Douglas Francis Brady

Private First Class Brady entered the service in March 1943 and trained at Salt Lake City, Utah, Lincoln, Nebraska, and Camp Rucker, Alabama. He served at the Fitzsimmon General Hospital as an Army surgeon until he was assigned to the Army Specialized Training Program. He received ASTP training for nine months, when the program was canceled. Upon this, he was assigned to the 262nd Infantry Regiment of the 66th Infantry Division. On Dec. 24, 1944, Private Brady and 2,200 other men of the 262nd and 264th Infantry Regiments boarded the SS Leopoldville to cross the English Channel. These men were intended to be reinforcements for the battle-weary soldiers fighting in the Battle of the Bulge. As the Leopoldville crossed the Channel, it was torpedoed by the German U-Boat U-486. Private Brady was one of the 783 American servicemen who lost their lives that day. Doug was very well-liked by everyone who knew him. Upon news of him being reported missing in action, the Lake Geneva Regional News newspaper called him "one of the most warmblooded and beloved of this city's servicemen." They went on to recount a tale where he gave bike rides to the young children of Lake Geneva while dressed in his khaki uniform. When a rainstorm began, he donned a raincoat to give a child a ride. Private Brady's remains were never recovered and he lays at rest with many of his comrades-in-arms. A cenotaph laid in his memory exists at Oak Hill Cemetery in Lake Geneva. He is also memorialized at the Normandy American Cemetery in Normandy, France and Memorial in Colleville-sur-Mer, France.