Paul A. Baldy

PAUL A. BALDY
1918-2008

Paul Baldy passed away on July 26, 2008 after a long illness.
He was born in Rendville, Ohio on November 5, 1918 to Aug and Mary Thomas Baldy. He was the youngest of their six sons. Paul lost his father in a coal mining accident when he was five. To help make ends meet, he helped sell and deliver vegetables and milk in their rural southeast Ohio community. He also had a paper route and liked to hike the Appalachian Hills with his dog, Jack. Paul graduated from St. Bernard's in Corning, Ohio. He attended Ohio University in Athens where he joined ROTC and majored in Business. He worked in the Buckeye Cafeteria for his meals and lived in boarding houses until joining a fraternity his senior year. He graduated in 1940 and worked with McJunkin Supplies in Charleston, WV.
In Spring 1941 he joined the Army and participated in the Louisiana Maneuvers after the attack on Pearl Harbor and U.S. entry into WW II. In August 1942 he deployed to England with the 894th Tank Destroyer Battalion and was part of Operation Torch, the invasion of North Africa in November 1942. Assigned to the 5th Army, the Battalion was unable to prevent the US defeat at Kasserine Pass at the hands of German General Erwin Rommel in Feb. 1943. However, they had later success in the capture of Bizerte, Tunisia and contributed to the eventual defeat of Rommel's Panzer divisions. The unit deployed to Italy as part of a plan to capture Rome by going up the spine of Italy. The 5th Army stalled at Monte Cassino and in a bold move the Battalion was part of a beach landing at Anzio in January 1944 in an attempt to outflank the German Army. 25 year old Maj. Baldy now commanded the 894th and for four months the US and British armies suffered enormous casualties from German artillery trained on their beachhead. The allies eventually broke free and captured Rome in June 1944. The 894th later played a major role in the surrender of a German horse cavalry division in the Po Valley. They ended the war on the Italian-Yugoslavia border after 543 days in theater.
Paul returned home after the war and after a brief stint with McJunkin and a semester at Washington and Lee Law School, he recognized his first love and reentered the Army at Ft. Hays, Ohio. In 1950 while teaching ROTC at Harrison High School in Chicago, IL he met and married Peg Connelly. In subsequent assignments at Ft. Sam Houston, TX; Ft. Knox, KY; Ft. Lee, VA; Ft. Leavenworth, KS; Norfolk, VA; Taipei, Taiwan; the Pentagon, Newport, RI; Viet Nam; Ft. Sheridan, IL; Ft. Shafter, HI they raised 8 children, 7 of whom served in the military. LTC Baldy served as an Advisor to the Republic of China (Taiwan) during the crisis and subsequent bombardment of Quemoy and Matsu by Chinese Communist forces. In 1962-63, Col. Baldy served as an advisor to the 25th Division, Army of Viet Nam. He closed his career in 1970 and worked briefly with Lien Chemical and then United Services Life Insurance Company until his retirement in 1983.
Paul remained active in his parish at Nativity Catholic Church serving as a lector, educator, and Eucharistic minister. He loved gardening and spending time with his wife and 8 children.
He is survived by his wife, Peg Connelly Baldy and children Tom, Bernadette, Tim, Brian, Betsy, Maureen, and Shawn, eighteen grandchildren and his brother, Pete. His oldest son, Paul, died in 1980 while stationed at Ft. Stewart, GA.
Visitation will be held from 9-9:45am Friday, August 1, 2008 at Nativity of Our Lord Catholic Church with a Rosary service prayed from 9:45-10am. A celebration of Christian Burial Mass will be at 10:15am with Fr. John Licari celebrant. Interment at Barrancas National Cemetery will occur at 12:30pm following the Mass.
In lieu of flowers memorial contributions may be made to Sisters of Charity of Nazareth, KY, c/o Sister Shalini O'Souza, Mother House, Nazareth, KY 40048.
HARPER-MORRIS MEMORIAL CHAPEL is in charge of arrangements.