Born Dec. 21, 1928, in Fairland, Ervin grew up in nearby Wyandotte and attended school there.

He was the oldest of 11 children.

Ervin’s mother died in childbirth, and although his father later remarried, Ervin’s younger brothers and sisters would always remember how he looked out for them, helping to fill the emotional void.

Ervin originally joined the Army before the end of World War II. Only 17 at the time, he needed his father to sign for him. He would be stationed in Virginia.

He re-enlisted later before Korea and would be assigned to the 57th Field Artillery Battalion, 7th Infantry Division.

Linda Kelly of Quapaw, Heatherly’s daughter, never knew her uncle, she said, “but he was always in my heart and mind because the family always talked about him. … I thought of him as someone who looked over everyone. The head of the class. The one who watched over you.”

Kelly remembers hearing family members say, “ ‘If we only knew where Eldon was.’ It was just so sad not to know. This will give us closure. … My mother has always said, if she could just put flowers on Eldon’s grave, it would help so much.”