Soldiers at ​Colleville-sur-Mer

Image
Student rubbing sand on headstone in Normandy American Cemetery

Since the Institute's inception, the cornerstone project of the program is the soldier research project. Each team picks a soldier from as close to their hometown as possible who is buried in the Normandy American Cemetery at Colleville-sur-Mer. The team will research the life of this soldier from birth to death and will present their findings to their peers in the program and provide a copy to the Cemetery for preservation in its archives.

The Institute teams have researched soldiers from all 50 states, Washington D.C., Puerto Rico, and Guam. Below is a small list of the most recently researched soldiers.

 


Soldiers Previously Researched

These are the soldiers researched by teams in the 3 most recent Institute classes: 2025, 2024, 2023. The full, internal archive since the inception of the Albert H. Small Normandy Institute includes over 200 soldiers.

Soldier NameStateUnitStudent
PFC Leslie M. IrvinIllinois2nd Ranger BattalionBailee Easton
Pvt. Walter L. BoyerPennsylvania125th Calvary Reconnaissance SquadronBella Fauser
Cpl. William K. BrownVirginia70th Tank BattalionThomas Halliday
2nd Lt. Preston T. NilandNew York22nd Infantry Regiment, 4th Infantry DivisionAdrian Ishizaki
2nd Lt. Marcel DupontNew Hampshire386th Fighter Squadron, 365th Fighter GroupAndy Joubert
1st Lt. Bryant L. CramerGeorgia514th Fighter Squadron, 406th Fighter GroupHolly Kachmar
Sgt. Peter S. MackiewiczWisconsin401st Glider Infantry Regiment, 101st AirborneOksana Kleven
1st Lt. Edmund H. LandgrafMissouri485th Fighter Squadron, 370th Fighter GroupCarson Lee
PFC Harold E. SellersArkansas501st Parachute Infantry Regiment, 101st AirborneAva McCartney
PFC Lawrence T. Saldana`Colorado315th Infantry Regiment, 79th Infantry DivisionSara Mputu
PFC Carl SpitzerKansas9th Infantry Division, 15th Engineer Combat BattalionBenjamin Patterson
SSgt. Shelley D. MontgomeryArizona701st Bomber Squadron, 445th Bomber Group, HeavyAdan Ramos
Pvt. John S. Brannon Jr.Massachusetts502nd Port BattalionOrlando Sanchez
Pvt. Cecil E. TolerIllinois16th Infantry Regiment, 1st Infantry DivisionAbigail Soares
T5 Jack R. BrewerOklahoma506th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 101st AirborneJosephine Toll
Pvt. Otis William DillMissouri149th Engineer Combat BattalionMichael Wise
Cpt. Thomas A. ChastantLouisiana501st Parachute Infantry Regiment, 101st Airborne DivisionJoshua Adams
PFC Raymond C. DunnMassachusetts329th Infantry Regiment, 83rd Infantry DivisionChelian Subbiah
TSgt. James A. KnightNorth Carolina120th Infantry Regiment, 30th Infantry DivisionEireann Marcus
Pvt. Lawrence P. WoodsideNorth Dakota17th Engineer Battalion, 2nd Armored DivisionMaKenna Vigness
Cpt. David L. WilhiteKentucky566th Bomber Squadron, 389th Bomber Group, HeavyMcKayla Thomas
T5 William G. WeberWisconsin101st Signal Company, 101st Airborne DivisionKate Olson
SSgt. Harold J. BroganOregon508th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 82nd Airborne DivisionClementine Rust
Pvt. Joseph PreiserNew York359th Infantry Regiment, 90th Infantry DivisionIsaac Lorin
Lt. Col. William E. WarfieldMaryland115th Infantry Regiment, 29th Infantry DivisionKyrill Foustoukos
TM2 Auvergne S. BreaultMichiganU.S. NavyIan Smith
TSgt. Adolfo A. Lopez Jr.Florida555th Bomber Squadron, 386th Bomber Group, MediumMelissa Gonzalez
PFC Harry H. BurgessNew Mexico38th Infantry Regiment, 2nd Infantry DivisionValentina Chavez
2nd Lt. Joseph R. FierroNew Jersey262nd Infantry Regiment, 66th Infantry DivisionJulia Sauers
Pvt. Edward J. PillisConnecticut507th Infantry Regiment, 82nd Airborne DivisionFinn Outwater
Pvt. Rochester BoydFlorida6th Armored Division, 3398th Quartermaster Truck CompanyNicholas Bachfisher
SSgt. Maurice WilliamsVirginia29th Infantry Division, 116th Infantry Regiment, A CompanyStatler Brunsman
PFC Annis Irving AltmanTexas83rd Infantry Division, 331st Infantry RegimentAdam Buchsbaum
T5 John C. BerlinLouisiana501st Parachute Infantry Regiment, 82nd Airborne DivisionMatthew Gorbaty Jr.
Sgt. Kenneth GunningMaryland507th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 82nd Airborne DivisionVictor Jacobsen
PFC Nicholas Francis MydraMinnesota4th Medical Battalion, 4th Infantry DivisionMatthew Jegers
2nd Lt. Edward B. GunnMississippi26th Infantry Regiment, 1st Infantry DivisionWilliam Giles Jones
Cpl. Joseph N. HeaddNew Jersey3912 Quartermaster Truck CompanyZara Lall
2nd Lt. Wallace W. MummeyMontana339th Bomber Squadron, 96th Bomber Group, HeavyLindsey Leinwand
1st Lt. Robert Foss ShipleyMissouri49th Troop Carrier Squadron, 313th Troop Carrier Group, 9th Air ForceAkhil Nadithe
PFC John Marion LoveSouth Carolina4th Infantry Division, 8th Infantry RegimentRiley Price
PFC John R. RulandColorado197th Anti-Aircraft Artillery BattalionViolet Pyles
2nd Lt. Carleton E. ThompsonMichigan485th Fighter Squadron, 370th Fighter Group, 9th Air ForceErika Rice
PFC Bryce Leaver FountainCalifornia506th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 101st Airborne DivisionAlex Uhrlaub