FOREVER 24

FOREVER 24

An emotional Corporal Harry Hudec of Cleveland, Ohio, respectfully kisses the marble cross on the grave of his lieutenant, Joseph Duffy, at the American World War II cemetery in Margraten, The Netherlands. Joe Duffy, a married man from Pittsburgh who left behind also several brothers and sisters, was 24 when a sniper killed him during Operation Market Garden on 20 September 1944. The picture at the cemetery was taken in 2004, but as an historical advisor for the Margraten Adoption Foundation, I still find it to be one of the more poignant to have been made at this sacred site. Corporal Hudec was the boxing champion of the 82nd Airborne Division’s 508th Parachute Infantry Regiment. He parachuted into Normandy and was wounded in the leg; French farmers cared for him and kept him hidden until he managed to link up with his buddies. Three months later, Hudec jumped into Holland, where his lieutenant would lose his life. In the picture on the left, Harry Hudec is 22; in the one on the right he is 82. But his lieutenant, Joe Duffy, has stayed 24 forever. (Picture courtesy Peter Dejong/AP)

2019-01-28T23:48:08+01:00