SGT Richard J. Blumeier

Together with the men of the 327th Glider Infantry Regiment, the troopers of the 326th Airborne Engineer Battalion (AEB) defended the southern parts of the Bastogne perimeter in the vicinity of Marvie. The airborne engineers were the first to greet the men from Charlie Company of the 37th Tank Battalion, 4th Armored Division, as they arrived in Bastogne to break the siege on December 26, 1944.

SGT Richard J. Blumeier of Charlie Company, 326th AEB, was KIA under unknown circumstances, probably around Marvie, on December 31, 1944. Another Screaming Eagle had soared to the ultimate height. 🦅

Born in Lorain, Ohio, on March 17, 1920, he died at the age of 24. SGT Richard Blumeier was first buried at the Temporary American Military Cemetery, Grand Failly, France, at Plot B, Row 8, Grave 188. Besides his parents, Mr. and Mrs. John Blumeier, he left behind a brother, Robert G. Blumeier.

Richard Blumeier was born and raised in Lorain, where he attended the local high school and graduated in 1938. He enlisted in the U.S. Army at Ft Benjamin Harrison, Indiana, on March 20, 1942. He left for England with the 326th AEB on the S.S. Strathnaver on September 5, 1943. That trip turned out to be very eventful, as the ship encountered multiple problems while attempting to cross the Atlantic.

After several repair jobs in Newfoundland proved unsuccessful, all the men and women were transferred to another ship, the S.S. John Ericsson. On October 18, 1944, 43 days after leaving New York, the troopers finally reached Liverpool, England.

SGT Blumeier’s body returned home in February 1949. He rests eternally at the Ridge Hill Memorial Park, Amherst, Lorain County, Ohio. He was posthumously awarded a Purple Heart Medal.

Lest we forget! 🇺🇸