World War II Honoree
World War II Veteran
Jack Whitaker
Branch of Service
U.S. Army
Hometown
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Honored By
Robert S. Cox
DRAFTED INTO MILITARY SERVICE. TOOK BASIC TRAINING AT CAMP WHEELER AT MACON, GEORGIA. ALSO ASSIGNED TO FORT GEORGE G. MEADE AT BALTIMORE, MARYLAND IN THE AMERICAN THEATER. STAGED AT CAMP SHANKS AT ORANGEBURG, NEW YORK IN LATE 1943, AWAITING OVERSEAS DEPLOYMENT. SAILED AS AN INDIVIDUAL REPLACEMENT FROM THE NEW YORK PORT OF EMBARKATION IN JANUARY, 1944 AND ARRIVED IN ENGLAND. STATIONED IN ENGLAND AT SWINDON AND LATER AT STREET, IN SOUTH WEST ENGLAND, AWAITING FURTHER DEPLOYMENT. ALERTED FOR ONWARD MOVEMENT ON JUNE 5, 1944, THE DAY BEFORE THE D-DAY INVASION OF NORMANDY, FRANCE. SAILED ACROSS THE ENGLISH CHANNEL AND LANDED AT OMAHA BEACH ON JUNE 9, 1944 (D-DAY+3). HE WAS SURPRISED THAT THE BEACH WAS RELATIVELY QUIET, WITH ONLY OCCASIONAL ENEMY SHELL FIRE AND THERE WERE FEW SIGNS OF THE CARNAGE THAT HAD TAKEN PLACE. HE OBSERVED NO AMERICAN DEAD BODIES; AND ONLY A FEW GERMAN BODIES WERE VISIBLE. HE WAS ASSIGNED TO THE 2ND ARMORED 'HELL ON WHEELS' DIVISION, WHICH WAS BEING HELD IN RESERVE. THAT GAVE HIM AND OTHER NEW REPLACEMENTS TIME TO 'SETTLE IN' AND LEARN THE ROPES FROM COMBAT EXPERIENCED LEADERS. SERVED OVERSEAS IN THE EUROPEAN-AFRICAN-MIDDLE EASTERN THEATER, IN THE EUROPEAN THEATER OF OPERATIONS (ETO), WITH THE 2ND ARMORED DIVISION DURING THE WAR. PARTICIPATED IN THE NORMANDY INVASION AND 7 WEEKS LATER WAS PART OF THE BREAKTHROUGH AT ST. LO, FRANCE. IT WAS DURING THIS OPERATION THAT HE WAS WOUNDED IN THE ARM BY SHRAPNEL FROM ENEMY ARTILLERY FIRE. HE WAS MEDICALLY EVACUATED TO ENGLAND, AND AFTER RECOVERING, WAS RETURNED TO COMBAT. HE WAS WOUNDED IN ACTION A SECOND TIME WITH A FLESH WOUND, BUT MEDICALLY EVACUATED AGAIN TO ENGLAND. AFTER RECOVERY, HE WAS REASSIGNED AS A MILITARY POLICEMAN TO THE DIVISION HEADQUARTERS. AWARDED THE PURPLE HEART WITH 1 BRONZE OAK LEAF CLUSTER (2 WOUNDS), GOOD CONDUCT MEDAL, AMERICAN CAMPAIGN MEDAL, EUROPEAN-AFRICAN-MIDDLE EASTERN CAMPAIGN MEDAL, AND WWII VICTORY MEDAL. HONORABLY DISCHARGED IN NOVEMBER, 1945, WITH THE RANK OF CORPORAL AND ISSUED THE HONORABLE SERVICE LAPEL BUTTON.