World War II Honoree

Norvin Neil Raasch

Branch of Service

U.S. Army

Hometown

Bridgewater, Iowa

Honored By

Larry Raasch

Relationship

Son

He was inducted into the Army on 25 June 1942 with active service beginning 9 July 1942 at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas. He served in the Cavalry, 90th Reconnaissance Troop Mechanized which was an organic unit of the 90th Infantry Division. Their blood red T-O insignia originally meant Texas and Oklahoma. During WWII the T-O stood for 'Tough 'Ombres'. He was part of the Normandy Campaign landing on Utah Beach. He received the Purple Heart Medal after being wounded in Normandy, France in 1944. He spent four months in England recovering from shrapnel wounds to the chest. He then rejoined the 90th for the Ardennes (Battle of the Bulge), Rhineland and Central Europe Campaigns. He received the Bronze Star Medal for Heroic Service on 16 April 1945 in the vicinity of Schnarchenrouth, Germany. When the town was set ablaze by friendly tank fire, 80 enemy soldiers were trapped in buildings and captured by a dismounted party. He drove his vehicle into the fiercely burning town and carried out the prisoners taken by the dismounted party. He made repeated trips along this hazardous route until he had evacuated all the prisoners. He was honorably discharged on 21 October 1945 at Fort Sheridan, Illinois.