User:Whitmanw5

"Enoch was asked, “Why did you join the Army?” He simply replied, “I owe a debt to my brother”.

Enoch Whitman was a father of 5 (3 sons, 2 daughters). He was a carpenter for a local coal mine in Logan County West Virginia where he died in a coal mine accident just days after his wife, Fay Whitman (d. 2007), gave birth to their 5th and final child.

Enoch joined the Army in 1943 and served with the 9th Armored Division. He saw action at the "Battle of the Bulge" in December of 1944 as well as the "Battle at Remagen" in March, 1945. His Unit, the 52nd Armored Infantry Battalion, was ordered to proceed and enter the small town of Remagen. After finding out from a German citizen that the German army was going to 'demo' the structure (the Ludendorf bridge) in 45 minutes, Enoch's unit and others stormed the bridge. After fierce fighting, the Americans took control of it. This bridge would have allowed the German Army to retreat back into their homeland and allow them to proceed to blow up the bridge and give them time to regroup their forces. The members of the 9th Amored Division were successful in taking the bridge and thousands of German prisoners. Let it be known that when the battle was over, American Army engineers surveyed the bridge for those explosives and it appeared that the Germans did perform a discharge to their charges mounted underneath the brigde, however they never detonated! Enoch was a highly decorated war hero earning multiple bronze starts and citations for his acts of heroism.

Enoch was asked numerous times as to why he joined the Army during WW2. He only had one answer: "I owe a debt to my brother". Enoch's older brother Keefer served in the US Navy during WW1 and went down with his ship, the USS Buena Ventura in Sept 1918. The ship was sunk by a German U-46 off the coast of Spain. As the ship was sinking, Keefer gave his life-vest to a fellow sailor who had a wife and child back home in the states. Keefer never made it off the ship and perished that day with 18 other sailors in the cold waters of the Atlantic.

Citations/Decorations


 * Good Conduct Medal*
 * Presidential Unit Citation*
 * Distinguished Unit Citation*
 * Combat Infantry Badge*
 * 3 Bronze Service Stars*
 * European/African Middle Eastern Campaign Medal*
 * Honorable Service Lapel Button*
 * WW II Victory Medal*
 * Expert Badge: Rifle & Carbine

“Enoch was the only prophet never to succumb to mortality. He was swept away on Chariots of Fire to heaven.” - Pastor Claycomb speaking of the ‘Book of Genesis’