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Obituary: Charles Karnack / War hero who waited almost 50 years for recognition
Sunday, February 11, 2001 By Dan Gigler, Post-Gazette Staff Writer
Charles Karnack served his country with valor in World War II and was awarded ten medals, including a Silver Star, Bronze Star and Purple Heart -- never mind that they arrived 49 years late.
In a 1993 ceremony, Karnack was finally recognized for his service during World War II. His deeds, noted in an inscription that accompanied the Silver Star, speak for themselves:
"Charles Karnack, First Ser-geant, 47th Infantry, distinguished himself by gallantry in action against the enemy on 22 June 1944 in the vicinity of Cherbourg, France.
"After a fierce fight a group of 10 Germans came forward to surrender. As three members of Sgt. Karnack's platoon exposed themselves to take prisoners, they were killed by enemy riflemen from a near hedgerow.
"With complete disregard for personal safety, Sgt. Karnack crawled forward in face of enemy fire, and assaulted the enemy position killing five of the enemy, wounding another and forcing the remaining to surrender."
Karnack, 82, of Pleasant Hills, passed away Friday from complications due to abdominal sepsis.
Karnack was not given recognition for his actions because his war records had been misplaced and were believed to have been destroyed in a 1973 fire at the National Personnel Record Center in St. Louis.
An official report on his files arrived from the St. Louis record center in 1992. He was awarded the medals, at long last, in 1993 in a ceremony at the Army Reserve Base in Oakdale and was inducted into the Allegheny County Hall of Valor and given a plaque at Soldiers and Sailors Memorial Hall in Oakland.
"He had tears in his eyes, he was overwhelmed when they finally came," Patricia Karnack, his wife of 55 years said. "But he tried not to make a big deal of it because to him, he had simply done his duty."
"It was frustrating for him, because he knew he'd earned them," son Chuck Karnack said, "but he just couldn't prove it to anyone."
Born in 1918 in Monongahela, the son of a Slovak coal miner, Karnack was among the multitudes of young man who rushed to join the Armed Forces after the Japanese bombing of Pearl Harbor in 1941. He would serve in North Africa and eventually participate in the invasion of Normandy.
He met his wife of 55 years, Patricia, at a G.I. dance while stationed in England. "I liked him because he didn't exaggerate and say he owned a ranch or a Cadillac back in America," Patricia said.
A native of Winchester, England, Patricia was impressed that an American would be so interested in the history of her hometown. After the dance, they set a date for a movie the following evening.
But Patricia got stood up.
"I went to the barracks where the Americans were, thinking he might have lost his way, and when I got there, there wasn't a single bird or cigarette butt around," Patricia Karnack said. "It was as if they had vanished. I asked an Englishman passing by where the Americans had gone, and he said, 'Good thing -- Those Damn Yanks are gone!"
Those "Damn Yanks" had gone to Normandy.
Charles Karnack was wounded in and sent to a Red Cross hospital in Blanchford, near Winchester, and eventually found Patricia. They were wed on the brides' birthday, St. Patrick's Day, in 1945.
After the war, Karnack worked in Army Intelligence. He retired from military service in 1961. An avid golfer, Karnack became a golf pro at Highland Country Club in West View, then worked as a security guard for Rockwell International and Montifiore Hospital.
Mr. and Mrs. Karnack lived in Pleasant Hills and raised their son Chuck, now a clinical pharmacist at Mercy Hospital.
In addition to his wife and son, Karnack is survived by two brothers, John, 80, of Clairton, and Frank, 85, of Monongahela. Friends will be received from 2 to 4 p.m. and 7 to 9 p.m. today in Griffith Mortuary, 5636 Brownsville Road.
A Mass will be celebrated at 11 a.m. tomorrow in St. Elizabeth Church, followed by interment in Monongahela Cemetery.
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