Winston Churchill once said of World War Two that it was not a war of princes or chieftains, but of peoples and causes; a war fought by unknown heroes. Here we acknowledge the unknown heroes that Churchill was referring to as well; our fallen heroes as well as those that fought for our freedoms and returned with their memories. We remember and honour in our hearts the Allied heroes, war veterans and all the affected people, who valued freedom in their life above all else.

A    B    C    D    E    F    G    H    I    J    K    L    M    N    O    P    Q    R    S    T    U    V    W    XYZ

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Ernest Coffman

1st Sergeant
739th Field Artillery
Purple Heart
In 1943, Ernest Coffman, an Pennslyvanian, volunteered for the US Navy but was turned down due to bad eye sight. He was later drafted into the US Army and was assigned to the 739th Field Artillery Battalion (8 Inch Howitzers). In July 1944, Coffman arrived in Britain on the SS Queen Elizabeth, and crossed the English Channel for Normandy on August 30, 1944. He served as a cannoneer and fired upon Isle de Cezembre, Fort Driant, and other Nazi held forts along the Moselle River. On Oct. 27, 1944, Coffman was wounded when shrapnel hit his ankle while jumping head first into a foxhole. This wound caused him to stay out of combat for the rest of the war and also resulted in Coffman receiving the Purple Heart. He returned to the US in May 1945 and continue to serve his nation until his retirement as a 1st Sergeant in 1969.

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Emmet Curtin

Private First Class, US Army
I Co., 3rd Btn., 314th Infantry, 79th Infantry Division
Purple Heart

My uncle was a member of I Co., 3rd Batn., 314th Infantry. He was KIA 11/14/44 at Fremonville. He was 19 years old and was killed by mortar fire while crossing a railroad into a field. He was also at the rest area before his death at Luneville, where I understand Private Melvin (www.privateletters.net) did the same. I have a letter from my Uncle "Boogie's" (nickname) squad leader describing how and where he died.

I have two sons in the Army at present and they are facinated by the history of our military family during WWI,II, Korea. My oldest son was in Desert Storm, he spent one year in Iraq, with a return trip this coming year. My youngest will be going there later in '05. I found your web site very interesting, and feel a lot of pride in all the Americans who served and now serve. Thank you for sharing.   Sincerely, Cindy McKnight