He was one of those Marines who won the war in the Pacific a yard at a time. Born in Tyler, Texas, Kirby enlisted in the U.S. Marine Corps in January of 1944. He shipped out to the Pacific with the Third Battalion, Eighth Marine Regiment, Second Marine Division as a rifleman and machine gunner. Kirby joined in the "mop-up" operations on Saipan, the division's home during the rest of the war. He fought to secure Tinian, an island destined as the base for the B-29 "Enola Gay" which dropped the atomic bomb on Hiroshima. On April 1, 1945, he participated in the feint landing that began the campaign for Okinawa. On June 21, his division joined the battle on the island and fought until its conclusion. Kirby served in the occupation of Japan, then left the service as a corporal in early 1946. He worked most of his life as a railroad express clerk.