaries and an online guestbook are available.
