Roland Frederick Kerner was born on September 8, 1921, the son of Fred J. (1897-1931) and Dorothy Kerner of Winfield, Illinois. He had two siblings, James R. and Jean M.; James served in the signal corps during the war and Jean married Peter Dieter of Wheaton, Illinois. Roland F. Kerner graduated from West Chicago Community High School in 1939 and was a payroll clerk for the Chicago and North Western Railway. On September 28, 1942, he enlisted in the United States Naval Reserve, and on November 22, 1942, he reported for active duty. Kerner trained at Camp Bradford, Virginia; Camp Rousseau, California; and Camp Elliot, California, and went overseas with the 3rd Battery, Company H, 17th Marine Regiment, in May 1943. He later transferred to the 19th Naval Construction Battalion, Company B, with which he served for the remainder of the war. The unit was stationed at Camp Parks, California, and Port Hueneme, California, from November 1944-February 1945, before being sent to the Pacific Theater. Kerner returned home before 1946 and married his fiancée, Louise R. Stevens of Wheaton, Illinois.
From the guide to the Roland F. Kerner papers, Kerner, Roland F. papers, 1942-1946, (William L. Clements Library, University of Michigan)
