A former Auburn High School student and World War II veteran is receiving his high school diploma tomorrow (Wednesday) after a nearly 80-year wait. Ninety-eight-year-old Donald J. Huisenga was part of the class of 1943 but was unable to graduate due to being drafted into military service. Auburn High School is no longer in operation and is now part of the East Sac County (ESC) School District. According to ESC High School Principal, Kevin Litterer, he first learned of Huisenga’s story following an unexpected phone call.
District administrators quickly came to the decision that Huisenga was more than deserving and got to work finding a way to present him an authentic 1940s Auburn High School diploma.
Litterer is traveling to the Veterans Affairs Hospital in San Angelo, Texas for a special presentation in Huisenga’s honor on Wednesday afternoon.
The presentation will also be livestreamed via the ESC Facebook page, and a link to where that can be found is included with this story on our website. Litterer says everybody in the district is excited for tomorrow’s (Wednesday) ceremony and will be bringing some special gifts for Huisenga along with him.
Huisenga served in the European theatre during World War II and was part of the third parachute to land in Normandy in 1944. He also spent six months in a German prisoner of war camp. Again, the presentation will be livestreamed via the ESC Facebook page beginning at 12:50 p.m. on Wednesday, Jan. 5.
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East Sac County Schools Facebook Page
FULL INTERVIEW WITH LITTERER:
