TABLE OF CONTENTS

CHAPTER 6

Al’s Memoirs

CHAPTER 11

Operation Bodenplatte

CHAPTER 1

The Uniform

CHAPTER 2

The Rabbit Hole

CHAPTER 3

Larry’s Research

CHAPTER 4

The Beginning

CHAPTER 5

Normandy

CHAPTER 7

Jimmy and The Red Ball

Express

CHAPTER 8

Larry’s Interviews

CHAPTER 9

67th Tactical Recon Group

CHAPTER 10

366th Fighter Group

CHAPTER 12

Liberation of Buchenwald

CHAPTER 13

The Return Home

PHOTO GALLERY

2487th Quartermaster

Truck Company (Aviation)

Epilogue

TWISTED BOMBSHELL

THIS IS THE STORY OF AN UNKNOWN HERO. THIS IS THE STORY OF MY GRANDFATHER WHO WAS JUST ONE OF THOUSANDS OF BRAVE MEN JUST LIKE HIM.

Preface

My grandfather was the greatest man I have ever known. He was also the greatest loss I have ever had to endure. He passed away from leukemia when I was eleven and the hole in my heart has never healed. Even now, thirty one years later, I cherish every single memory I have of him. His name was Paul Joseph Guiton.

Growing up in the rolling green hills of what the locals know as Irish Hill in Northeast Pennsylvania, my family comes from a long line of Irish kin who immigrated here from Ireland. My grandfather was the patriarch of my direct Guiton family, with him being just one brother of many other Guiton siblings and their respective Guiton families. As you can imagine growing up on Irish Hill and in a traditional Irish family, each Guiton family had many children, grandchildren, and now great grandchildren. Where I come from, it was difficult to keep names straight and it could get very confusing at times. When in doubt, all you had to say was you are a Guiton and that was all that was needed. We were all family one way or another.

When I was young, my grandfather would always have me sit with him and watch black and white World War II documentaries. He would always emphasize to me how important they were and the history involved. As I got older, he would tell me bits and pieces why he made me sit and watch those documentaries, but he never dove into the details. He would mention once in a while that he was in the Army and he drove truck. He told me that he was in Europe during the war and that was about the extent of it. I would see some items from his military locker from time to time like his uniform and some old black and white photos while in Europe. It wasn’t until a few months ago when I started to research his true history in the military did it all make sense and come to light. As a matter of fact, the more I dug into his history, the more I found. The more I found, the more I was amazed by the details. It was like following a rabbit down the rabbit hole. The deeper I went, the more his story took twists and turns. The more it twisted and turned, the more I got lost in one of the biggest and best history lessons of my life.

You see in the end, I found out that my grandfather was a bonafide war hero. In every sense of the word, he was a man that did more in his lifetime than most of us could do in multiple lifetimes. I am so very happy and thankful for those memories that I have of watching those black and white World War II documentaries with him. I am also so very happy and thankful for my grandfather always reminding me to pay attention because one day I would understand the importance. Well that day is today and this is his story. This is the story of an unknown hero. This is the story of my grandfather who was just one of thousands of brave men just like him. All of them are unknown heroes. His story should be told and so should theirs.