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S/SGT KENNETH E. HATFIELD
Machine Gunner Co D, 117thTrained as a Heavy Machine Gunner, he landed at Normandy D-Day +5. At St. Lo, he was only a short distance from General Mc Nairs' position when the General was killed by US bombs. During his first combat he said that he was "scared to death!" "You weren't normal if you weren't scared," he recalls. Although out gunned - he once turned an enemy tank back with only his machine gun fire. He lost most of his hearing due to the heavy "shock" caused by artillery. He was wounded in battle but returned to his unit, surviving 285 days in combat. For his actions he received 4 Bronze Stars. |