North High School Wall of Honor Ronald Ruvin ("Uby") Rabinovitz Class of June, 1943
Research done by Claradell Shedd, Class of 1953.
Ronald graduated from the North High class of June, 1943. He was drafted into the US Army at ? When? At the time of his induction, his next of kin was Mr. J.M. Rabinovitz, 1545 13th Street, Des Moines, IA. His service number was 37695386. He was Ruvin, which became Ruby, which became Uby, and he was known as "Uby" all of his life...daughter, Judy Rabinovitz.
Ronald Ruvin Rabinovitz Year x Rank x Status June, 1943 x x x Graduated from North High, Des Moines, IA September, 1943 x Student x University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA. April 17, 1944 x Inducted; US Army x Inducted into US Army, 8th Infantry Division; Camp Dodge, IA. July, 1944 to end of January, 1945 x Combat x *8th Infantry Division; Battle of the Bulge *During World War II, the 8th Infantry Division was sent to Europe to fight against the Axis. After training in Ireland the 8th Infantry Division landed on Utah Beach, Normandy, 4 July 1944, and entered combat on the 7th. Shortly after its arrival, the division captured the French cities of Rennes and Brest.[1] Fighting through the hedgerows, it crossed the Ay River, 26 July, pushed through Rennes, 8 August, and attacked Brest in September. Following these actions, the 8th turned eastward toward the German border, taking part in the heavy fighting in the Hürtgen Forest in November 1944. The Crozon Peninsula was cleared on 19 September, and the division drove across France to Luxembourg, moved to the Hurtgen Forest, 20 November, cleared Hurtgen on the 28th and Brandenburg, 3 December, and pushed on to the Roer. That river was crossed on 23 February 1945, Duren taken on the 25th and the Erft Canal crossed on the 28th. The 8th reached the Rhine near Rodenkirchen, 7 March, and maintained positions along the river near Koln. In early March 1945, the 8th had advanced into the Rhineland. It fought its way into the Ruhr region the following month. Ardennes Campaign: Battle of the Bulge: December 16, 1944-January 30, 1945. Rhineland Campaign: September 14, 1944-March 21, 1945. Central Europe Campaign: March 22-May 8, 1945. On 6 April the division attacked northwest to aid in the destruction of enemy forces in the Ruhr Pocket, and by the 17th had completed its mission. After security duty, the division, under operational control of the British Second Army, drove across the Elbe, 1 May, and penetrated to Schwerin when the war in Europe ended. On 2 May 1945, as it advanced into northern Germany, the 8th Infantry Division encountered the Neuengamme concentration camp Wöbbelin subcamp, near the city of Ludwigslust. The SS had established Wöbbelin in early February 1945 to house concentration camp prisoners who had been evacuated from other Nazi camps to prevent their liberation by the Allies. Wöbbelin held some 5,000 inmates, many of whom suffered from starvation and disease. The sanitary conditions at the camp when the 8th Infantry Division and the 82nd Airborne Division arrived were deplorable. There was little food or water, and some prisoners had resorted to cannibalism. In the first week after liberation, more than 200 inmates died. In the aftermath, the United States Army ordered the townspeople in Ludwigslust to visit the camp and bury the dead. Note: A uniform belonging to Ronald Ruvin Rabinovitz resides in the Holocaust Museum in Washington, D.C. May 2, 1945 x Combat x Liberation of the Neuengamme Concentration Camp; Wobbelin subcamp, Ludwigslust. May 2, 1945: Prisioners freed from the Nazi concentration camp at Wobbelin, Germany BG Charles D.W. Canham and a party of 8th Division men link up with the Russians east of Schwerin, Germany. April 19, 1946 x US Army x Discharged. Separation at Camp Atterbury, IN date x Student x Drake University, Des Moines, IA. 1947 x Employed x Family business: **Iowa Glove & Notions (Iowa Variety Wholesalers). Married Rosita Berdowsky of Monterrey, Mexico. 1949 x Graduated x Drake University, Des Moines, IA. 1970's x Owner/operator x ***Mid-America Homes; Des Moines, IA. 1990- 2006 x Employed x ****Principal Financial Corporation; Des Moines, IA (for the last twenty years). October 30, 2006 Deceased Buried in Glendale Cemetery, Des Moines, IA.
**Left: Iowa Glove & Notions (Iowa Variety Wholesalers) ***Above:Mid-America Homes Logo
****Letterhead while working at Principal.
Germany, 1945 Glendale Cemetery; Beth El Jacob Section
Ronald Ruvin Rabinovitz Army Tech 5 8th Infantry Division Hdqtrs. Company; 2nd Battalion; 121st Inf Regiment United States Army    (l-r) American Theater Medal; Good Conduct Medal; Army of Occupation Medal; Victory Medal WWII; EAME Theater Ribbon w/3 Bronze Stars; Bronze Stars are for three Battles and Campaigns: Ardennes, Rhineland, Central Europe
References (1) The World War II Army Enlistment Records contain information on more than nine million indivdual enlistments. These records can be found online at http://www.archives.gov (3) The comprehensive list of names from North High's 1893-2020 graduation classes are from Claradell Shedd's North Des Moines High School website. The names of North High School graduates can be found online at: http://www.ndmhs.com/. Ronald Ruvin Rabinovitz's 1943 class page is: http://www.ndmhs.com/pages/yearclass1943(2008.65).html.
05/28/10: Died 10/30/06.
Music: "String of Pearls" (Uby's favorite)
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