In 1944, Bedford, VA was a small, close-knit community of around 3,400. On the morning of June 6, 1944, thirty-four men from this small town led the assault on Omaha Beach as part of Company A of the 116th Infantry Regiment 29th Infantry Division. Thirty minutes after landing, 19 of 34 men from Bedford had been killed. Twenty-five year old Tech Sergeant Frank P. Draper was one of those men. Born on September 16, 1918 in Bedford, Draper’s family home was close to the railroad tracks. During...
