Christopher Joseph Heffernan Jr. was born on December 9, 1917, in Amsterdam, New York. He was the son of Christopher J. Heffernan and Anne Shea Heffernan. He was married to Maria Aran. After graduating high school in 1934, Chris attended Behne Millard’s prep school in Washington, D.C., and entered West Point on July 1, 1935.

After graduating in 1939, Christopher chose service with the Infantry in the Philippines, traveling aboard the U.S. Army transport Grant from Brooklyn in September and arriving in Manila in late October after stops in Panama, San Francisco, Honolulu, and Guam. He joined the 31st Infantry Regiment.

When war broke out in December 1941, the 31st Infantry was immediately engaged in the defense of Bataan. Promoted to captain and commanding C Company under Lt. Col. Edward H. “Daddy” Bowes, Heffernan fought for over three months before the U.S. surrender on April 9, 1942. Tragically, he died of malaria that same day, thus sparing the suffering of the Bataan Death March and the brutal years of imprisonment that followed for many of his comrades. He is now buried in the Saint Mary's Cemetery, Fort Johnson, Montgomery County, New York, USA.

Source of information: www.findagrave.com, alumni.westpointaog.org