A BROTHER’S AGONY

A BROTHER’S AGONY

Virginian and Private First Class Ronald McNeil was one of seven brothers. “My uncle Ronald, a paratrooper with the 508th Parachute Infantry Regiment, was wounded during the Normandy invasion and was in Belgium, where my father was also serving,” Edie Jeter said in an interview. “They planned to meet during Christmas, but the Battle of the Bulge began 16 December 1944. On 27 December, my uncle, who was 30, was killed.” “I still don’t know the whole story,” Edie remarked quietly. “My dad never spoke about his war or about losing Ronald. They kept those stories internally — what agony.” A few years ago, Edie was surprised to learn that her uncle’s grave at the American cemetery in Henri-Chapelle was one of several adopted by young schoolchildren to help remember liberation. “My dad,” Edie said ruefully, “would have loved knowing how the people in Belgium are preserving the memories.”

2017-08-30T14:22:17+02:00