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William "Bill" Beck

Company A

702nd Tank Battalion, Red Devils

 

Bill Beck was the Gunner of the tank Rollin' Rhino until Dec. 25, 1944 when the crew was forced to blow up the tank when it broke down too close to the enemy held town of Kehmen, Luxembourg.  Bill and his Tank Commander S/Sgt. Mark Larkin had walked back to headquarters to see what command wanted done with the tank, prior to its destruction.  Somewhere along the way, Bill either left or lost his helmet in a Luxembourg farmhouse.  When the two men reached headquarters, the order to destroy Rollin' Rhino was relayed to the three crewmen who remained with the tank, Joe DeLaurentis, James Tondreau and Jack Duggan.  Joe DeLaurentis was the tank driver, so the duty of blowing her up fell to him.  It is believed that Joe placed hand grenades in the ammo rack, and then dived clear of the tank just before it exploded.  Joe wrote about this event in a letter, to his sweetheart, Lela Bush, whom he intended to marry when the war ended.  Bill Beck was the only member of this crew to survive the war.  In 2009, following information I provided them, Jean Muller and Capt. Mark Anderson located the remains of Rollin' Rhino just outside Kehmen in a farmer's field.  This event was covered in more depth previously in this website.  Later on, in a telephone conversation between Jean Muller and myself, we were discussing Rollin' Rhino's crew.  I mentioned Bill Beck's name, and Jean gasped in surprise.  He asked me to verify the name again, and I repeated it.  He asked me to hold on a minute.  A few seconds later, he came back, and with excitement in his voice, he read back Beck's name to me.  He said that he was holding Bill Beck's Army helmet in his hands, and explained that it had been found at a local farm.  I told Jean that Bill had just died a few years ago, but that I could locate and contact his children.  Jean very kindly offered to return Bill's helmet to his children if I could find them.  I made a couple phone calls, and located Bill's son's address and phone number.  Bill had a large, close-knit family, and I knew this news would be very welcome to them.  In short, I put them in touch with Jean Muller, and Jean sent them their father's old Army helmet.  I have no doubt that somewhere up in heaven, Bill Beck is smiling and happy to know that the helmet he misplaced sixty-five years earlier was now in the hands of his beloved family.  Needless to say, Jean Muller and I were both delighted to help make this magical moment happen for the Beck Family.  Sometimes truth is stranger than fiction!

 

Seated-Joe De Laurentis And S/Sgt. (Later Lt.) Mark Larkin

Standing- Pvt. James J. Tondreau, Cpl. William C. Beck, And Pvt. Jack Duggan

 

 

Bill Beck's Helmet Is Now Home With His Loving Family One Day Short Of 65 Years Since It Was Lost!

 

More Of Bill Beck's Family Gathers To Pose With His Helmet.

May God Bless Them All!

 

 

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