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Private
First Class Donald G. Cunningham By Irving T. Shanley |
Don Cunningham enlisted in
the United States Army at LaPorte, Indiana on November 2, 1942. He
reported to Fort Benjamin Harrison, Indiana for initial processing and was
then transferred to Camp Blanding, Florida for basic training. He
underwent 13 weeks of rigorous training in basic military subjects, close
order drill, weapons familiarization and range firing, and intensive
physical training and long runs. While at Camp Blanding, he was assigned
to Headquarters Company, 2nd Battalion, 508th Parachute Infantry Regiment.
On completion of basic training, he transferred with his unit to Fort
Benning, Georgia for parachute training in February 1943 and broke his leg
on his first jump. After recuperating, he returned to the jump school
where he successfully completed the required five parachute jumps from a
plane in flight, and was awarded the coveted silver parachute wings. He
rejoined the Regiment on November 20. 1943 at Camp Mackall, North Carolina
and was assigned to the 81mm Mortar Platoon of the 2nd Battalion.
Don and his unit were transferred to Camp Shanks, New York in December
1943 and embarked from New York for Belfast, Ireland aboard the US Army
Transport James Parker. The men of the 508th were billeted in Quonset huts
at Port Stewart, Ireland until March 1944 when they ferried across the
Irish Sea to Scotland and then by train to Nottingham, England where they
set up their base camp prior to jumping into Normandy, France. At Wollaton
Park on the outskirts of Nottingham, they lived in six-man squad tents
lined up on either side of the company street. Legend has it that Robin
Hood and his merry band of thieves roamed this area which was called
Sherwood Forest in days of yore and stole from the rich to give to the
poor. The Regimental area was enclosed by an eight-foot wall on one side
and a barbed wire fence on the other side, and armed guards were posted 24
hours a day.
As a member of the 508th Parachute Infantry Regiment, Don parachuted into
Normandy, France on D-Day, June 6, 1944. The 2nd Battalion was transported
by buses to Saltby Air Base, located in the Nottingham-Leicester area in
the midlands of England, about a week before D-Day to make final
preparations for their first combat jump. The Battalion was sealed in at
the airfield behind barbed wire, and armed guards were posted around the
perimeter to prevent unauthorized entry. The men slept on folding canvas
cots lined up in a large aircraft hangar inside the sealed area. Only the
Regimental Commander, Colonel Roy E. Lindquist, and other senior
commanders and their staffs knew that Normandy was to be the objective of
the Regiment. The day before D-Day, all members of the Battalion were
briefed by the staff officers about the mission, which was to prevent the
enemy from reinforcing his coastal divisions. The 508th, as part of the
82nd Airborne Division was to drop eight to ten miles inland from the east
coast of the Cotentin Peninsula, just west of Ste. Mere Eglise. The 82nd
Airborne Division was commanded by Major General Matthew Ridgeway and
Brigadier General James (Slim Jim) Gavin. |
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Copyright Irv Shanley,
Unauthorized copying or use in any manner is strictly prohibited –
September 2004 Page 1 of 3 pages |
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