Walk Among Heroes
Jeff Wells
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Walk Among Heroes Podcast: Episode 11A - Guy Whidden (D-Day Veteran) Part 1
We (Walk Among Heroes) are proud to continue our D-Day discussion this week by welcoming Mr. Guy Whidden, 502nd Parachute Infantry Regiment (PIR), 101st Airborne Division. Mr. Whidden jumped into Normandy early on the morning of D-Day, June 6, 1944. His platoon’s objective was to secure one of the exits from Utah Beach, but his plane flew off-course over the English Channel, and Mr. Whidden ended up landing in Sainte-Mere-Eglise, the first town liberated by the Allies in Normandy. Today, the town of Sainte-Mere-Eglise continues to hang a parachute from the church tower in honor of 1LT John Steele, who landed on the tower with his parachute stuck D-Day morning (and subsequently faced a very harrowing set of circumstances). Sainte-Mere-Eglise is also home to the Airborne Museum, an incredible exhibition of military history that paints the picture of what exactly happened in France during the Normandy invasion. Mr. Whidden and his men fought through the hedgerows in Normandy before finally withdrawing a month later back to England from Cherbourg. In England, the paratroopers continued training, and eventually jumped into Holland in September 1944, as part of Operation Market Garden, a massive Airborne operation aimed at creating a northern entrance into Germany in an attempt to bypass stout German defenses along the West Wall, or Siegfried Line. A very difficult mission, the paratroopers were left on their own, as ground forces were late in arriving. Mr. Whidden was seriously wounded during the operation, which ultimately ended the war for him. Mr. Whidden’s military stories are amazing, but equally entertaining are his many stories from childhood, teenage years, and life after the military. Mr. Whidden is one of very few living paratroopers who jumped into Normandy with the 82nd and/or 101st Airborne Divisions. He has written a book, ‘Between the Lines and Beyond: Letters of a 101st Airborne Paratrooper.’ There is even a commemorative action figure available in his likeness to honor the heroes of D-Day. There are three parts to this episode: Episode 11A covers Mr. Whidden’s childhood, Army training, and several combat stories. Episode 11B covers his deployment to England and stories overseas. Episode 11C covers the majority of his combat in Normandy, Operation Market, his injury, and journey home. We have truly enjoyed getting to know Mr. Whidden over these past several years, and we hope you enjoy his stories as much as we did. You can find all podcast episodes at: www.walkamongheroes.org/podcast. If you have any questions, comments, or suggestions, please don’t hesitate to send us an email at walkamongheroes@gmail.com. A special 'thank you' to Shreyas Ganesh for donating his time as sound engineer.
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