PVT William J. Dellapenta
Private (PVT) William J. Dellapenta of Headquarters Company, 3rd Battalion, 501st Parachute Infantry Regiment (PIR), 101st Airborne Division, was born in Buffalo, Erie County, New York, to Joseph F. and Maria T. (Cordileone) Dellapenta on April 22, 1924. He had one brother, Louis, and four sisters, Beatrice, Virginia, Rita, and Theresa.
William attended Lafayette High School in his hometown Buffalo, the oldest public high school in Buffalo. His yearbook describes him as: “He travels through the live-long day. His lot seems light, his heart is gay.” He was part of the school’s track team and was the coxswain of the crew that participated in the North American Championship. He then studied Hotel Administration at Cornell University, but although his enlistment date is unknown, he did not finish his studies.
PVT Dellapenta was assigned to HQ/3 of the 501st PIR. Just two days before the start of D-Day, he received a leg fracture and was hospitalized for eight weeks. But he was ready in time for the next big operation - Market Garden!
On September 17, 1944, PVT William Dellapenta made his first combat jump into the Netherlands. He departed from an English air base at Chibolton at 10.15 hrs in the morning and made his jump at around 13.15 hrs at Dropzone A, just south of Eerde, under perfect weather conditions.
Operation Market Garden ended on September 25th. The paratroopers of HQ Company, 3rd Battalion, were then trucked to the small town of Driel on October 4th, 1944.
Driel is a town situated in an area that was nicknamed “the Island.” The Island is a piece of land, five km at its widest, that lies between two rivers, the Lower Rhine and the Waal.
Because of this location, it required a change in tactics for the men, going from maneuver warfare to static warfare at prepared defensive positions. For the next month, their daily routine consisted of small patrols and guard duty, particularly around the dikes, opposite of the German positions on the other side of the river.
The men of HQ/3 also performed their duties in a town named Heteren.
While in Heteren, the paratroopers were sometimes provided an unconventional place to rest, a building where unmarried Dutch women gave birth to their children. The building had many rooms and enough space for some extra soldiers to stay for a couple of days. The paratroopers welcomed this opportunity to bathe, shave, relax, and clean their equipment in this peaceful rest area.
However, when SGT Dick Klein, one of the paratroopers from HQ/3 returned from his leave in Brussels at the beginning of November, he had learned that two men from the company, Walter Radel and William Dellapenta, had been killed.
Walter Radel, like Dick Klein, was one of the original Toccoa men who had started their training with the 501st at Camp Toccoa in December 1942.
“When I returned to the unit, […] one of the men came up to me saying, “Radel was killed.” What had happened?
Our outfit had a noncoms meeting in one of the rooms of the building with the Dutch women. It was the first time the Germans attacked the rest area, probably because our enemy had discovered the house was popular with our men. On November 6, 1944, a shell hit the corner of the building, killing both Walter and another trooper by the name of Bill Dellapenta.
It was a sad ending. […] Walter is buried at Margraten, only a couple of rows away from Jake [Wingard, Dick Klein’s closest friend who was KIA on September 18, 1944]. When I go there, I visit both men and honor my lost friends.”
Another Screaming Eagle had soared to the ultimate height. 🦅
PVT William J. Dellapenta was initially buried at the Temporary American Military Cemetery of Molenhoek near Nijmegen, the Netherlands (Code 4655, Block F, Row 2, Grave 40). He was later re-buried at the Netherlands American Cemetery at Margraten (Code 4601; Block G, Row 3, Grave 19).
Happy 100th Birthday in Heaven, William.
Lest we forget! 🇺🇸
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