★★★ Memorial Monday ★★★
Andrew Frosch '39 in the Lucky Bag:
From his nonchalant, composed expression, and his easy manner of walk, we know that worry never gets the upper hand on Andy. A stranger would term him quiet, but those who know him can certify that Andy can be the life of the party. He never laughs at his own words or wit, but a victory of repartee is always marked by his own personal smirk in conclusion. Gump's capacity for the esthetic is stimulated through his ability to sketch a Bull prof during a lecture. Spare moments at the gym keep him physically fit for the bout with academics. His agreeable nature will keep him clear of trouble, and his persistency will put him in the finish with the best.
A native of Philadelphia, he initially served aboard USS Philip (DD 76), a WWI-era destroyer on neutrality patrol around Florida. He reported to USS Monssen (DD 436) in 1940; that ship was commissioned in March 1941. Sometime afterwards he became the ship's Engineering Officer.
Monssen transferred to the Pacific in March 1942, and was part of Task Force 16, centered on USS Hornet, and which staged the Doolittle Raid in mid April. Monssen (and Hornet) missed the Battle of the Coral Sea, but was in the thick of the Battle of Midway in June. In August Monssen provided fire support to the 2nd Marines on Guadalcanal and Tulagi. She remained in the immediate area through the Battle of the Eastern Solomons, then escorted the damaged carrier Saratoga to the Tonga Islands.
Monssen returned to Guadalcanal in mid September. The Naval Battle of Guadalcanal was joined at 0150 on November 13. Roughly 30 minutes later Monssen was spotlighted and then hit by almost 40 shells, including three from battleships. Reduced to a burning hulk, the ship was abandoned and sank that afternoon.
Andrew was one of nine officers and 136 enlisted men killed in the action. Four of the other officers lost were Naval Academy alumni.
He was survived by his parents and at least one sibling, a brother.
To Honor! ⚓
https://usnamemorialhall.org/index.php/ANDREW_J._FROSCH,_LT,_USN