Clayton and Hildegard

Clayton Schoenecker
My Grandfather, Clayton Schoenecker, was born on December 14, 1924. His parents were Hildegard and Henry Schoenecker. He was born in Jordan, and his family later moved to New Prague. He attended grade school at St. Wenceslaus. He only spoke German when he was young. At school the majority of the children spoke Czech, and when he served in church he had to speak Latin. Throw in English to the mix, and he was speaking a little of four languages.
As a child, Clayton was a very active boy. He enjoyed playing in the streets with his friends after school and on Saturdays. They would usually play softball and hockey. Clayton also liked to fish and hunt. He would go fishing and hunting with his father.
Clayton graduated from New Prague High School in 1943. In his graduating class, there were 60 people. After graduating from high school, Clayton enlisted in the U.S. Army in June of 1943. Clayton fought in WWII and was overseas for about 2 ½ y...