Do You Have Any Information?
I'm trying to locate anyone who may have served in the 298th with my step-father, Richard H. Matthews of Golden, Co. He is 83 and in failing health. He has Parkinson's Disease and he is in a wheelchair most of the time and can no longer remember details of his service. My mother has located his discharge papers and from it I can give you the following information:
Name: Richard H. MatthewsBorn: Golden, Co.
Inducted: 10 Feb. 1943
Entered active service: 17 Feb. 1943
Assigend: 298th Engineering Battalion, U.S. Army
Discharged: 3 Dec. 1945
Campaigns: Normandy, Northern France, Rheinland and Central Europe
His discharge papers indicate that he was not wounded, but that is in error. While my step-father is still alive, I want to correct this error and get Richard the recognition he deserves from his country. He was seriously wounded after the Normandy landing when their camp headquarters was shelled and completely destroyed. During the shelling, the enemy hit a barn where fuel, ammo and supplies had been stored. Richard was in a foxhole near the barn with a heavy wooden door and dirt over the top of him. The concussion of the nearby explosion blew him up through the wooden door and dirt that had covered him. He was found alive the next day and was sent back to England to be treated for his wounds. After being patched up and a period of recuperation, he was sent back to Europe.
Richard was a gifted musician who played several instruments, but he excelled with the drums. He especially enjoyed playing the big band music. During WW II he got a chance to fill in as a drummer for a Bob Hope USO show. He had a chance to see Glenn Miller at a USO show in England where Richard was recuperating from his injuries. Glenn Miller died shortly after that. When Richard retired from the U.S. Geological Service, he taught drums to high school and middle school students.
I'm hoping that I can find someone who will remember Richard and events of that day and can provide corroboration for an appeal I plan to make to the VA.
Sharon Goodwin
