Funeral planned for WWII pilot who was recently recovered

More than 80 years after he died in Europe serving his country, Lewiston’s Allan Knepper will officially be laid to rest this week in his hometown.

A funeral for Knepper, a World War II pilot who was shot down and killed July 10, 1943, is scheduled for 10 a.m. Friday at Normal Hill Cemetery in Lewiston. He will be interred with full military honors, and the public is welcome to attend.

Knepper was a 27-year-old second lieutenant in the U.S. Army Air Forces when his P-38 Lightning was shot down on the Italian island of Sicily. His body wasn’t recovered at the time.

But in 2011, author Robert Richardson, of Spokane, started to research Knepper for a book he was writing. Knepper and Richardson’s father, Leonard, were civilian pilots and friends in Lewiston, and joined the military together in Spokane.

Richardson eventually focused on finding Knepper’s remains. With help from Shirley Finn, Knepper’s half-sister; other World War II pilots; and an Italian man, Salvatore Fagone, who had spoken to people who had possibly witnessed Knepper’s plane go down, Richardson managed to convince the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency to attempt a recovery effort.

In May, the DPAA announced Knepper had finally been accounted for Aug. 10, 2023.

The government agency returned Knepper’s remains to his hometown recently, according to Finn, 81, who was born after her half-brother died.

Finn said extended family will attend Friday’s funeral, but she is the only sibling of Knepper’s who is still alive.

Clarkston veteran to receive Bronze Star

Clarkston resident Don Johnson, a U.S. Navy veteran who served in Vietnam, will be presented with the Bronze Star at approximately 11:30 a.m. Friday by U.S. Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers at the Clarkston VFW.

McMorris Rodgers, a Spokane Republican who isn’t running for reelection after serving in the U.S. House since 2004, is scheduled to be at the VFW from 11:15 a.m. to noon Friday.

The VFW is at 829 15th St., Clarkston.

Baney may be contacted at mbaney@lmtribune.com or (208) 848-2262. Follow him on X @MattBaney_Trib.