ST. JOHNS COUNTY, Fla. – Herbert Griffin, the local D-Day veteran who shared his story of service and survival with News4AX and other media outlets died Wednesday, according to Doug Myers, president of Jax Home Health, Inc.
Griffin was 99 years old.
In an email to News4JAX Wednesday morning, Myers wrote: “He was not only a true American hero, but a friend to us all. He will be missed!”
News4JAX spoke to Griffin a number of times, most recently ahead of Veterans Day in 2021. During that interview, Griffin shared how he was 18 years old on June 6, 1944, the invasion of Normandy.
“They didn’t tell us nothing about the invasion, not a thing,” Griffin said. “They kept us in the dark.”
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During his interview with News4JAX, Griffin vividly recalled landing at Utah Beach. He shared how he and his fellow soldiers of the 79th Infantry Division could hear the gunfire, knowing they would soon be exposed to the Nazis.
“There in the bunkers, they had machine guns and mortars and all that. So, we had no protection,” Griffin recalled vividly. “The sergeant said, ‘Get off the beach! Get off the beach!’”
Griffin said the enemy fired over their heads, leaving him wondering if he’d make it out alive. At one point during the fighting, Griffin suffered a devasting injury, one that nearly cost him his arm. He was in and out of hospitals overseas and in the U.S. for a year before he was discharged from Waco, Texas. The trauma stayed with him for the remaining years of his life.
“I have nightmares sometimes about what happened, and I wake up in a real bad sweat,” Griffin said. “I’ve tried to overcome that.”
Griffin earned several medals, including a Bronze Star and a Purple Heart for the severe injury he suffered.
“All of that wasn’t in vain, it was worthwhile,” Griffin said. “I love my country, and I’d go back today if I could.”
Griffin got that chance in 2014. The St. Johns County Fire Department gifted him the trip of a lifetime. They sent him back to Normandy for the 70th anniversary of D-Day. His brother, a fellow veteran, went with him.
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“I enjoyed the second time much more than the first time,” Griffin said. “It’s something I’ll never forget.”
News4JAX is not currently aware of any plans for Griffin’s funeral.