‘I received it for them as well'

MOREHEAD CITY — From his classroom at Carteret Community College, Earl Norwood’s own memories tell the story of the D-Day landings at Normandy, France, as vividly as any textbook.

The World War II veteran was there, steering a landing craft to shore during one of the first waves of the invasion.

Norwood, a Morehead City resident who teaches history part-time at the college, says he “tells it like it was.”

For him, June 6, 1944, was a day like no other.

“The courage and the heroism that I saw that day I have never, ever witnessed again,” Norwood said.

Norwood said it was true teamwork in action and his only regret as he was bestowed with France’s highest decoration was that his crew mates were not standing with him.

While they survived that day, they have since passed away.

“When I received that medal, I received it for them as well,” he said. “ . . . I mean that from my heart.”

Norwood was one of three World War II veterans from North Carolina to receive the Legion of Honor during a Dec. 1 ceremony in Raleigh.

The National Order of the Legion of Honor, founded by Napolean Bonaparte, recognizes distinguished service to the Republic of France. Consul General of France Pascal Le Deunff presented the award to the three North Carolina veterans, who participated in the Normandy landings and liberation of France.

The ceremony in the old House of Representatives chambers at the State Capitol, now reserved for special occasions, proved to be a fitting setting for the ceremony, said Norwood, who sees the award as more than a medal.

“I have Bronze stars and other commendations, but this is one of the greatest honors ever bestowed on me,” Norwood said.

Norwood, now 83 and a veteran of three wars, served four years in the Navy and 24 years in the Army.

He was assigned to USS LST-357 at the time of the Normandy invasion and as coxswain of one of the landing crafts — a shallow-draft, barge-like craft known as a Higgins boat — he was responsible for getting 36 soldiers to shore.

At the moment the ramp dropped on the beach, an artillery round struck and ripped through the boat from the starboard to the port, killing two men instantly.

“Two men were killed and two were severely wounded. We decided to back out, close the ramp and get the men back to the ship,” Norwood said.

With the boat severely damaged, they bailed and pumped water for seven miles to keep it afloat.

Once back at the ship, the crew volunteered to continue transports using another boat. They would make four additional round trips from ship to shore.

“We’d pick up troops and carry them to the beach, once they offloaded we’d wait for the beach master and the medic to load us with the wounded,” Norwood recalled. All the while, the artillery rounds and machine gun fire continued.

The next day, Norwood said he was back ashore for five days, this time to patrol the beach, retrieving the bodies of soldiers who had drowned.

The memories of the invasion are difficult, but Norwood also looks back on the planning, logistics and execution of that day with a bit of amazement and pride in what was accomplished.

“The complexity of it. Can you imagine 2,500 ships within 10 miles of the beach, stretched out less than 50 miles, all done without computers, all done with written orders, hand-written orders?” he asked.

Norwood openly shares his experience, whether in the classroom or his community.

“I want the world to know what we can do. When the chips are down, this country can pull it off,” he says.

And while he stays away from politics, Norwood gives tribute to his comrades, from those who were beside him at Normandy to the men and women serving today.

Each time he walks into his classroom he displays the number of American servicemen and women killed in action in Iraq and Afghanistan.

“Every day, without comment, without one word, I write the killed in action figure on the blackboard. I’m doing this to honor my comrades,” he said. “They are my comrades, they are soldiers, they are Marines and their heroism and their lives must be recognized.”

Contact Jannette Pippin at 910-382-2557 or jpippin@freedomenc.com.