Albemarle Tradewinds October 2016 Final

Wendell Haire and the Invasion of Normandy
By: David Bennett, Curator at the Port o’ Plymouth Museum
In May 1943, Wendell Haire, a native of Creswell, N.C., dropped out of high
school to join the United States Navy. Haire chose the Navy because he
thought it would offer him an adventure and he liked the uniform. Little did he
know that one adventure would change his life forever.
At 10a.m., June 6, 1944, Haire was aboard a troopship off the coast of Normandy
disembarking soldiers bound for Utah Beach. It was D-Day and the invasion
of Normandy was on. Unfortunately, due to a lack of landing craft, the
ship was unable to disembark all of its troops. The captain decided to move
the ship close to shore to find an available landing craft and disembark the
rest of the troops. Just after the vessel had unloaded its remaining soldiers
it was struck by a German artillery shell on the starboard side below the waterline.
Four explosions rocked the ship instantly killing five of the crew and
wounding everyone else. Wendell Haire suffered a broken leg and severe
burns. He was also trapped in the galley by himself. All seemed lost until one
man selflessly came to his rescue. An African American sailor by the name of
Flynt carried Haire up to the main deck and put him in a lifeboat. They cast
off right before the ship rolled over and sank. Then everything went black.
When Haire woke up he was in a hospital bed in England. He was lucky
to be alive. His ship had sunk in five minutes taking over half of the crew
with her. Haire’s war was over. He would spend the next three years in the
hospital undergoing a total of seven surgeries for his shattered leg. For his
wounds, he received the Purple Heart.
After the war, Wendell Haire married, had a family, and a made a career with
the U.S. Postal Service. He was plagued, however, by his wounds for the rest
of his life. He had sacrificed his health and comfort for his country.
Comments? E-Mail br549@modernmedianow.com
(Photo courtesy of Virginia Haire.)
Special thanks to the
Golden Skillet and
U.S. Cellular for sponsoring
this article on behalf of the
Port o’ Plymouth Museum.
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14 Albemarle Tradewinds October 2016 albemarletradewinds.com