Heartfelt return home for WWII vet

World War II veteran David Marshall was honored at halftime of Oceanside High School’s Homecoming game Saturday.

Marshall, a Baldwin resident since the 1960s, fought in the Army’s 84th Infantry Division, also known as the Railsplitters.  He is a member of the Oceanside Jewish War Veterans Post 717 and recently celebrated his 99th birthday.

Marshall has volunteered to speak to the history classes at Oceanside High School about his experiences during World War II, and has done so for the past 10 years.   

“I felt I could give some of my knowledge and experience to these young men and women and maybe make a difference,” Marshall said. “In the end, the students say thank you, and they appreciate what I’m trying to do.”

Social studies teacher Todd Nussen started a Patriots Club years ago at the high school, where students honor veterans, connecting students and teachers about the importance of service. Nussen met Marshall at a Veterans Day ceremony — Nussen’s grandfather, who has since died, was in the same infantry division as Marshall during World War II.

“We actually had a personal connection, not just a professional one,” Nussen said. “I’m excited to share his stories, share stories of my grandfather, and I’m excited to finally be able to honor him. From our standpoint, it really makes history come alive and connects students to history to teach them how important service is.”

Marshall speaks to students in the school’s world and American history classes and visits during the school’s Human Relations Day in the spring, when students hear speakers from all different walks of life.

“Hearing from actual people and having a conversation is why we love having Mr. Marshall part of that day,” Nussen said. “When the students are hearing from somebody who was actually there, asking him questions and listening to his experiences, it’s a valuable experience, I think, for him and for the students.”

Marshall was drafted into the Army in 1943 during the middle of World War II.  After training to become a field medic and then an engineer, he joined the 84th Infantry Division. 

On his 20th birthday, he was sailing to the United Kingdom for training and two months later, found himself on Omaha Beach in November of 1944, just five months after the D-Day invasion. That winter, his division became involved in one of the most important conflicts of the war — the Battle of the Bulge, World War II’s bloodiest and most costly battle.

During the battle, Europe experienced its coldest winter in 40 years, as Marshall’s infantry suffered with sub-zero temperatures, blizzards and waist-deep snow while fighting German aircraft and artillery.

Marshall’s infantry division aided in pushing back the German advance and liberating occupied towns. His division has been recognized for liberating several concentration camps and slave labor camps.  However, Marshall recalled experiencing a less-than-stellar return from war.

“I came back much differently than anybody else,” Marshall said. “I was stationed in France at the time, awaiting my time for evacuation, and the Red Cross gave me an emergency furlough and flew me home to New York, where I landed alone. There was no reception. I wanted to go home with my buddies. I wanted to go home on the ship and be welcomed. I wanted to be appreciated. I felt we deserved it, and I got nothing. I landed alone. I was discharged alone.”

Marshall, who fought 170 days in combat, has been honored numerous times since his return from service. He has been awarded the Bronze Star, the French Legion of Honor Medal, the Combat Infantry Badge, the European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal, the World War II Victory Medal, as well as a Presidential Unit Citation.

After the war ended in 1945 and his service was over the following year, he attended City College to study chemistry. He met Terry in 1947, and they married two years later and had two daughters, Mona and Randy, and later six grandchildren and eight great-grandchildren.

Marshall moved from Queens to Baldwin, where he has lived ever since, and spent most of his professional life running a business that designed machinery for cosmetics companies.

Marshall now lives alone since his wife Terry developed dementia and is in a rehab center, but Marshall keeps busy, even at 99 years old. He exercises four times a week, does a lot of traveling with a veteran’s group, and gives public lectures. Later this year, he will visit Bastogne, Belgium.

Marshall has spoken at Calhoun and Wantagh high schools, and would like to speak to students in his hometown of Baldwin.

Marshall said he appreciates being recognized by Oceanside High School.

“It’s an honor to be honored,” he said. “Oceanside is very into honoring veterans, so I visit Oceanside and I’m happy. They treat me well.

“Every time I’m honored, I’m really very pleased, and I still wear my old (Army) uniform,” he added. “It fits and it’s in good shape, and I’m proud to wear it, so when I’m honored, they’re making up for what I didn’t get when I came home.”