Darren Dierks

DAYVILLE – Darren Dierks of Dayville grew up in the Salem area, graduating from high school there. He served in the Army from 1946-1948, toward the end of World War II.

After training at the Aberdeen Proving Ground in Aberdeen, Md., Dierks spent a year of his service with the 24th Infantry Division on Kyushu Island in Japan and was there during the Occupation of Japan.

During his two years in the Army, he was an infantryman. According to Dierks, there were two things involved in being an infantryman: “Either you fight, or you train to fight.”

He said he spent a lot of his time training, never seeing any combat during his service.

“This was right after the war and everyone was more relaxed,” Dierks said.

After his two years in the Army, Dierks attended Oregon Normal School in Monmouth, (now Western Oregon University), graduating with both bachelor’s and master’s degrees in elementary education.

A Dayville resident for 48 years, Dierks taught elementary school around the state of Oregon, mostly in the Corvallis area, for about 10 years.

Jobs that followed included supervising the audio-visual department at Oregon Institute of Technology, where among other duties, he made informational programs; and 11 years with the National Parks Service. With the NPS, Dierks helped with establishing the John Day Fossil Beds National Monument.

Dierks said that “in the infantry, there was really no application that transferred to civilian life.” He added, however, that discipline was one attribute the Army did teach that he was able to carry with him the rest of his life.