Joe served in the Asiatic Pacific Theater. He was with the Marine landing on Iwo Jima. Joe received a bronze star for bravery. His daughter, Judy, remembers her Grandmother Sterling saying how proud she was to have all four of her boys, Rex, Joe, Max and Donnie as well as her son-in-law Tom Ralston fighting for their country. She told her about the four silver stars in her window that she never had to replace any of them with a gold star. Joe married Bernice Sanders and they lived most of their life in Peculiar, Missouri. They had two daughters, Judy and JoAnn. Joe was a glazer for many years, and later went into plumbing and machine operation. His granddaughter Daily Bennett used to tell everyone that if something was broken her Pap could fix it. He had 2 grandchildren, 4 great-grandchildren and one great-great-grandchild.