During World War II, Daniel “Dan” Weinstein parachuted into the Burmese jungle to organize and train the local population to fight invading Japanese forces. As a demolition expert, he also defused enemy land mines to help build the Burma Road, the Allies’ vital supply line that linked Burma to China. On April 3, 2025, Dan and his wife, Betty Jo Weinstein, were inurned together in Arlington National Cemetery’s Section 63 columbarium.
Weinstein served with Detachment 101 of the Office of Strategic Services (OSS), the precursor of today’s CIA. Formed in Burma (today’s Myanmar), Detachment 101 became the OSS’s first Special Operations unit, with a reputation as the service’s most effective tactical combat force.
The OSS was established on June 14, 1942, under the leadership of World War I veteran William J. Donovan (buried in Section 2). The service conducted research and analysis, covert operations, counterintelligence, espionage and technical development.
At the service, more than 20 family members and friends gathered say their final goodbyes and share memories. The Weinsteins’ son, Peter, recalled asking his father if serving as a demolitions expert was dangerous. “He told me, ‘Not if you do everything in the right order.’” His children agreed that one of their father’s proudest moments may have been receiving his Congressional Gold Medal, awarded to the OSS in 2018.
After the war, Weinstein continued to serve his country in a civilian capacity, as a mechanical engineer who made significant contributions to nuclear and aerospace programs. According to his children, Weinstein worked on Minuteman missiles, Titan rockets, NASA’s Gemini and Apollo space missions, jet engines and aircraft carriers.
While working for Westinghouse in Kansas City, Dan met Betty Jo, a first-year law student who also worked for Hallmark Greeting Cards. Their younger daughter, Tracey Downey, said her parents eloped in 1955 and stayed married for 68 years.
Nephew Matt Lightfoot, an FBI special agent bomb technician, called his uncle a legend and war hero. “He was one of the original special forces soldiers,” he said. Lightfoot recalled that after graduating from the Hazardous Devices School, his uncle gave him the advice, “When it’s time to cap in [inserting a blasting cap into an explosive], just slow down, take a breath and make sure everything is right.”
Eldest daugher Mary Lavalley explained why the siblings chose to inurn their parents at Arlington National Cemetery. “He was so proud of his country,” she said of her father. “He considered himself above all else to be a patriot, and we know this is what he would have wanted.”
Images, top to bottom: 1. Daniel Weinstein funeral, Arlington National Cemetery, April 3, 2025; 2. Weinstein in Burma ca. 1944-1945 (courtesty of the Weinstein family); 3. Daniel and Betty Jo Weinstein on their anniversary (courtesy of the Weinstein family).
Learn More:
► Office of Strategic Services Memorial
► Education Program: Military Intelligence