Ronald Olson ’49 wasn’t yet a Wheaton alumnus when his infantry battalion landed in France 25 days after D-Day. In fact, he was barely out of high school. Most of the men in his graduating class went to war, too. 

He was considered one of the “replacement” infantry troops to fill the role of the wounded or fallen soldiers. He served in four major campaigns throughout France, Belgium, and Germany. As he dodged Nazi bullets, the Bible verse that sustained him was David’s cry in Psalm 118:17: “I shall not die, but live, and declare the works of the Lord” KJV. Ronald was injured in the war and spent three months recovering in London, ultimately receiving two Purple Hearts and a Bronze Star for his service in World War II.

Ronald left the military in 1945 and started classes as a Bible major at Wheaton soon after. He views his college years as a time of intellectual and spiritual preparation for his work as a missionary planting and growing churches in northern Argentina, first with Bolivian immigrants and then with the European Argentines. His housemate at Wheaton, Jim Elliot ’49, also went on to serve as a foreign missionary, ultimately losing his life in 1956 at the hands of the Huaorani people in Ecuador. 

Ronald first heard the call to serve as a missionary at the age of 13. About a decade later, he met his partner in ministry and wife of 66 years, Darlene, while at Northern Baptist Seminary in Chica-go. Each of their five children attended Wheaton College. Now 93 years old and living in Lexington, Kentucky, Ronald reflects fondly on his time at Wheaton. “I’m still proud to be a graduate of Wheaton College.”