Chester W. “Chet; Buddy” Lawrence was born in 1921, in Worcester County, Massachusetts. He was the son of John S Lawrence.

Chester enlisted in the Army Quartermaster Corps on October 24, 1940. At the time of his enlistment, Chet stood 69" tall and weighed 142 pounds. He later applied and was accepted as an Aviation Cadet and earned his pilot wings and officer commission in February 1943.

In November 1944, Chet was deployed to England where he was assigned to the 359th Fighter Squadron, 356th Fighter Group. He was based at USAAF Station No. 369, Martlesham Heath, England, flying a North American P-51 Mustang.

On January 18, 1945, Chet was assigned to fly with other P-51's as a bomber escort that was flying a mission to Kaiserlautern, Germany. Chet was flying in his P-51-D "Little Mary" # 44-63268. After the escort was completed, Chet turned his fighter around to head back to England. He briefly landed at Airfield No. A-70 in Laon, France, and then departed for the final leg of his mission. He was in radio and radar contact with a 67th Fighter Wing Controller, but contact was lost 20 miles southeast of Clacton-on-Sea, England while flying over the North Sea. Chet was descending through a thick cloud cover and possibly became disoriented, lost control, and flew into the North Sea. An Air-Sea Rescue effort was launched (including four aircraft from his own squadron), but no trace of his aircraft was found nor was his body recovered.

1Lt Lawrence's name is memorialized on the Tablets of the Missing, Cambridge American Cemetery, Cambridge, United Kingdom.

Source of information: www.findagrave.com, www.abmc.gov, www.americanairmuseum.com