Thomas Arrey
Born: March 18, 1924
Died: September 4, 2002
Burial Site: SFNC, Section 23, Site 211
Awards
Thomas Arrey was born on March 18, 1924, in Santa Fe, New Mexico to Tranquilino Frank Arrey and Ramona Holguin.
He enlisted in the U.S. Army on June 10, 1942, in Santa Fe, New Mexico, and was assigned Army Serial No. 18 120 619. He trained at Fort Benning, Georgia, and Camp McCall, North Carolina.1 He was sent overseas with the “Fox” Company, 2nd Battalion, 501st Parachute Infantry Regiment, 101st Airborne Division in January of 1944.2 The unit continued training there for five months and Arrey completed 38 training jumps. The next jump he made was during his unit’s first combat jump on D-Day. He landed in a tree in a hedgerow near Saint-Côme-du-Mont, Normandy, France June 6, 1944, at 1:37 a.m. His unit’s mission was to harass the Germans, disrupt communications, and hook up with the Allied forces that were advancing from the beaches. He fought with that unit during the D-Day Invasion (June 6, 1944) in Normandy, France. He also took part in the air-drop liberation of the Netherlands and was wounded in the side by a mortar burst in Holland on October 11, 1944. He was trapped with his unit in the German breakthrough at Bastogne during the Battle of the Bulge and helped to occupy Berchtesgaden, also known as Hitler’s Eagle’s Nest in Bavaria. He was in France by the time of V-E (Victory in Europe) day. He returned to the United States and was discharged from the U.S. Army on December 1, 1945, at the Separation Center, Fort Bliss, Texas with the rank of Sergeant.3
On his return home, he married Stella Moya from Santa Fe, and they began their family there. About 10 years after his discharge, he joined the New Mexico National Guard as a full-time technician and mechanic. He retired from that position with the rank of sergeant first class in 1979. He was a member of Los Hermanos Cruzados and the Cursillo Movement.4
Thomas passed away on September 4, 2002, in Santa Fe, New Mexico. The funeral mass was held at Cristo Rey Catholic Church. The burial was at the Santa Fe National Cemetery.4
Images & Documents
Notes:
1. Ancestry.com, Thomas Arrey, in the U.S. World War II Draft Cards, Young Men, 1940 -1947
2. “Thomas Arrey, The Santa Fe New Mexican, 7 September 2002, Newspapers.com
3. “Thomas Arrey, The Albuquerque Journal, 6 September 2002, Newspapers.com
4. “Thomas Arrey,” The Santa Fe New Mexican 8 September, p.10 2002, Newspapers.com
5. Photo by, Find A Grave.com, & Ancestry.com, Thomas Arrey, June 2023.