John Hlavacek

After graduating from Carleton College in June 1939, John Hlavacek sailed for China to teach English at the Carleton-in-China Middle School in Fenchow, Shansi Province. In what was then Japanese-occupied China, John taught English for two years in Shansi and Szechwan, then delivered medical supplies to foreign mission hospitals for the Red Cross.

In 1941, after the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor, John signed up with the American Military Attache, next joining the United Press as a war correspondent in 1944. His book, Letters Home - An American Reporter in China: 1939-1944, details the turbulent events taking place in China during this time period.

After leaving China, John continued his work as a foreign correspondent, next reporting from India, Jamaica, and Cuba, along with his wife Pegge Parker and their children. The Hlavaceks' work was reported through such publications as NBC News, Time, Life, Fortune, The New York Times, and The Miami Herald, among others.