6 June 1944
Leslie Fritz was killed in action from a head wound as a Seaman First Class serving the United States Coast Guard in World War Two in Omaha Beach, France. He is laid to rest in what was formerly known as St. Laurent American Military Cemetery at Plot G Row 19 Grave 4.
Leslie Fritz was killed in action from a head wound as a Seaman First Class serving the United States Coast Guard in World War Two in Omaha Beach, France. He is laid to rest in what was formerly known as St. Laurent American Military Cemetery at Plot G Row 19 Grave 4.
Researching someone’s life knowing that they are dead is a very odd thing, almost as if it is being played in rewind. When I first heard the name Leslie Fritz, he was just the soldier who occupied grave 4 of row 19 but as his life was uncovered I saw him for more than that. To Mr. and Mrs. Fritz parents, Leslie was a son, and to Stanley he was a brother. I know the life of a soldier, I know the life of a brother, and I know that of a father. Because of this the feeling of his loss was very real to me.
In my life as an army brat I have seen his mother’s pain and felt his brother’s loss. The feeling of loss is no less real to me when I am reading about it decades and oceans away. I understand the pain of his parents and Stanley Fritz when they lost their son and only brother.
But I still understand Leslie Fritz’s motives. Although my parents were not home every evening there was a certainty that they were helping a greater good. It’s something people of other professions cannot understand. The daily sacrifice that the family also makes, Leslie Fritz’s family suffered from his valiant sacrifice, a decision he made every day.
Learning about the occupant of grave 4 in row 19 of plot G made real the infinity of loss during war. Each gravestone has a story and a mother and a brother and a life. Although only examined in rewind they are no less real and my gratitude is eternal through this appreciation. It takes a certain type of person to accept the fact they are going to die in combat, sacrificing their life for the freedom of others. Through this project I learned the depth life of Leslie Fritz sacrificed. The pure humanity and reliability to this story makes his sacrifice mean that much more, he knowingly left a family and entire life behind.
In my life as an army brat I have seen his mother’s pain and felt his brother’s loss. The feeling of loss is no less real to me when I am reading about it decades and oceans away. I understand the pain of his parents and Stanley Fritz when they lost their son and only brother.
But I still understand Leslie Fritz’s motives. Although my parents were not home every evening there was a certainty that they were helping a greater good. It’s something people of other professions cannot understand. The daily sacrifice that the family also makes, Leslie Fritz’s family suffered from his valiant sacrifice, a decision he made every day.
Learning about the occupant of grave 4 in row 19 of plot G made real the infinity of loss during war. Each gravestone has a story and a mother and a brother and a life. Although only examined in rewind they are no less real and my gratitude is eternal through this appreciation. It takes a certain type of person to accept the fact they are going to die in combat, sacrificing their life for the freedom of others. Through this project I learned the depth life of Leslie Fritz sacrificed. The pure humanity and reliability to this story makes his sacrifice mean that much more, he knowingly left a family and entire life behind.
American soldiers who were killed at Omaha Beach were first buried in a make-shift cemetery called St. Laurent. In 1956 construction was completed on a permanent 172.5 acre American cemetery at the same location called Normandy. At this cemetery there are 9,387 burials in total. 1956 of these have been dedicated, 1,557 were recovered soldiers MIA.