World War II Honoree

Joe B. Ortega

Branch of Service

U.S. Army

Hometown

Brighton, Colorado

Honored By

Orville L. Kline

Rank: Private 1st Class. On March 1, 1944, he entered the United States Army at Fort Logan, Colorado, deployed to England after the completion of his Combat Infantry Training. He served as a member of the 66th Infantry ‘Black Panther’ Division, assigned to India Company, 3rd Battalion an element of the 262nd Infantry Regiment. Sunday December 24, 1944, while on deployment from Southampton, England to Cherbourg, France, crossing the English Channel aboard the SS Leopoldville, it came under attack by the German Submarine, U-486. The Submarine Commander fired two torpedoes, striking the ship, which began to sink slowing in the frigid waters five miles from the coastal shoreline of Cherbourg, France with a loss of 802 lives. Killed in action, Monday, December 25, 1944 and buried in the Saint-Mere-Eglise #2 Battlefield Cemetery in Carentan, France. After the cessation of hostilities in Europe, his remains were transferred, with interment in the Normandy American cemetery located at Colleville-sur-Mer, France. This Soldier, an American Patriot, awarded the Purple Heart posthumously, who so gallantly gave his life for his country.