Bay County Building
515 Center Avenue
Bay City, Michigan 48708-5941

Bay County honors Pfc. Alfred Bordeau

Announcement

2015 marked 65 years since the start of the Korean War, a conflict between the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (North Korea) and the Republic of Korea (South Korea) in which 2.5 million persons lost their lives. After a million combat casualties had been suffered on both sides, the fighting ended in July 1953 with Korea still divided into two hostile nations.

One of the Americans who lost his life in this conflict was Pfc. Alfred Bordeau, an 18 year old who, four days shy of his 19th birthday, was captured by the North Koreans during the first U.S. engagement in the Korean War. Pfc. Alfred Bordeau, assigned to "Take Force Smith," a small detachments of GI's outnumbered and outgunned sent to delay the North Korean advance, was Bay County's first POW and casualty in the Korean War. He was part of a forced nearly 100-mile trek known as the "Tiger Death march," a nine-day march involving inhumane conditions endured by civilian prisoners and POW's as well as the indiscriminate killing by the North Korean officer leading the march.

During this month's Board of Commissioners meeting, County Executive Tom Hickner presented Pfc. Bordeau's nephew, Duff Zube, with Resolution 2016-128. The Resolution recognizes and honors Pfc. Alfred Bordeau for his selfless bravery as a soldier of the U.S. Army, one of the many brave men and women who have made the ultimate sacrifice to preserve liberty for all Americans.