Danville Register in Danville, Virginia

The Middle Aged Lions and the Normandy Hedge Wars

This wartime memoir piece traces Ham Napier’s vow to aid the underprivileged after the Normandy campaign. It follows Ralph Neppel’s brutal hedgerow fighting with the 329th Infantry, his rise to squad leader, and the brutal battles at Guam and Saint Lag, including ONeill’s harrowing beach actions and injuries, then moves to the Stalag Luft II period and further European combat culminating in the Birgel campaign and Neppel’s crippling loss of a leg. The narrative interweaves personal reflections, combat portraits, and the toll of a long war on soldiers and their resolve.