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| PFC Ruben Avila served in the 3rd Armored Division from Normandy to Germany. https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/103861844/ruben-amador-avila https://www.pinterest.com/pin/559994534896760357/?lp=true |
Ruben Amador Avila never had a chance to reach 100 years old today. Instead, he sacrificed his life for our freedom.
He was born on October 8, 1919 in Houston, Texas. His parents Jose and Dolores were both born in Mexico. His father worked as a highway laborer. Ruben had one younger sister and one younger brother. By 1940 Ruben had completed four years of high school. He worked in a saw mill. His mother died in November 1941.
He was drafted into the army in July 1941. He became a private first class in the HQ company, 2nd Battalion, 36th Armored Infantry Regiment, 3rd Armored Division.
The 3rd Armored arrived in France in late June and early July. 1944 Its first major engagement was the Battle of St. Lo. By mid-August it was closing the Falaise Gap. By early September it had reached Belgium and helped cut off the retreat of thousands of German soldiers. The 3rd Armored was next assigned to the fighting in the Hürtgen Forest. It captured Cologne in early March and two weeks later was across the Rhine.
By late March, the 36th AIR was part of a task force moving to take Paderborn, Germany. It ran into German tank elements that halted the American advance on March 31, 1945. PFC Avila died on wounds on April 1, 1945. He may have been wounded in the same engagement that claimed the live of the 3rd Armored Division's commanding general Maurice Rose on March 31. He was the highest ranking American general killed by enemy fire in the European Theater of Operations.
Rueben's grave is at Hollywood Cemetery in Houston, Texas.
Frank Horabik, 9th Infantry Division, was born exactly one year early than Ruben Avila. You can read about Frank here.
On behalf of the fallen, if you would like to see more people become aware of this project to honor the WW2 fallen, be sure to share with others on Twitter, Facebook, etc. Thanks for your interest!
I created this video to explain why I started this project: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vXt8QA481lY.
Please consider joining the public Facebook group to increase the exposure of this project. Go to: WW2 Fallen 100
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