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Home Town Palestine
Last Address El Paso, TX
Date of Passing Feb 05, 2005
Location of Interment Fort Bliss National Cemetery (VA) - Fort Bliss, Texas
From Private to Brigadier General - George Macon Shuffer, Jr.
Against his father's wishes, Shuffer ran off in June 1940 to join his brothers in the 25th Infantry Regiment at Fort Huachuca, AZ. Recruiting quotas were filled at the time, so Shuffer was "attached" to L company without pay. In August 1940, he was allowed to enlist and promoted to PFC because of the duties he had performed for months without a paycheck.
He was then transferred to Camp Wolters, TX into a training Bn as a CPL. BG Benjamin O. Davis visited his unit, and suggested that then SGT Shuffer apply for OCS.
2LT Shuffer was commissioned on 2 February 1943 after completing OCS at Fort Benning, GA.
He was then assigned as a platoon leader for the 2nd Airbase Security Regiment at Fort Swift, TX.
Shuffer moved to the Antitank Co. of the 368th Infantry Regiment in 1943. This regiment deployed to the Solomon Islands with the 93rd Infantry Division in January 1944.
The 93rd saw action at Benika, Morotai Island, and Zamboanga on Mindanao.
During the Korean War, Shuffer received two Silver Stars, a second Bronze Star, and was seriously wounded in April 1951. He was evacuated to Walter Reed Army Hospital.
Following duty in Europe, Shuffer was assigned to 2/2 Infantry as the Bn Commander.
This unit was detached from the 5th Infantry Division and deployed to Vietnam in October 1965 with the 1st Infantry Division. Shuffer's 2/2 IN received two Valorous Unit Awards while he was the commander.
Following a tour with II Field Force and military assistant to the Assistant Secretary of Defense, Shuffer took command of the 193rd Infantry Brigade, Panama Canal Zone in 1970.
A return to Europe saw Shuffer assigned as Deputy CofS for Personnel, USAEUR. After this assignment, Shuffer was the ADC for the 3rd ID in Wurzburg. He fractured his hip while running PT on the ice, and was medically retired after 35 years of service.
BG Shuffer was a fighter. He was in combat with his men - on the ground - through three wars. Following his retirement, he acted as a chaplain and regularly visited troops at William Beaumont Army Medical Center at Fort Bliss, TX.
Shuffer died at age 81 in 2005.
Other Comments:
Brigadier General George M. Shuffer, Jr., 81, (US Army Ret,) was called home to the Lord February 5, 2005; he was born in Palestine, Texas on September 27, 1923.
Commissioned a 2nd Lieutenant in February 1943, he went on to fight for our country in World War II as an intelligence and reconnaissance platoon leader, Korea as an Infantry Company Commander, and Vietnam as a Infantry Battalion Commander, rising in rank to Brigadier General over a thirty-five year career.
His list of citations and decorations included the Distinguished Service Medal, three Silver Stars, four Bronze Stars, five Air medals and the Purple Heart. In 1984 he was inducted into the Infantry Hall of fame.
He graduated from the University of Maryland with a Bachelor Degree and later with a Masters degree. He graduated from the Command and General Staff College and the Army War College.
At age 48, while commanding the 193rd Infantry Brigade in the Panama Canal Zone, he earned the parachute badge after completing the 8th Special Forces group Airborne School.
Following World War II he married Cecilia M. Mann, and from this union came eleven children and sixteen grandchildren.
After retiring from the Army in 1975 he entered St. Charles Seminary and was ordained a Permanent Deacon for The El Paso Diocese in 1977. He was a true shepherd who served as a Chaplain at William Beaumont Army Medical Center for almost 30 years.
General Shuffer is survived by his wife, Cecilia, four sons: David of Colleyville, Tex; George III of San Clemente, CA; Joseph of Carlsbad, Cal and Peter of Oceanside, Cal; and seven daughters: Sister Gloria Shuffer, OSF of Denver, CO; Marlene Kuhn of Muskegon, MI; Rita Lloyd of Boca Raton, FL; Monica Thomas of Pearland, Tex; Rosemary McQuillan of Las Vegas; Maria Wallace of San Antonio, TX; Anita Shuffer of Marietta GA; his two brothers Jacob and Alfrez; and his sister Eunice Stamper.
He was preceded in death by his parents and his sisters Fannie Mae Shuffer and Willetta Saunders.
The 3rd Infantry Division is a combined arms division of the United States Army at Fort Stewart, Georgia. It is a direct subordinate unit of the XVIII Airborne Corps and U.S. Army Forces Command. Its current organization includes a division headquarters and headquarters battalion, two armored brigade combat teams, one National Guard infantry brigade combat team, a task force unit, one aviationbrigade, a division artillery, a sustainment brigade and a combat sustainment support battalion along with a maneuver enhancement brigade. The division has a distinguished history, having seen active service in World War I, World War II, the Korean War, Vietnam War, and the Global War on Terror. The Medal of Honor has been awarded to 56 members of the 3rd Infantry Division, making the division the most honored in the Army.
The division fought in France in World War I. In World War II, it landed with Gen. Patton's task force in a contested amphibious landing on the coast of Morocco, North Africa, overwhelming Vichy French defenders in November 1942. In 1943, the division invaded Sicily in July, and invaded Italy at Salerno in September, before fighting in France and finally Germany. Medal of honor recipient Audie Murphy, featured in the Hollywood movie, "To Hell and Back," was a member. The division also served in the Korean War. From 1957 until 1996, the division was a major part of the United States Army's presence in the NATO alliance in West Germany.
Nickname(s):
"The Rock of the Marne" (Special Designation), Rock of the Marne
Motto(s);Nous Resterons Là(We Shall Remain There)
NOTABLE PERSON (s):
Commander: Joseph Theodore Dickman (October 6, 1857 - October 23, 1927) was a United States Army officer who saw service in five wars, rising to the rank of major general.Dickman was given command of the 3rd Infantry Division in November 1917, at the onset of the United States' entrance into World War I. He deployed the 3rd Division to France aboard the Leviathan at noon, on March 4, 1918. He was the 3rd Division commander at Chateau-Thierry in May 1918 and was made famous at the Second Battle of the Marne in July 1918. While allied forces on both flanks retreated, the 3rd Division stood fast in the face of enemy offensives, which led to their moniker, "The Rock of the Marne."
Howze's last assignment was to preside over the court-martial of Colonel Billy Mitchell, who had made public comments in response to the Navy dirigible USS Shenandoah crashing in a storm
The crash killed 14 of the crew and Mitchell issued a statement accusing senior leaders in the Army and Navy of incompetence and "almost treasonable administration of the national defense." In November 1925 he was court-martialed at the direct order of PresidentCalvin Coolidge.
MOH Recipient : PFC John Lewis Barkley (August 28, 1895 - April 14, 1966) U.S. Army, Company K, 4th Infantry, 3rd Division.
Private First Class Barkley, who was stationed in an observation post half a kilometer from the German line, on his own initiative repaired a captured enemy machinegun and mounted it in a disabled French tank near his post. Shortly afterward, when the enemy launched a counterattack against our forces, Private First Class Barkley got into the tank, waited under the hostile barrage until the enemy line was abreast of him and then opened fire, completely breaking up the counterattack and killing and wounding a large number of the enemy. Five minutes later an enemy 77-millimeter gun opened fire on the tank pointblank. One shell struck the drive wheel of the tank, but this soldier nevertheless remained in the tank and after the barrage ceased broke up a second enemy counterattack, thereby enabling our forces to gain and hold Hill 25.
John Lewis Barkley
MOH Recipient: LT General George Price Hays (September 27, 1892 - August 7, 1978) was a United States Army general who served during World War1and World War11. He earned the Medal of Honor as a young artillery officer during the Second Battle of the Marne in World War I. During World War II, he commanded the 10th Mountain Division in the last few months of the Italian Campaign.
He was commissioned a second lieutenant in 1917, and by July 14, 1918, was a first lieutenant serving in France With the 10th Field Artillery Regiment, 3rd Division. On that day, during the Second Battle of the Marne near Greves Farm, his unit came under a heavy German artillery barrage and the communication lines were destroyed. Despite the intense fire, Hays rode on horseback between his unit, the command post, and two French batteries for the rest of that day and the next. Although he was severely wounded and had seven horses shot out from under him, his efforts contributed to the halt of the German advance. For these actions, he was awarded the Medal of Honor the next year, in 1919.
George Price Hays
World War II:
MOH Recipient: PVT Herbert F. Christian (June 18, 1912 - June 3, 1944) For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at risk of life above and beyond the call of duty. On 2-3 June 1944, at 1 a.m., Pvt. Christian elected to sacrifice his life in order that his comrades might extricate themselves from an ambush. Braving massed fire of about 60 riflemen, 3 machineguns, and 3 tanks from positions only 30 yards distant, he stood erect and signaled to the patrol to withdraw. The whole area was brightly illuminated by enemy flares. Although his right leg was severed above the knee by cannon fire, Pvt. Christian advanced on his left knee and the bloody stump of his right thigh, firing his submachine gun. Despite excruciating pain, Pvt. Christian continued on his self-assigned mission. He succeeded in distracting the enemy and enabled his 12 comrades to escape. He killed 3 enemy soldiers almost at once. Leaving a trail of blood behind him, he made his way forward 20 yards, halted at a point within 10 yards of the enemy, and despite intense fire killed a machine-pistol man. Reloading his weapon, he fired directly into the enemy position. The enemy appeared enraged at the success of his ruse, concentrated 20-mm. machinegun, machine-pistol and rifle fire on him, yet he refused to seek cover. Maintaining his erect position, Pvt. Christian fired his weapon to the very last. Just as he emptied his submachinegun, the enemy bullets found their mark and Pvt. Christian slumped forward dead. The courage and spirit of self-sacrifice displayed by this soldier were an inspiration to his comrades and are in keeping with the highest traditions of the armed forces.
Herbert F. Christian
MOH Recipient: Tech. 5th Grade Eric Gunnar Gibson (October 3, 1919 - January 28, 1944) For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at risk of life above and beyond the call of duty. On January 28, 1944, near Isolabella, Italy, Tech. 5th Grade Gibson, company cook, led a squad of replacements through their initial baptism of fire, destroyed four enemy positions, killed 5 and captured 2 German soldiers, and secured the left flank of his company during an attack on a strongpoint. Placing himself 50 yards in front of his new men, Gibson advanced down the wide stream ditch known as the Fosso Femminamorta, keeping pace with the advance of his company. An enemy soldier allowed Tech. 5th Grade Gibson to come within 20 yards of his concealed position and then opened fire on him with a machine pistol. Despite the stream of automatic fire which barely missed him, Gibson charged the position, firing his submachine gun every few steps. Reaching the position, Gibson fired pointblank at his opponent, killing him. An artillery concentration fell in and around the ditch; the concussion from one shell knocked him flat. As he got to his feet Gibson was fired on by two soldiers armed with a machine pistol and a rifle from a position only 75 yards distant. Gibson immediately raced toward the foe. Halfway to the position a machinegun opened fire on him. Bullets came within inches of his body, yet Gibson never paused in his forward movement. He killed one and captured the other soldier. Shortly after, when he was fired upon by a heavy machinegun 200 yards down the ditch, Gibson crawled back to his squad and ordered it to lay down a base of fire while he flanked the emplacement. Despite all warning, Gibson crawled 125 yards through an artillery concentration and the cross fire of 2 machineguns which showered dirt over his body, threw 2 hand grenades into the emplacement and charged it with his submachine gun, killing 2 of the enemy and capturing a third. Before leading his men around a bend in the stream ditch, Gibson went forward alone to reconnoiter. Hearing an exchange of machine pistol and submachine gun fire, Gibson's squad went forward to find that its leader had run 35 yards toward an outpost, killed the machine pistol man, and had himself been killed while firing at the Germans.
