Cpl William Thomas Hollis was born in Toronto, Canada, on May 20, 1921, and had lived in Miami, Miami-Dade County, Florida. He was a graduate of Hyde Park High school in 1939, where he played in the school band, sang in the choir, and was a member of the Photography Club. He attended the University at Chicago, Cook County, Illinois, from 1941-1943.

He worked at the Science and Industry Museum in Chicago when he joined the Enlisted Reserve Corps and was called up on April 28, 1943.

He was on the crew of the C-47A troop transport #43-16032 during a mission to drop paratroopers at Arnhem, Holland, for Operation Market Garden. They were hit by enemy flak and crashed.

There were four crew members on board and 17 British paratroopers as passengers. There was time for the paratroopers to bail out; however, two crew members were killed.

Cpl Hollis is now buried in the Netherlands American Cemetery, Margraten, Netherlands.

Source of information: www.findagrave.com, www.abmc.gov, https://www.honorstates.org
Source of photo: https://www.honorstates.org