MARTINS FERRY — Thomas Gianangeli fought in World War II, but he never talked about himself as a hero.

A member of The Greatest Generation, he enlisted Jan. 23, 1941, at age 22 and was honorably discharged Sept. 25, 1945.

During his time in the U.S. Army, he fought in Normandy, Northern France, the Rhineland, the Battle of the Bulge and Central Europe in the 987th field artillery battalion.

“Because of his bravery during World War II, he received five Bronze Stars. It was an American Defense Service Medal — the European, African, Middle Eastern ribbon with five bronze stars, a star for each of his five battles,” Thomas’s son Vince Gianangeli said.

Vince added that his father almost never spoke about his time in the Army.

“He went to war and came home and never spoke about it again,” he said.

While on leave, Thomas married his wife Florence on May 7, 1942. The couple eventually had four sons — Tom, born in 1946; John, born in 1949; Anthony, born in 1953; and Vince, born in 1960.

Three out of the four sons also went on to serve in the military with Tom serving in Vietnam, John serving in the Army Reserves, and Anthony serving in the Army.

Vince said his family would always say that God must’ve wanted his parents to have four sons because Thomas’s battalion was supposed to arrive in Normandy on June 6, but because of the rough sea he reached Normandy on June 7.

On June 6, 1944, more than 156,000 American, British and Canadian troops stormed 50 miles of Normandy’s fiercely defended beaches in northern France, which could have very easily led to Gianangeli’s death.

“On D-Day, heavy seas prevented the landing as scheduled on the second tide of the assault, and it was not until the following day, after a night of intense aerial fireworks, that the battalion landed and it went directly into firing position to support the British 50th division,” Vince said. “Everyone hears about Normandy. I was just shocked that I never knew this as a kid, and didn’t know about it until he was gone. I do remember being at a young age and asking him, you know, ‘Hey, Dad, did you ever shoot anyone?’ All he ever said was that he rode on the back of a tank, and the guy on the other side of the tank got shot in the butt. That is it, he never once said, ‘I fought in five battles.'”

Vince said that due to his father never speaking about his time in the military, he’s only aware of Thomas’s extensive history in the military through his war record. Thomas died in 2002, and his wife Florence died in 2006.

Vince said the only reason he even knows about any of Thomas’s military history is because he was preparing his parents’ old house to be sold after his mother’s death and found a tied-closed leather trifold folder underneath a pile of blankets in a closet.

Vince opened the folder to find various documents describing Thomas’s time in the Army as well as a letter from then-Army Five-star Gen. and Supreme Allied Commander, Allied Expeditionary Forces Dwight D. Eisenhower, who later became the 34th president of the United States, that Thomas received in 1944 informing new soldiers about the task they are about to embark on. Eisenhower orchestrated the D-Day offensive.

“Your task will not be an easy one, your enemy is well trained, well equipped and battle-hardened. He will fight savagely,” Eisenhower’s letter states. “I have full confidence in your courage, devotion to duty and skill in battle. We will accept nothing less than full Victory! Good luck! And let us all beseech the blessing of almighty God upon this great and noble undertaking.”

Vince then recalled a saying by his oldest brother Tom, who served in Vietnam for 430 days and flew 12- and 13-hour missions in a single day. He would talk about when the plane would land. “He said there’d be bullet holes up and down the side of the plane or the helicopter. He said he would put sheet metal on it and fly back, so he credits my mother Florence for bringing him back, because she went to church for 430 days straight while he was in Vietnam,” Vince said as tears filled his eyes while reminiscing on the loving nature of his mother.

Following Thomas’s military career, he began working at Wheeling-Pittsburgh Steel and retired in 1981.

Once he returned stateside, he also joined the Sons of Italy and the Italian American Club but never showed interest in joining any type of veterans organization.

Vince said he obviously will never know for sure, but he always assumed that his father just put the past behind him once returning from the military.

In 2020, Thomas’s four sons purchased a spot on the Tri-State Military Veterans Museum’s Hero’s Wall in Belmont to honor him and ensure that his legacy will live forever.