Joseph R. Jelinek (May 26, 1919—May 13, 1978) was a

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cla ...

Brigadier General Brigadier general or Brigade general is a military rank used in many countries. It is the lowest ranking general officer in some countries. The rank is usually above a colonel, and below a major general or divisional general. When appointed ...

who served as Deputy Director of the

Army National Guard The Army National Guard (ARNG), in conjunction with the Air National Guard, is an organized Militia (United States), militia force and a Reserve components of the United States Armed Forces, federal military reserve force of the United States A ...

Early life

Joseph Richard Jelinek was born in

Omaha, Nebraska Omaha ( ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Nebraska and the county seat of Douglas County. Omaha is in the Midwestern United States on the Missouri River, about north of the mouth of the Platte River. The nation's 39th-largest cit ...

on May 26, 1919. He attended Creighton University and in 1939 joined Company L, 134th Infantry Regiment, a unit of the

Nebraska Army National Guard The Nebraska Army National Guard is a group of Army National Guard units in the U.S. state of Nebraska. The Adjutant General for these units is Major General Daryl L. Bohac, who was announced as the new Deputy Director of the Army National Guard i ...

World War II

Jelinek was a Corporal when his unit was activated for training in anticipation of

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

entry into

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

. He graduated from Officer Candidate School in 1943 and received his commission as a

Second Lieutenant Second lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer military rank in many armed forces, comparable to NATO OF-1 rank. Australia The rank of second lieutenant existed in the military forces of the Australian colonies and Australian Army until ...

Infantry Infantry is a military specialization which engages in ground combat on foot. Infantry generally consists of light infantry, mountain infantry, motorized infantry & mechanized infantry, airborne infantry, air assault infantry, and marine i ...

. He served in the

Pacific Theater The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean (or, depending on definition, to Antarctica) in the south, and is bounded by the continen ...

with the 32nd Infantry Division, and received the

Bronze Star Medal The Bronze Star Medal (BSM) is a United States Armed Forces decoration awarded to members of the United States Armed Forces for either heroic achievement, heroic service, meritorious achievement, or meritorious service in a combat zone. Wh ...

Purple Heart The Purple Heart (PH) is a United States military decoration awarded in the name of the President to those wounded or killed while serving, on or after 5 April 1917, with the U.S. military. With its forerunner, the Badge of Military Merit, w ...

and

Combat Infantryman Badge The Combat Infantryman Badge (CIB) is a United States Army military decoration. The badge is awarded to infantrymen and Special Forces soldiers in the rank of colonel and below, who fought in active ground combat while assigned as members of ei ...

Post World War II

Jelinek remained in the National Guard, primarily in command and staff positions with the 34th Infantry Division and the

. He served as Chief of the

National Guard Bureau The National Guard Bureau is the federal instrument responsible for the administration of the National Guard established by the United States Congress as a joint bureau of the Department of the Army and the Department of the Air Force. It was cre ...

's Office of Plans, Policy and Programs from 1967 to 1969, and as the Executive Officer to the Chief of the National Guard Bureau from 1969 to 1971. From 1971 to 1973 he served on the staff in the

Office of the Secretary of Defense The Office of the Secretary of Defense (OSD) is a headquarters-level staff of the United States Department of Defense. It is the principal civilian staff element of the U.S. Secretary of Defense, and it assists the Secretary in carrying out aut ...

. He was appointed Deputy Director of the Army National Guard in 1973 and promoted to Brigadier General. Jelinek served in this position until 1976.

Awards and decorations

In addition to his World War II awards, Jelinek was a recipient of the

Legion of Merit The Legion of Merit (LOM) is a military award of the United States Armed Forces that is given for exceptionally meritorious conduct in the performance of outstanding services and achievements. The decoration is issued to members of the eight ...

and the Meritorious Service Medal.

Additional awards

In 1991 Jelinek was named to the Nebraska Army National Guard Regional Training Institute's Hall of Fame.

Death and burial

Jelinek died in Fairfax, Virginia on May 13, 1978, following an extended illness. He was buried at

Arlington National Cemetery Arlington National Cemetery is one of two national cemeteries run by the United States Army. Nearly 400,000 people are buried in its 639 acres (259 ha) in Arlington, Virginia. There are about 30 funerals conducted on weekdays and 7 held on Sa ...

, Section 11, Grave 681-1.

Family

In 1941 Jelinek married Eleanor Dreier (1921-1984). They were the parents of one daughter and four sons: Cindy; Donald Paul; Joseph Michael; Steven Richard; and David Alan.

References

External resources

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Jelinek, Joseph R. 1919 births 1978 deaths Military personnel from Omaha, Nebraska People from Fairfax, Virginia United States Army personnel of World War II United States Army generals National Guard (United States) generals Recipients of the Legion of Merit