Grand Island's Medal of Honor recipient remembered at local ceremony

Story and Photos by Alice Gerard

A young man who grew up on a farm on Grand Island and who died in combat in France at the age of 22 was remembered Sunday at a ceremony held 80 years after his death. He was honored at the park named for him, DeGlopper Memorial Park, with a rifle salute and with a military helicopter flyover during the event.

The story of Charles DeGlopper, the farm boy who was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor for his actions three days after D-Day, on June 9, 1944, was shared in the community that was his lifelong home.

“Exactly 80 years ago today, Charles DeGlopper demonstrated incredible bravery near Normandy, France, which resulted in his posthumous award of the Medal of Honor,” said retired Maj. Gen. David Conboy, who served as guest speaker during the ceremony. “As a result of his conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity, he will live forever in the annals of history.

“Charles, known as Charlie, grew up just down the road, on the family farm on Fix Road near Baseline and Alt Boulevard. And grow up he certainly did. He rose to 6’7” tall, 240 pounds, a size 15 shoe while still in high school. Imagine that. And Charlie did go to school in this area.”

As a boy, DeGlopper attended one-room schoolhouses (Schools 9 and 5) on the Island before going off the Island after finishing eighth grade to attend Tonawanda High School, graduating in 1941.

Active-duty military salute the sacrifice of Pfc. Charles DeGlopper.

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People who remembered Charlie described him as quiet and friendly.

The late Harold “Bud” Long, who had been childhood friends with DeGlopper, in a 2022 interview, said, “I was a year ahead of him all the time. He never got into trouble. He was just an average kid. He never played any sports. I played basketball and football. I played hardball until I went into the service. I played hardball in the service, too. He was just a quiet kid, but he got along with us.

“When I was a senior and he was a junior, we joined a bachelors’ club for cooking and sewing,” Long said. “We had a great time. The teacher always said, ‘We’ve got to teach you sewing.’ But we wanted to cook. That’s how I got to know Charlie. His dad had a big old Buick with a jump seat. So, we all piled in on Saturday night. We’d go to a movie or go over to the mainland. We’d ride around town or go to a movie or stop into a hot dog stand on Sheridan (Brinson’s Red Hots).”

“A few months (after graduation), Charlie was drafted in 1942,” Conboy said.

Long and DeGlopper were drafted at the same time. They both entered the military at Fort Niagara. DeGlopper’s size, however, was an issue for the U.S. Army.

“They didn’t have an outfit to fit him,” Long recalled. “They didn’t have shoes to fit him. We were at (the) Fort Niagara recruiting place to get our clothes and to get the heck out to go someplace else. After three days, I had my whole uniform. We sent my civilian clothes home. On the third day, they shipped me out to St. Petersburg, Florida. (DeGlopper) was still there with his civilian clothes on.”

Long joined the combat engineers and became an airplane mechanic in the Army Air Forces, while DeGlopper followed a different path.

“After being inducted into the military at Fort Niagara and completing some training, he shipped out for 17 weeks of basic training at Camp Croft, near Spartanburg, South Carolina,” Conboy said. “After basic training, Charlie was assigned to the newly formed 82nd Airborne Division, which consisted of units that would be inserted into combat through parachute operations and, in Charlie’s case, with his unit, the 325th glider regiment, by coasting into danger in gliders after being towed by powered aircraft and then released near the objective. They were basically crash landing at their destination, that is, if they were lucky enough to survive enemy anti-aircraft fire.”

The 325^th glider regiment saw action in North Africa and in Italy before going to England to get ready for D-Day.

Even with the presence of large numbers of military personnel in England, DeGlopper and Long were able to spend time together. According to Long, DeGlopper sensed his upcoming mission would be his last: “When we met there, maybe for a day or so, he said, ‘Bud, I’m not going to make it home.’ I said, ‘Charlie, we only have one more to go and we’re going to be home.’ ”

Conboy described the imminent invasion as “the long-awaited amphibious and airborne landing of Allied forces on the continent of Europe. On June 6, 1944, or D-Day, Allied forces launched Operation Overlord, making it a pivotal moment in the history of the world and certainly the history of World War II. This meticulously planned amphibious and airborne invasion of Normandy, France, involved an unprecedented number of ships, aircraft and personnel. Underscoring its paramount importance in the annals of military history, really, human history. With over 156,000 Allied troops from the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, and various other nations, landing on five Normandy beaches, the scale of the D-Day invasion was staggering.”

“On June 7, Charlie and his buddies with the 325 Glider Infantry Regiment departed Ramsbury Air Field in England and somehow survived the harrowing flight across the English Channel with the sky lit up from anti-aircraft fire,” Conboy related. “A day later, the element of surprise was gone, so the Germans knew that the Allies were coming with more reinforcements. Imagine being in that nonpowered aircraft crossing the English Channel and seeing what’s going on outside you.”

“They crash landed near their objective to secure strategic terrain, close to Sainte-Mere-Eglise, France, which was just south of Utah Beach, the site of the amphibious landings the morning before,” Conboy said. “Fighting raged for two days and two nights, with neither side achieving a decisive result. The battle became critical on June 9, at a small bridge crossing the Merderet River near La Fiere, France, a small village that was essential to the operational plans of both the Allied and the German forces.

“On that fateful day, Charlie’s unit found themselves in a dire and desperate situation. Under intense enemy fire, with the potential of being wiped out, and losing this important bridge, which was critical to the success of the operation. Recognizing the gravity of the moment, Charlie did not hesitate. He volunteered to cover the movement of his buddies to more advantageous terrain. Standing at 6’7” tall, it was hard for him not to be conspicuous. He certainly knew that he would be an easy target for the Germans, for the Nazis. Yet, with remarkable bravery, he acted above and beyond the call of duty to protect his fellow soldiers and accomplish the mission.

“Engaging the enemy and imposing his will on the Nazis with his Browning automatic rifle, which looks like a toy weapon in someone 6’7,” but is a really heavy significant weapon.

“Charlie’s heroic actions provided his buddies the critical time that they needed to regroup, move to a more advantageous position and, ultimately, mount a counterattack. Despite being heavily outnumbered and outgunned, Charlie continued to fight, reloading his weapon until he was fatally wounded.

“Because of his intrepid actions, Pfc. Charles N. DeGlopper was posthumously awarded our nation’s highest military award for valor, the Medal of Honor. Charlie was the only recipient of the Medal of Honor from the storied 82nd Airborne Division, as part of the Normandy campaign. The selfless and courageous actions of Charlie and many other heroes resulted in the success of the Normandy campaign, which proved to be a turning point in World War II, paving the way for the liberation of Western Europe, just 10 months later.

“The successful execution of Operation Overlord demonstrated the character, resolve and the bravery of the Allied forces and heroes like Charlie DeGlopper, cementing their place and Charlie’s place in history as being part of one of the most significant and critical military operations in history.”

Charles DeGlopper was buried in Maple Grove Cemetery, on Stony Point Road south of Whitehaven Road. An historic monument commemorating DeGlopper’s actions in France stands just outside the cemetery. In Amfreville, in Normandy, France, there is another monument honoring DeGlopper’s sacrifice.

“And so, it is certainly appropriate that we gather here today in honor and to remember Charlie and all of our nation’s heroes,” Conboy said. “These brave and selfless souls who gave their lives in combat service to our country and in the defense of freedom across the world.

“We mourn them because they lost their physical lives, as defined by years. But they also lost their future lives, defined by endless possibilities. Possibilities of families, vocations, and continued contributions to their nation and their communities. While our pain associated with their loss is enduring and, sometimes, overpowering, there is indeed a joy and a thankfulness that rises through our grief to provide us comfort. We feel joy and are thankful to God that such heroes as Charlie lived. As we sing in ‘America, the Beautiful’: ‘more than self, their country loved, and mercy more than life.’

“We are also enormously blessed, each one of us, to have lived amongst these heroes, even if only for a time that was much too brief. And despite our loss and, perhaps, in some way because of it, we have indeed been given so much.”

Retired Gen. Dave Conboy and Karen Conboy at the statue honoring Charles DeGlopper in DeGlopper Memorial Park.