When Lester H. Polachek was born in 1916 in New York, his father, Charles, was 37 and his mother, Sadie, was 34. He was the only child. He served in the U.S. Army during World War II as a Private in the 344th Engineer General Service Regiment. He entered service in New York. He died on August 28, 1944 during the invasion of southern France. He is now buried at Rhone American Cemetery and Memorial, Draguignan, Departement du Var, Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur, France.