David M. Jones - Private to Sergeant (Oops!) to Private.
Served with distinction in the Hq1 Battalion Intelligence Section (S-2) from October 20, 1942 to October 1945.
David Jones is a Hq1 "Hell's Half Acre" survivor (See Chapter II, Combat Operations - Normandy).
In “Hell’s Half Acre.” David Jones and Gus Labate shared a foxhole. A zealous German pushed a Schmeisser machine pistol through the hedgerow and killed Gus.
In all aspects, Dave Jones fits the profile of the “Greatest of the Greatest Generation." He has contributed immeasurably to the successes of our country and to the welfare of the American people.
Dave was born August 30. 1920, in Oakland, California. He elected to tell his own story for the album. Parts of Dave's story are reported here, and parts of his story, like his first days in Normandy, are presented in Chapter II, Combat Operations – Normandy.
“Following the bombing of Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, like all eligible males of the time, I was caught up in the patriotic fervor and on December 30, enlisted in the United States Army Air Corps, I had grand thoughts of flying high.
It did not take long for me to learn that there were some rather menial tasks to be accomplished in the Army Air Corps, and apparently perform-ing these tasks was my future.
After about a year of drudgery, I volunteered for airborne training as an avenue of escape. I was sent to Fort Benning, Georgia for parachutist training. After qualification, I was assigned to a cadre selected to organize and train the 508th Parachute Infantry Regiment (508th PIR) scheduled for activation in Camp Blanding, Starke, Florida.
Our cadre of officers, noncommissioned officers and privates moved to Camp Blanding and activated the regiment on October 20, 1942.
I was assigned to Headquarters Company; First (Hq1) Battalion. It was the only unit that had enough recruits available to start basic training. | 
