textshafferlyleb1939.html

North High School Wall of Honor
Lyle Bryon Shaffer
Class of June, 1939

Research done by Claradell Shedd, Class of 1953. PAGE IN PROGRESS

Lyle Bryon Shaffer

Lyle was a member of North High's class of June, 1939. His next of kin was Mr. Lyle B. Shaffer, 603 Allison Street, Des Moines, IA. Lyle's service number was xxxx.

Lyle Bryon Shaffer

Year		Rank		Status

June, 1939		x		Graduated from North High, Des Moines, IA
Two years	x	Student; Worked	x	Two years at Iowa State, Ames, IA. Worked for S.S. Kresge in Chicago and WI.
November, 1942		Enlisted; US Army Private		Camp Dodge, IA.
1942	x	US Army	x	Basic Training; Fort Robinson, Little Rock, AR
1943	x	US Army/2nd Lt.	x	Fort Sill, OK.; OCS, Officers' Candidate School..
1944	x	US Army	x	Fort Hood, TX. 349th Field Artillery. Then (November, 1944) overseas on Navy ship from New York to England.
Spring, 1945	x	US Army	x	France, Belgium, Germany. The 349 Field Artillery was supporing the 2nd Armored Division "Hell on Wheels" near the Elbe River, Germany. Battle stars for Rhine River and North Germany campaigns.
1945	x	US Army/1st Lt.	x	*Transferred from the 349th Field Artillery to the 32nd Field Artillery Regiment, 2nd Battalion which was part of the 1st Division.
*Redesignated 1 October 1940 as Battery B, 32d Field Artillery Battalion, and activated at Fort Ethan Allen, Vermont, as an element of the 1st Division (later redesignated as the 1st Infantry Division) The 32nd Field Artillery Battalion saw action in 1943 in the Tunisian Campaign, and in the Battle for Kasserine Pass, where the "Proud Americans" earned the French Croix de Guerre with Palm. At the Battle of El Guettar, the Battalion, along with the rest of the 1st Infantry Division, was overrun by the entire 10th German SS Panzer Division. Forced to destroy their guns and withdraw fighting, the "Proud Americans" nevertheless were back in action again within hours and in time to repulse a second assault. For its gallant stand and determined combat spirit at El Guettar, the Battalion was awarded the Presidential Unit Citation. During the invasion of Europe, the 1st Infantry Division and the 32nd Field Artillery Battalion spearheaded the attack at the most difficult point: Omaha Beach. In the bloodiest and most chaotic of the D-Day landings, the 32nd Field Artillery Battalion was the first complete artillery unit in action on Omaha Beach, and is credited with the first Allied Field Artillery round fired in the invasion. The unequaled support rendered by the "Proud Americans" to their supported infantry resulted in the award of a second Criox de Guerre and the forwarding of a recommendation for a second Presidential Unit Citation. The 32nd Field Artillery drove eastward with the 18th Combat Team, and on 11 Setember 1944, Battery C, claimed the first round fired onto German soil by an Allied unit in World War II.
1945	x	Home on Leave	x	Home on leave from Germany. 45 days back in IA.
1945	x	US Army	x	Back to Germany. TDY to Ludwigsburg, Germany; 35 miles north of Stuttgart. To Heidelberg, Germany. Ran PX (enlisted) in Heidelberg, Germany until Spring, 1947. Contracted polio while in Heidelberg, so was in hospital there.
1948-49	x	Walter Reed Hospital; Retired as 1st Lt.	x	Eventually housed (stationed at) convalescent facility, Forest Glen, in Silver Spring, MD.
date	x	Employed	x	Supervisor in Baltimore, MD office over ten PX's in PA.
date	x	Retired again	x	Worked at RCA Exchange in Bahamas/Navy Base.
1950's	x	Employed	x	In PX work in Afghanistan. Wife worked at Embassy Commissary.
date	x	x	x	Back to Bahamas Navy Base for PX work.
date	x	x	x	Polio symptoms/aftermath return. Stroke.
Presently	x	x	x	Convalescent Hospital at Orlando VA Medical Center for the last four years. 100% disability.

Lyle Bryon Shaffer
1st Lieutenant
349 Field Artillery
32nd Field Artillery

Combat Infantryman's Badge

Lyle Shaffer photo

References

(1) The World War II Army Enlistment Records contain information on more than nine million indivdual enlistments. These records can be found online at http://www.archives.gov/.

(2) The comprehensive list of names from North High's 1893-2009 graduation classes are from Claradell Shedd's North Des Moines High School website. The names of North High School graduates can be found online at: http://ndmhs.com/. Lyle Bryon Shaffer's class page is: http://ndmhs.com/pages/yearclass1939(2005.66).html.

05/21/10. Lived at Orlando VA Medical Center near Maitland, FL. Died 10/21/10.

Music: "Wind Beneath My Wings"