"Duty, honor, country. Those three hallowed words reverently dictate what you ought to be, what you can be, what you will be.”
- General Douglas MacArthur
On Memorial Day, we remember and honor Yorktown Heights Engine Co. No. 1 Firefighter Joseph Richmond.
FF Richmond was Killed in Action in Guam while assigned the U.S. Army’s 77th Infantry Division on August 3rd, 1944. During his deployment, Firefighter Richmond kept his Engine Co. badge with him as a symbol of pride and honor, after his death his badge was later returned to the YHFD by the US War Department.
“Attached to the III Amphibious Force, the 77th made an assault landing on Guam, 21 July 1944. After taking over defense of the beachhead, the division drove north to seize Mount Tenjo and effected junction with the 3rd Marine Division, linking the northern and southern bridgeheads, 23–29 July. It continued to drive north and dislodged the enemy from positions at Barrigada town and the mountains. Guam was recaptured by US forces on 8 August 1944”-United States Army Center of Military History.