John A. Rinehart was born on April 18, 1924, in Baltimore, Maryland. At the time America entered World War II, Rinehart was working in the production of paint and varnish in his hometown. He enlisted in the Army on March 3, 1943, and served in Headquarters Company, 3rd Battalion, 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 101st Airborne Division.
Like the rest of the famed Screaming Eagles, Rinehart trained for the invasion of Europe in England. He boarded his transport plane, the C-47 “Stora Hora,” on June 5th as a runner for Lt. Col. Robert L. Wolverton’s headquarters staff. Traveling on the plane with him was a war correspondent who understood the significance of the moment he was living through. The reporter asked everyone on the plane to sign his notepad. Rinehart penned his autograph with the note: “We’ll knock the hell out of them!”
When the time came to jump, Rinehart’s stick was immediately targeted by the Germans and nearly all of them were killed or wounded as soon as they hit the ground. Rinehart perished in the DZ, the victim of machine gun fire. Following D-Day, he was buried in France until after the war. His remains were brought back to the States in 1948, and he now rests in Section D, Site 3372 of Baltimore National Cemetery. Honor his service at his virtual Veterans Legacy Memorial page.
This #VeteranOfTheDay is from the Veterans Legacy Program. To learn more about the VLP, our partnerships and how we share the stories of Veterans in our national cemeteries, please visit the VLP webpage.
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