In Memory of PFC Raymond J Belanger, 405th Infantry Regiment, 102d Infantry Division, KIA, Buried In The Netherlands American Cemetery, Margraten

REMEMBERED

Raymond J Belanger is buried or memorialized at Plot A Row 19 Grave 19, Netherlands American Cemetery, Margraten, Netherlands. This is an American Battle Monuments Commission location.

In battle he moved fearlessly over no-mans land administrating first aid to his comrades, although constantly under sniper fire. He was fatally wounded by machine gun fire while performing his duty as a combat medic.

COMMENDATIONS

★  World War II Victory Medal

★  Silver Star

★  Purple Heart

★  Marksmanship Badge

★  Combat Medical Badge

★  American Campaign Medal

★  Army Presidential Unit Citation

★  Army Good Conduct Medal

★  European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign

Article below published in the Waterton Daily Times 

Massena veteran remembers childhood friend who was killed in action in World War II

© Copyright 2021 NNY360, 260 Washington Street Watertown, NY

By BOB BECKSTEAD
bbeckstead@wdt.net
Aug 6, 2021

 MASSENA — While village of Massena officials continue their efforts to demolish an East Orvis Street building that was gutted in a November 2016 fire, Massena veteran Roy Mittiga wants to remember a friend and someone he considers a hero who grew up at the address.

 In a small, but meaningful ceremony with Mr. Mittiga and Steve Boutot on hand, members of the Amvets Post 4 Rifle Squad fired off a series of volleys at 104 East Orvis St. to recognize Raymond J. Belanger.

“Every time I go by this house my memories flash back. He deserved some sort of tribute,” Mr. Mittiga said.

Mr. Belanger was born on April 2, 1925 in Valleyfield, Quebec and moved to Massena when he was 2 years old. He attended local schools and worked at the plant before joining the U.S. Army.

 “We went to school together. He was a fine boy in school. I quit school. I never graduated, but he went in the Army in 1943 after school. I ended up in the medics and he was a medic, but we were friends in school,” said Mr. Mittiga, who was a member of a medical battalion that was part of the 3rd Army, Gen. George Patton’s Army, tending to the medical needs of soldiers. He said his unit took care of 100,000 individuals.

 “As soon as they came off the battlefield, they came to us. We took care of them and classified them. If they needed surgery we sent them to the surgical hospital. We were the first unit in the 3rd Army to get the Presidential Citation because we took care of so many,” he said.

Mr. Belanger, who held the rank of private first class, was a medic with the 102nd Infantry Division, 405th Infantry Regiment.

 

"He died with the 102nd Infantry Division on the battlefield aiding the wounded under fire,” Mr. Mittiga said.

He had been fatally wounded by machine gun fire on Nov. 23, 1944, Thanksgiving Day, while performing his duties as a combat medic. He is buried in the Netherlands American Cemetery, Margraten, Netherlands.

His commendations included the Silver Star, World War II Victory Medal, Purple Heart, Marksmanship Badge, Combat Medical Badge, American Campaign Medal, Army Presidential Unit Citation, Army Good Conduct Medal and European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign.

The Silver Star Medal is the United States Armed Forces’ third-highest military decoration for valor in combat.

The Silver Star Medal is awarded primarily to members of the United States Armed Forces for gallantry in action against an enemy of the United States.

Mr. Mittiga thanked the members of the Amvets Post 4 Rifle Squad for helping to remember his friend.

 “That house still means something to me. I appreciate the Amvets and what they did,” he said.

“We’re very honored. Thank you for asking us,” said Amvets Post 4 Rifle Squad Commander Fred Cockayne, who presented Mr. Mittiga with shells from the ceremony as a remembrance.

SERVICE OVERVIEW

Name	Raymond J Belanger
From	St Lawrence County, New York
Born	April 2, 1925
Death	November 23, 1944
War	World War II
ID	32940999
Rank	Private First Class
Specialty	Medic
Branch	US Army
Group	102nd Infantry Division, 405th Infantry Regiment
Cause	Hostile, Killed in Action

 

In Memory of Charles "Chuck" V. Stephenson II. 102d Infantry Division. Wounded in action.

Asheville - Charles V. (Chuck) Stephenson died July 25, 2021. He was born in Centerville, TN, October 1, 1924, to the late Claude B. and Carleen P. Stephenson. He spent his childhood in Centerville, where his father was a lawyer. He played high school football (offense and defense), and was president of his senior class. He enjoyed reading, woodworking, walking, gardening, and listening to music.

After his freshman year at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville he enlisted in the Army, serving in the 102nd Infantry Division. He was wounded in 1944 in Germany. After returning from the war, he obtained his bachelor's and master's degrees in Physics at Vanderbilt University in Nashville.

While in Nashville, he met Luellen (Lue) Hovey, an artist at the Baptist Sunday School Board. They were married in Birmingham, AL in 1948. He went to graduate school at the University of Kentucky and Vanderbilt, earning a Ph.D. in Physics from Vanderbilt in 1952. They moved to Albuquerque, NM, where he worked at Sandia National Laboratory, doing research in the then-new field of solid-state physics.

In 1956 the family moved from Albuquerque to Auburn, AL, where he worked as a professor in the Physics Department at Auburn University and was elected a Fellow of the American Physical Society and the American Association for the Advancement of Science.

They moved to Birmingham, AL, where he worked at Southern Research Institute, and then in 1962 back to Nashville, TN, where he joined the faculty of Vanderbilt University. He was a teacher beloved by his students, and rose to become chair of the Electrical Engineering Department. His wife Lue became active at Vanderbilt Children's Hospital, first as a volunteer and later as Director of Recreational Therapy. They served as Elders of Trinity Presbyterian Church, and took the family on summer vacations camping in Tennessee state parks.

After retiring, Chuck and Lue became volunteers for Room at the Inn and Habitat for Humanity. In 1999, they moved to Montreat, NC, and later to Givens Estates in Asheville, NC. They belonged to Warren Wilson Presbyterian Church and volunteered at Mission Hospital.

In addition to his parents, he was also predeceased by his wife, Luellen, his brothers Claude Jr. and Tom, and sister Carolyn. He is survived by his children: Dr. Charles Bruce Stephenson (Dr. Marija Norusis), Dr. Frances Luellen Lightsom, and Dr. Gregory Brian Stephenson (Dr. Carol Thompson); his grandchildren: Dr. Calvin Francis Hotchkiss and Samuel Stephenson Hotchkiss; and numerous nieces and nephews.

A memorial service will be held at the Norma F. Pulliam Chapel at Givens Estates in the near future. The family will schedule the service as changing COVID protocols and restrictions allow. Please monitor Chuck's obituary page at grocefuneralhome.com for the most updated information. Memorial donations may be made to Habitat for Humanity, Meals on Wheels, or Homeward Bound.

Groce Funeral Home at Lake Julian is assisting the family.

The First Wedding Held At Camp Maxey-Paris News

Lt. Joseph Craton Bates of the 405th Infantry Regiment, 102d Infantry Division hadn't snagged a local but he and his bride, nee Katherine Margaret Edgeworth, set the trend.  The tsunami of weddings to hit Paris, Lamar County and surrounding Texas counties as well as Hugo, Choctaw County, and surrounding Oklahoma counties began with this one.  

The opening of Camp Maxey was a raid on the single female population of the area by the thousands of soldiers that came to be stationed there.  Add into this mix the hundreds, maybe thousands, of girlfriends that came to Paris to visit their sweethearts and wound up getting hitched like the Bates.  

The invasion to capture the locals was so successful after the activation by the 102d Infantry Division in 1942 that one almost has to feel sorry for the thousands of 99^th Infantry Division and the estimated 70,000 IARTC soldiers that followed.  It had to be tougher to find female companionship.  But it appears those succeeding waves of soldiers took full advantage of the remaining available population of single women to find marital bliss.  

Add into this mix the hundreds, maybe thousands, of girlfriends that came to Paris to visit their boyfriends and wound up getting hitched like the Bates.  The demographics were perfect for the soldiers.  Most of them were under the age of 25.  Most of the young Paris men had been shipped out to other parts of the country and were, by all probability, courting the population at their assignments as hard those young soldiers did in Paris.

Camp Maxey had six chapels and there are reports that these chapels were 100% booked several times a day.  The USO in Paris would help the young women coming from afar in making arrangements for the weddings.  Every local church opened their doors and aisles to keep the wartime brides happy.

I’m sure the local conditions propagated many a “Dear John” letter to some Paris bloke that was taking care of Uncle Sam’s business.  After all, for the women this was one big party.  With the encouragement of the Camp Maxey commanding officers, the local population organized the eligible young women into a group known as the Maxey Command.  Their official function was to provide support for the young soldiers as dance partners, dates to local social functions, and to boost a soldier’s morale.  Several times a month the young Paris women, under the watchful eye of chaperons, would hop buses in Paris and head out to the camp for an evening of dancing or movies.  Or they would go to of the local USOs located in Paris and Hugo where dances were hosted weekly.

The young ladies and their families were encouraged to invite soldiers they met to dinner, or join them at church, or just get together for a picnic. 

The end result the was the youth of Paris being spread from sea to shining sea and raising their families in lands afar.  I marvel today that my Google searches turn up so many obituaries from other states that report the deceased female to been from Paris, Texas and she met her husband at Camp Maxey.  There are endless chapters to a book to be written on this topic. 

   

Robert B. Bossler, 99th Infantry Division, Bronze Star

Robert B. Bossler, 94, passed away on March 30, 2019. He was the loving husband of the late Anne Marie Bossler. Bob served in the US Army, 99th Infantry Division, participating from start to finish in the Battle of the Bulge, then the Rhineland Campaign into Germany. He earned a Bronze Star. A 1949 Penn State graduate, he became a recognized aeronautical engineer at Bell, Kaman, and Lucas Western. The Kaflex Coupling is one of his 22 patents. An American Helicopter Society member since 1951, he received the AHS Honorary Fellow Award in 2013. Bob traveled extensively, always making friends and documenting his adventures through photography. He was a member of the Civil War Round Table, the Bloomfield Fish and Game Club and the 99th Infantry Division Association.

Patents by Inventor Robert B. Bossler, Jr.
Increased capacity face gear arrangement for transmitting torque through an angle and to a plurality of power extraction paths
Patent number: 5233886
Abstract: A gear arrangement for transmitting torque through an angle and through a plurality of power extraction paths. The arrangement includes a driving shaft, a floating spur gear pinion concentrically mounted on the drive shaft, a pair of concentric and opposed face gears that are in meshing engagement with the pinion, a primary driven shaft mounted to one of the face gears and at least one non-floating spur gear also in meshing engagement with both face gears. The driving shaft is located by a bearing or a flexible coupling at the shaft end remote from the gear box to allow the pinion to float freely. Useful power may be extracted from both face gears and the non-floating spur gear as well as additional spur gears that are placed in meshing engagement with the face gears.
Type: Grant
Filed: May 26, 1992
Date of Patent: August 10, 1993
Assignee: Lucas Western, Inc.
Inventor: Robert B. Bossler, Jr.

Offset face gear transmission
Patent number: 5178028
Abstract: A gear arrangement for an offset transmission includes two concentric, counter-rotating face gears in meshing engagement with an engine output shaft, the face gears being connected to respective concentric, vertical counter rotating face gear shafts of unequal length, each shaft ending in a helical spur gear that is in meshing engagement with an output helical face gear. The helical output face gear is connected to the output shaft, thereby completing the offset transmission. The face gear shafts can be coupled together by means of thrust bearings that couple the axial thrusts of one shaft to the other in an opposite direction. The shafts can also be coupled via a preload spring that ensures the torque split between the pinion gears is statically determinant. The gear arrangement can be applied to twin engine designs, with a spur gear train coupling the two engines together via an interconnect shaft.
Type: Grant
Filed: May 5, 1992
Date of Patent: January 12, 1993
Assignee: Lucas Western, Inc.
Inventor: Robert B. Bossler, Jr.

Gear arrangement for transmitting torque through an angle
Patent number: 5135442
Abstract: A gear arrangement includes a horizontally inclined rotary shaft having a pinion and two face gears rotating in parallel but axially spaced planes. The two face gears are in meshing engagement with the pinion. Each face gear rotates about a shaft that includes a spur gear. A combining gear is in meshing engagement with both spur gears. Torque from the rotary shaft is equally split between the two face gears, reducing the amount of torque each face gear must transmit. The torque is combined from the two face gears by the combining gear, where the torque may then be used to drive the desired mechanism.
Type: Grant
Filed: February 12, 1990
Date of Patent: August 4, 1992
Assignee: Lucas Western, Inc.
Inventor: Robert B. Bossler, Jr.

Roller bearing with load-reacted cage
Patent number: 5125756
Abstract: A roller bearing includes a slotted cage structure that separates and controls tapered rollers as they roll on the bearing races. The cage is a load-bearing structure that is in sliding contact with the larger diameter axial end surface of the rollers, thereby preventing any sliding contact between the bearing races and the axial ends of the rollers. The point of sliding contact between the cage and the rollers can be selected for minimizing friction. The roller bearing can be provided in either a crossed roller bearing configuration or in a multiple row configuration.
Type: Grant
Filed: October 31, 1990
Date of Patent: June 30, 1992
Assignee: Lucas Western, Inc.
Inventor: Robert B. Bossler, Jr.

Linear actuator
Patent number: 4827789
Abstract: A linear actuator includes a single drive gear that engages two driven gears of the same pitch diameter, which in turn drive a spindle and a sleeve, respectively. The sleeve is internally threaded to receive the spindle, which is externally threaded. The sleeve and spindle are driven rotationally at slightly different rates due to different numbers of teeth on the two driven gears, producing linear motion of the spindle relative to the sleeve. The drive gear can be rotated in increments corresponding to integral numbers of teeth and the rest positions of the gears can be full engagement positions to minimize play in the gears.
Type: Grant
Filed: May 5, 1987
Date of Patent: May 9, 1989
Assignee: Western Gear Corporation
Inventors: William M. Hallidy, Robert B. Bossler, Jr.

Method of face mill generation of spiral bevel gears with integral central structure and resulting product
Patent number: 4518287
Abstract: A gear blank is integrally formed with a shaft or other central structure protruding axially from what is to be the toothed face of the gear. A spiral bevel gear is then cut by the face mill generation method, but with the cutter distance exceeding the outer cone distance. The cutter does not intrude into the area occupied by the shaft. The resulting gear has a negative spiral angle and a reverse tooth curvature.
Type: Grant
Filed: July 7, 1982
Date of Patent: May 21, 1985
Assignee: Western Gear Corporation
Inventor: Robert B. Bossler, Jr.

Rotary drive flexible coupling
Patent number: 4321805
Abstract: A flexible coupling for drivingly connecting two rotatable shafts or the like includes a flex member connected between driving and driven members. The flex member consists of four flat arms, arranged to form two Vs with their interior angles facing one another, and a connecting piece connected to and extending between the vertices of the two Vs. Angular and endwise misalignment of the axes of the two rotatable parts joined by the coupling is accommodated by bending of the flat arms out of the neutral plane of the flex member and by twisting of the connecting piece. The flex member is easily fabricated as a one-piece unit by cutting it from a flat sheet of metal or plastic or by forming it through a molding or casting process. The coupling may include only a single flex member or it may have a number of such members connected in series to increase its misalignment capabilities.
Type: Grant
Filed: June 1, 1979
Date of Patent: March 30, 1982
Assignee: Kaman Aerospace Corporation
Inventor: Robert B. Bossler, Jr.

Torque splitting gear drive
Patent number: 4297907
Abstract: In a gear drive for drivingly connecting two rotatable shafts the transmitted power and torque is split between two parallel paths to reduce the size and required power handling capacity of the gears and other components. The power and torque is divided between the two paths by an axially shiftable torque distributing member carrying two gears each meshing with a respective one of two other gears each comprising part of a respective one of the two parallel power paths. The torque distributing member is rotatably supported relative to the frame or casing of the drive by a bearing surrounding and engaging the member itself. This accurately locates and fixes the axis of rotation of the member and reduces the bearing requirements for its associated shaft.
Type: Grant
Filed: June 1, 1979
Date of Patent: November 3, 1981
Assignee: Kaman Aerospace Corporation
Inventors: Robert B. Bossler, Jr., Charles P. Hardersen

Robert B. Bossler, Jr. has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

D-Day + 75 Years: Memorializing and Celebrating

© 2019 David Steely

The D-Day Memorial at Bedford, Virgina is a $25 Million memorial dedicated to those that lost their lives and those that fought on June 6, 1944 to capture the beaches and towns in Normandy, France.  Their success ultimately lead to the defeat of Germany in May 1945.

On the first Tuesday in June 1944 Bedford City, Virginia was awakening to a new day.  Milk deliveries were being made, and breakfasts were being prepared.  People were getting ready for work.  When everyone had turned in for the night on Monday there was little indication that the largest single invasion the world had ever known was unfurling.  The Allies were attacking Fortress Europe.

The population of Bedford was about 3,200. It wasn’t much different than any other small American town. By 1944 most of its young men 18 to 30 years old were in uniform. They had been dispersed to all points of the world. Many had been serving proudly as members of the National Guard when the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor in 1941. The Army quickly rolled these men into the 29th Infantry Division. They were shipped to England in September 1942. It was assumed at that time they would at some point be invading Europe. 

On the home front war news was delivered in newspapers daily with multi-column headlines and with regularity on radio news broadcasts with special bulletins as the news warranted. Although the headlines were dramatic none of them were to claim the attention of the American public as intently as those of December 7, 1941 until June 6, 1944.

Originally set for June 5, the invasion was postponed for a day as the Allied command staff waited for a break in the weather that would clear the skies and calm the seas for the invasion. The men had been loaded on their landing crafts and ships on June 4 in preparation to cross the English Channel. The military put a heavy cloak of censorship over any news preceding and during the invasion. Even as they were loading their boats to traverse the channel the vast majority of the soldiers didn’t know their final destination. They had been training for years for this moment but nothing could have fully prepared them for what happened. 

The invasion of Europe was on. The heavily censored news reports began to reveal the size and importance of the invasion. All across the country a news hungry public gathered around radios to listen to war correspondents' reports. Newspapers put out extra editions. Early reports were very general in nature. The Allies had attacked. The beaches had been taken. The troops were advancing inland. As expected, there were casualties.

On this fateful morning Bedford was set apart. No other city, no matter the size, would suffer as many casualties on D-Day and during the following battle for Normandy as this little town.  Their brave soldiers had been destined for the beaches in Normandy that had been code named Omaha. They had been in the first wave to approach the beaches and many of them never lived to set foot on French soil. More than 1,000 soldiers died on June 6 at Omaha. Specific details regarding the invasion didn’t start filtering back to the United States for weeks as the army counted its casualties and consolidated its gains. The headlines about casualties were eventually supported by a flurry of telegrams authorized by the Department of Defense. D-Day became very personal for many.

Outside of the telephone, telegrams were the fastest and most personal way of communicating during the war. They carried with them a sense of urgency and importance. And it was effectual in that it was hand delivered to the recipient. Births were announced with them. Travel schedules were sent ahead to families and friends with them. Bad news was sadly delivered with them.

It wasn’t until July 17 that the first D-Day telegrams arrived at the teletype at Greens Drug Store in Bedford.  Over the next few days families would receive the most dreaded telegram of all.

  “The Secretary of War expresses his deepest regret that your son was killed in action on six June in France.”

© 2019 David Steely

The City of Bedford monument to the young men who died on D-Day and the battle for Normandy sits in the town center on the county court house grounds. It is not a part of the D-Day Memorial but the community's own tribute to them.

In all 23 telegrams announcing those KIA arrived related to the D-Day invasion. The military was very efficient and began releasing the notices almost simultaneously. Each new notice that came in over the teletype at Greens Drug Store brought dread and sadness began to envelop the town.

Nineteen Bedford boys lost their lives on June 6. All were part of Company A, 116th Infantry Regiment, 29th Infantry Division. Four more were to be killed within the next few days. Bedford’s total contribution of man power to the invasion was 30 soldiers.  These numbers don't include the wounded.  This made the casualty count for Bedford the highest per capita of any town in the United States. Company A itself was decimated. It lost so many boys in the first hour of the invasion that it was rendered useless as an effective military unit.

It was because of this great loss of human life to such a small community that Bedford was able to get the attention of the United States Congress. Congress agreed that a D-Day memorial was needed and it was befitting to be located at Bedford. President George H. W. Bush presided at a dedication of the 88 acre memorial on June 6, 2001.

© 2019 David Steely

As this 75^th anniversary approaches, plans are being made at both the D-Day Memorial and in Normandy, France to mark this enormous achievement.  It is universally recognized that this year’s celebrations will probably be the last gathering of the D-Day veterans in large numbers as those still living are celebrating life in their 90s.  And they will more than likely hear once again General Dwight D. Eisenhower’s words of encouragement to them one more time:

“You are about to embark upon the Great Crusade, toward which we have striven these many months. The eyes of the world are upon you. The hopes and prayers of liberty-loving people everywhere march with you. 

In company with our brave Allies and brothers-in-arms on other Fronts, you will bring about the destruction of the German war machine, the elimination of Nazi tyranny over the oppressed peoples of Europe, and security for ourselves in a free world.

Your task will not be an easy one. Your enemy is well trained, well equipped and battle hardened. He will fight savagely.

But this is the year 1944! Much has happened since the Nazi triumphs of 1940-41. The United Nations have inflicted upon the Germans great defeats, in open battle, man-to-man. Our air offensive has seriously reduced their strength in the air and their capacity to wage war on the ground. Our Home Fronts have given us an overwhelming superiority in weapons and munitions of war, and placed at our disposal great reserves of trained fighting men.

The tide has turned! The free men of the world are marching together toVictory!

I have full confidence in your courage and devotion to duty and skill in battle. We will accept nothing less than full Victory! 

Good luck! And let us beseech the blessing of Almighty God upon this great and noble undertaking.”

― Dwight D. Eisenhower

© 2019 David Steely

© 2019 David Steely

© 2019 David Steely

© 2019 David Steely

For more information on the D-Day Memorial and the events scheduled go to their web site at https://www.dday.org/events/.

For more information on in events planned in Normandy go to http://bayeux-bessin-tourisme.com/en/event/d-day-festival-normandy/

For more information on events planned worldwide go to http://www.dday-anniversary.com/downloads/D-Day75Events%20v1.0.pdf

1945 - The Last Issue of the Camp Maxey Times -30-

When newspaper reporters used typewriters and teletypes to create their articles they used -30- to indicate the end of the story.  These 16 pages were the last ever printed of the Camp Maxey Times.  The first one printed was on April 9, 1943.  The tabloid format paper was written and laidout by camp personnel and composed and printed at The Paris News.  During that period hundreds of thousands of soldiers, their families, politicians, civilians, and German PWs each had a small thread of the camp added to the fabric of their life.

This last issue is a very short but informative collection of articles about the camp, the war, Paris, and the people that got to know at least a small part of the camp.  It highlights the arrivals of both the 102d and 99th Infantry Divisions as well as the Infantry Advanced Replacement Training Center (IARTC).  Appropriately the editors liberally used -30- to mark the end.

For historians it has an excellent list of the dozens of different types of units there were trained there.