A True American Story of Love & Sacrifice

Letters from the Heart

1944

The wartime correspondence of Captain William Neal Waggoner — written from the front lines of World War II to the woman he loved back home.

D-Day Veteran  ·  Utah Beach, Normandy  ·  June 6, 1944

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The Waggoner Family

250 Years of American Service

1776 — Revolutionary War

John Waggoner

Life Guard to General George Washington

Enlisted October 3, 1776. Served as a personal bodyguard to General George Washington during the Revolutionary War. George Washington gifted John Waggoner a sword — on display today at the Rutherford B. Hayes Presidential Library & Museum in Fremont, Ohio. John's father also served and received a peace pipe from Tecumseh, also preserved in the same museum.

SAR Certified · Born 1758 · Died 1842

1944 — World War II

Captain William Neal Waggoner

U.S. Army · D-Day, Utah Beach · Normandy, France

Landed at Utah Beach on June 6, 1944 — D-Day. While overseas, Captain Neal wrote daily letters home to his wife Ruth and their newborn son Bill. Those letters — filled with love, longing, and the quiet courage of a man at war — became this book. He never spoke of the war after returning home, burying his emotions and memories deep inside himself his entire life.

Utah Beach · June 6, 1944 · Operation Overlord

Vietnam Era

Bill Waggoner

U.S. Military · Vietnam Veteran

The same infant son Neal wrote home about from the beaches of Normandy grew up and answered his country's call a generation later. Bill Waggoner — Neal and Ruth's firstborn, born during the war — served in Vietnam. The son his father wrote about from Utah Beach carried the family legacy forward.

Vietnam Era

David Peter Winters

U.S. Military · Vietnam Veteran

Father of Matthew Winters and husband to Marsha Waggoner Winters — Neal and Ruth's second born daughter. David served in Vietnam, continuing the family's unbroken tradition of service across every generation and every major American conflict.

Gulf War Era

Matthew Winters

U.S. Air Force National Guard · Activated, Gulf War

Neal's grandson, son of David and Marsha Winters, and the compiler of this book. Matthew served in the Air Force National Guard and was activated during the Gulf War — then spent years preserving his grandfather's letters so the world could read them.

Present Day

The Waggoner Family — Serving Today

Multiple Branches · Active & Retired

The tradition continues without interruption. John Waggoner serves as a U.S. Navy SEAL. Jessica Waggoner retired from the U.S. Air Force. Cousins serve in the Ohio Air National Guard today. From George Washington's bodyguard in 1776 to active duty in the present day — every generation, every major American conflict, one family.

Navy SEAL · USAF Retired · Ohio Air National Guard

Utah Beach,
Normandy, France

On June 6, 1944, Captain William Neal Waggoner landed at Utah Beach as part of Operation Overlord — the largest seaborne invasion in history. While his boots were in the sand of France, his heart was with Ruth and their newborn son Bill back home in Ohio. He wrote to them every day.

Operation

Overlord — D-Day

Date

June 6, 1944

Beach

Utah Beach, Normandy

Writing home to

Ruth & baby Bill — Fremont, Ohio

Neal & Ruth Waggoner

A generation of young men,
far from home

The stories of World War II are most often about great battles won and lost. It was a time when an entire generation of young men suddenly found themselves in a hostile land far from home and separated from the ones they loved.

This collection of letters from 1944 reveals the human side of that war and offers a perspective not often told. It represents a missing part of the historical annals of this time period and offers a view into a very personal side of the World War II experience.

This compilation of daily letters from my grandfather is a celebration of the remarkable legacy of resilient relationships which were able to endure in the midst of calamity.

The Soldier

Captain William Neal Waggoner

Born April 7, 1914 — Lindsey, Ohio

The Woman He Wrote To

Ruth C. Durnwald Waggoner

Born March 14, 1922 — Fremont, Ohio

Their Marriage

October 22, 1942

Married before he shipped overseas

Their Legacy

9 Children

Bill, Marsha, Jim, Richard, Pat, Mary Lou, Brenda, Tom and Mike

"He never spoke of the war, due to the pain he endured, and buried his emotions and memories deep inside himself his entire life."

— Matthew Winters, Author & Grandson
From the Author

A grandson's tribute to the Greatest Generation

This book is dedicated to the Waggoner family. My grandparents, Neal and Ruth, and to my Mom, Aunts and Uncles: Bill, Marsha, Jim, Richard, Pat, Mary Lou, Brenda, Tom and Mike.

As I read through these letters, they gave me a profound insight into my Grandfather's life; the man he was, the father he became and the grandfather he was at the end of his life.

What you are about to read will show you the loving side of my Grandfather, how much he loved my Grandmother and their first child Bill. He truly valued the love he shared and his dedication to family.

I hope everyone enjoys reading these letters and can maybe get a small feeling for what life was like in war and during their generation. "The Greatest Generation."

Thank you Grandpa for serving our country, your love of family and being an inspiration to me.

The Waggoner-Winters Military Legacy

  • John Waggoner's Father — Indian Wars, peace pipe from Tecumseh
  • John Waggoner — Life Guard to George Washington, 1776
  • Captain William Neal Waggoner — WWII, Utah Beach, D-Day 1944
  • Bill Waggoner — Vietnam, Neal's firstborn son
  • David Peter Winters — Vietnam, father of Matthew Winters
  • Matthew Winters — USAF National Guard, Gulf War
  • John Waggoner — U.S. Navy SEAL, active
  • Jessica Waggoner — U.S. Air Force, retired
  • Waggoner cousins — Ohio Air National Guard, serving today

Letters from the Heart

1 9 4 4

Matthew Winters

Now Available on Amazon

Letters from the Heart, 1944

Available in Kindle, paperback, and hardcover editions. A piece of living history — and a gift for anyone who has ever loved someone in uncertain times.

With WWII veterans passing every day, stories like Neal and Ruth's must be preserved and shared with the world. This is one of them.

Kindle$9.99
Paperback$12.99
Hardcover$16.99
▶  Read on Kindle — $9.99 Order Paperback or Hardcover
Why It Matters Now

Every day, more voices from the Greatest Generation fall silent forever.

Captain Neal Waggoner stormed Utah Beach on June 6, 1944 — and then he wrote home to Ruth and baby Bill. His letters survive. They carry his voice, his love, and his courage across eight decades. From John Waggoner standing guard beside George Washington in 1776, to young men and women in uniform today — this family's story is America's story. By reading this book, you keep that voice alive.

250

Years of service

1776

First to serve

9

Children raised

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