When Leo enlisted on March 3, 1941, at Camp Shelby, he was living in Brandon, Mississippi. His wife had died, and they had no children.
Leo was a member of the 426th Medical Collecting Company. Medical collecting companies were equipped with ambulances and largely responsible for evacuation of soldiers and collecting casualties from the field. They would remove, prepare, and transport the evacuees to safety and acted as a bridge between Infantry Aid Stations and Division Clearing Stations. They would also treat mild injuries. Usually one medical collecting company would accompany their Regimental Combat Team, but occasionally they would stay behind until their assistance was needed. Eleven days after D-day (23 June), his company was deployed on Utah Beach to help with casualties. The company was formally referred to as an HHD, headquarters and headquarters detachments, meaning they were not company sized. His company only has two members listed, and both of them died in battle. Leo died in action July 26, 1944, to a gunshot wound to the chest, along with a fractured skull. He was awarded the purple heart because he was killed. On his person were two cigarette lighters, a pipe, shoes, and a money belt with $25 and 35 Francs. These items and a flag were sent to his brother Claude. He is now buried at the Brittany American Cemetery in France Plot J, Row 15, Grave 14. |