When I read an obituary last Tuesday, Dec. 8, 2015 for Henry Turner, 91, retired attorney and lifelong Easton resident, I recalled a conversation in the spring of 1994. It always stuck with me.
We were both shopping in Shearer’s Jewelers when I asked Henry, whom I didn’t know well, whether he planned to attend the 50th anniversary of the D-Day invasion of Normandy, France on June 6, 1994. Without hesitating, Turner, a veteran of the 29th Infantry Division, said no. I thought I spotted a glimmer of sweat on his forehead. He explained he could not even watch the iconoclastic 1962 movie, “The Longest Day,” which described the wrenching battle on the Normandy beaches, a military combat action that broke Adolph Hitler’s ruthless grip on Europe at the cost of a few thousand American deaths and wounded soldiers.
Turner had been a 19-year-old infantryman when the 29th Division, comprising a large number of members of the Maryland and Virginia National Guard, hit what became known as Bloody Omaha Beach. He saw action and witnessed death on a level that would scar anyone, let alone a young man barely out of his teens. His obituary stated he earned the Bronze Star and Purple Heart.
I have visited Omaha Beach—Vierville sur Mer—twice. I accompanied 29th Division veterans in 1994 when men in their 70s and 80s revisited former battlegrounds. They lost their youth during fierce battles such as the D-Day amphibious landing. They lost good friends. They overcame fear to fight a determined, well-trained enemy. They landed on a beach dominated by German forces firing from strategically located bunkers.
Henry Turner had seen all he wanted of deadly combat and human carnage. He had served well and courageously. When we talked briefly more than 21 years ago, he didn’t have to explain why he preferred staying home on the 50th anniversary of D-Day.
A well-respected Easton attorney and public servant as chairman of the Maryland Parole Commission, Turner justly belonged to the “Greatest Generation” –as Tom Brokaw, well-known television broadcaster and writer, characterized World War II veterans who served their country in dispelling despotism and then rebuilt their nation after a long siege of economic turmoil and wartime footing. Many of these veterans spoke little about their wartime experiences. It wasn’t in their nature.
Last week, Easton lost another good person and great community leader in Ernie Heinmuller, who died at age 94. He too was a World War II veteran who served with the U.S. Coast Guard. I was interested to read in his obituary that he engaged in troop rescue in the English Channel during the Normandy invasion. He and Henry Turner were on different sides of the beach, linked by their courage and commitment.
It seemed as if everyone knew Heinmuller, a friendly and funny guy who treated everyone in an open, respectful manner. We lived in the same neighborhood in Easton. My wife and I are friends of his son, Hoyt, and his wife, Linda. He was a local businessman and longtime member of the Easton Town Council.
On Sunday morning, Dec. 6, 2015, Father Bill Ortt, rector of Christ Episcopal Church in Easton, announced Heinmuller’s death to the congregation. He talked about how Ernie Heinmuller would stop by periodically to see him and check on the progress of the 16-month renovationt, always offering encouragement during a project that demanded great patience and perseverance.
A longtime member and former vestryman of Christ Episcopal Church, Heinmuller had once upon a time chaired the fundraising campaign for construction of the parish hall and church school after the fire of 1954. He understood that fundraising and actual construction pose significant challenges. Father Bill told the church community that Heinmuller wanted to attend a service in the refurbished church before he died. And so he did, at a dedication service on Wednesday, Dec. 2.
As we all know, we as a nation and community are steadily losing members of a resilient generation that withstood the ravages of the Great Depression in 1930s and fought on foreign turf to preserve our freedom. They became the anchors upon which communities like Easton depended for common-sense growth and community activism.
We will miss Henry Turner and Ernie Heinmuller. They deserve our eternal gratitude and fond memories.
One last comment. I mentioned the recently completed renovation of Christ Episcopal Church in Easton. As Bill Ortt said in his homily on Dec. 6, 2015, the project represents the future, providing a house of worship that hopefully will withstand the vicissitudes of time for another 50 years. This church was built in 1840.
I feel proud of Christ Church for undertaking a project to solidify its place in Easton and Talbot County as a welcoming venue for worship, music and community outreach. Its mission window facing Harrison Street offers a sign of hope, faith and personal restoration.
As the holiday season is now in full throttle, I feel grounded by the legacy left by Turner and Heinmuller. I also applaud a bright, vibrant future for Christ Church, a community asset.
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Ruey Warfield says
Lovely and thoughtful tribute. Thank you, Howard. M
Phil Foster says
Howard Freedlander’s reflection on two recently departed local heroes of the Normandy Invasion in WWII is well worth reading. I once asked Henry Turner to be present at a County Council remembrance of D-Day and met with the same reluctance as did Howard.
I cannot help but believe, however, that when it later fell to him as State’s Attorney to stand up to his friends and neighbors who were trying to prevent the integration of schools, the courage that carried him up that beach in 1944, saw him through those challenges more than a decade later.