D-Day Veteran and TikTok Star 'Papa Jake' Larson Dies at 102
PARIS (AP) — D-Day veteran ″Papa Jake″ Larson, who survived German gunfire on Normandy’s bluffs in 1944 and then garnered 1.2 million followers on TikTok late in life by sharing stories to commemorate World War II and his fallen comrades, has died at 102. An animated speaker who charmed strangers young and old with his […]
UK D-Day Veteran George Chandler, Who Escorted American Troops to Normandy Beaches, Dies at 99
LONDON — D-Day veteran George Chandler, who sought to counter sometimes glamorous depictions of the landings by recalling the horrors he witnessed escorting U.S. troops to the beaches of northern France as a young Royal Navy gunner, has died, his family said. He was 99. Chandler, who served aboard a British motor torpedo boat during […]
80 Years After D-Day, the Family of a Black World War II Combat Medic Receives His Medal for Heroism
WASHINGTON — Waverly B. Woodson Jr., who was part of the only African American combat unit involved in the D-Day invasion during World War II, spent more than a day treating wounded troops under heavy German fire — all while injured himself. Decades later, and nearly 20 years after his death, his family finally received […]
Remains of Jewish D-Day Soldier Lost for 80 Years in Nazi Mass Grave Will Be Buried in Normandy
The case of Army 1st Lt. Nathan B. Baskind was unique in the annals of the more than 73,000 U.S. service members still listed as missing in action from World War II, and the case had long gone cold. The case of Army 1st Lt. Nathan B. Baskind was unique in the annals of the […]
Black D-Day Combat Medic's Long-Denied Medal Tenderly Laid on Omaha Beach Where He Bled, Saved Lives
OMAHA BEACH, France (AP) — A medal richly deserved but long denied to an African American combat medic wounded on Omaha Beach in the D-Day landings was tenderly laid Friday on the hallowed sands where he saved lives and shed blood. U.S. First Army soldiers held a ceremony in honor of Cpl. Waverly B. Woodson […]
What Ike Remembered When Returning to the Beaches of Normandy 20 Years After D-Day
In the early morning hours of June 6, 1944, the paratroopers of the 101st Airborne Division tried to ease the concerns of Army Gen. Dwight D. Eisenhower, who had just given the go order for the D-Day landings after one last bout of wrangling with the allies. Eisenhower, the Supreme Commander Allied Expeditionary Force, now […]
A Black Medic Wounded on D-Day Saved Dozens of Lives. He's Finally Being Posthumously Honored
WASHINGTON — Waverly Woodson Jr., a medic who was part of the only Black combat unit to take part in the D-Day invasion of France during World War II, is being posthumously awarded the Distinguished Service Cross in recognition of the heroism and determination he showed treating troops under heavy enemy fire. The announcement was […]
Medic in Black D-Day Unit, Long Denied the Medal of Honor, Gets Wide Backing for Nation’s Highest Military Honor
They haven’t waited in Normandy, or in smalltown Virginia, or at First Army Headquarters in Rock Island Arsenal, Illinois, to honor the D-Day heroism of then-Cpl. Waverly B. Woodson Jr., a combat medic with an all-Black unit who is under consideration for the posthumous award of the Medal of Honor. The visitor center at the […]
A Black Medic Wounded on D-Day Will Be Honored for Treating Dozens of Troops Under Enemy Fire
WASHINGTON — An African American combat medic who was wounded while landing on Omaha Beach during the D-Day invasion but went on to tend to dozens of troops will be posthumously honored Wednesday in a ceremony at Arlington National Cemetery. His family and supporters continue to push for an even higher recognition they believe his […]