HENRICO COUNTY, Va. -- The intersection of Lafayette Road and Myrtle Grove inside Forest Lawn Cemetery lies 3,800 miles from France, but this sleepy corner in Henrico County will forever be linked to the shores of Normandy.
Lt. Col. Thornton Mullins, a soldier from Richmond whose story still inspires 80 years later, is buried at Forest Lawn Cemetery.
“He is a good example of the thousands of men who fought against horrible odds on D-Day,” said Tom Ligon, Jr.
In the late 1930s, Mullins was leading the 111th Field Artillery Battalion.
”He was one of my father’s very best friends,” says Tom Ligon Jr.
Ligon Jr.’s father served in the same Virginia National Guard unit as Thornton.
The man from Manassas says his father admired his commanding officer.
“I knew my Dad was deeply struck by Mullins’ sense of duty,” Ligon said.
But the winds of war will alter their friendship — forever.
On June 6, 1944, the 111th attached to the famed 116th Infantry Regiment storm the sands of Normandy.
“Yes. The 116th. That group. The Bedford Boys,” Ligon said. “Bloody Omaha.”
In the opening minutes of D-Day nothing goes as planned for Mullins and his fellow soldiers.
“They were under intense fire coming ashore. The 111th found itself on the beach with no field artillery. It was carnage,” Ligon said.
Mullins is wounded twice and men are dying all around him, but the officer does not wilt.
“Mullins rallied his men and is believed to have said, ‘To Hell with our Field Artillery mission. We’re infantry now,’” Ligon said.
Facing sheets of lead he leads his troops off the beach. The targets were fortified German machine guns above.
“It was just sheer determination,” Ligon said. “That anybody could do that without being paralyzed with fear is astounding.”
Mullins does not live to witness the mission’s success.
“No, he never made it to the bluffs. But his unit did,” Ligon said.
The 31-year-old Lt. Col. is cut down.
“Despite all of the bloodshed, despite the first wave of the 116th Infantry being so badly mauled they kept coming, they kept fighting," Ligon said. "By nightfall, they had the high ground.”
Upon learning about the loss of his friend a few weeks later Ligon’s father pens a letter to Mullins’ widow in Virginia.
In the letter, Sigon Sr. writes, “It is with the most profound humility that I offer you my condolences over Thornton's death. In him we lost a truly brilliant artillery man, and the actions in which he died was certainly among the most heroic of the war, crowned by his personal contribution.”
His note never reaches Mrs. Mullins. Military censors return the letter to Ligon Sr.
“I’m sure it heightened his resolve,” Ligon said. “Increased his sense of duty. He had that to live up to.”
His friend’s death leaves a gaping hole in his heart. Two months after his death Mullins is awarded the Distinguished Service Cross. The U.S. Army’s second highest decoration.
“I’ve read it enough times to wonder what I would have done under that kind of fire which was absolutely withering,” Ligon said.
Brig. Gen. Todd Hubbard with the Virginia National Guard once commanded the 111th Field Artillery Battalion. The same unit Mullins was leading on D-Day.
“His leadership under fire and being able to rally troops and get them off the beach were phenomenal,” Hubbard said. “To think of the footsteps I was following behind and just the legacy that he left and the impression he has made it really humbles you and it makes you want to be a better leader.”
Hubbard says his predecessor’s tenacity helped turn the tide on D-Day.
”We have to remember the sacrifices people made for this country,” Hubbard said.
In 1991 the Virginia National Guard’s armory in Sandston was dedicated in Mullins’ honor. A fitting tribute to the citizen soldier who gave so much.
”He was just an everyday Virginian who just served his country and knew that it was important to defend democracy,” Hubbard said.
Ligon’s father rarely talked about the death of his buddy. Decades after the war the memories were just too painful.
“I knew that he had lost a best friend on D-Day,” Ligon said. “I’ve heard this story before but it still gets to me.”
Ligon wishes the memories of Lt. Col. Thornton Mullins and the nearly 3,000 other Americans who selflessly gave all on D-Day live on.
“We are better people because we fought that war. Because all of our fathers and grandfathers of ours were willing to go through this,” Ligon said.
Following World War II Mullins’ family decides his remains belong at home in Richmond.
“Mullins paid the ultimate sacrifice. He did so with his eyes wide open,” Ligon said.
The corner of Lafayette and Myrtle inside Forest Lawn Cemetery is nestled an ocean away from Normandy but forever tied together because of one brave soldier who rests here.
“Multiply that by hundreds of thousands and you get the story of the Second World War. There is a reason they call it the Greatest Generation.”
Watch Greg McQuade's stories on CBS 6 and WTVR.com. If you know someone Greg should profile, email him at greg.mcquade@wtvr.com.
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