Edward Vincent Jabkowsky was born on August 1, 1900 in Kaliz, Poland. He immigrated to America in 1908 and arrived at Ellis Island, New York on December 26 of that year with his mother, four brothers (including one twin), and three sisters. His father had arrived in the country four years earlier. The family lived for a while at Millville, New Jersey, before finally settling at Reading, Pennsylvania.
Jabkowsky applied to the American Armed Forces in 1917, but was rejected because of his young age. Instead, he briefly served with the Russian Army at the age of 16. On January 18, 1921, Jabkowsky joined the United States Marines. He joined the 15th Regiment as a trumpeter and was later assigned to the 69th Co-Regiment at Quantico, Virginia, which was considered an elite corps. Jabkowsky was trained in reconnaissance work and marksmanship and also spent time on the transport USS Henderson, where he developed an interest in naval service.
In 1924, Jabkowsky joined the US Navy and served on a variety of vessels in the coming years, including the battleship USS Arkansas, minesweeper USS Finch, and destroyer USS Porter. He married Viola Fisher the following year in Reading, Pennsylvania and the couple had a daughter together, named Lorraine.
Jabkowsky enjoyed a brief retirement in 1941, but decided to re-enlist later that year after Japan attacked Pearl Harbor on December 7. Jabkowsky was assigned to the supply ship Pollux, which ran aground on February 18, 1942 in the middle of a violent winter storm off Newfoundland's south coast. Sadly, Jabkowsky was one of the 93 men who died in the shipwreck. He was 41 years old at the time and had devoted more than half his life to protecting his country in military service.
