Lieutenant Colonel Robert L. Wolverton
This photo, taken on the evening of June 5, 1944, in England, shows Lieutenant Colonel Robert L. Wolverton of Elkins, West Virginia. Commander of the 3rd Battalion, 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 101st Airborne Division, checking his gear before heading towards Normandy.
On that evening, Robert reunited all his men and said: “I am going to ask you to pray with me for the success of the mission before us. […] God almighty, in a few short hours we will be in battle with the enemy. We do not join battle afraid. We do not ask favors or indulgence. […] We ask only this, that if die we must, that we die as men would die, without complaining, without pleading, and safe in the feeling that we have done our best for what we believed was right”.
A few hours later, Robert jumped over Normandy and was killed by enemy fire before touching French soil. This true American hero is now resting in peace at the United States Military Academy Post Cemetery, West Point, New York.
Today, we honor Lt. Colonel Robert L. Wolverton and all the men of the greatest generation who served, sacrificed and died during D-day Invasion, WWII. We will always remember you.”
Source: Fallen Yet Not Forgotten
Source: Fallen Yet Not Forgotten