Donald Louis Duffy was born in February 1924 and raised in Cleveland, Ohio. His father worked in a factory until he died of cancer in 1930. His mother, who was raising seven children, found work as a maid to a wealthy family. Duffy's older brothers went out everyday to find work, often coming back with nothing. His sister, Rita, some how was able to find a job. The family was poor during the Great Depression but did not realize it. Duffy had a couple of paper routes with his brother early in the mornings and after school. He thought it was fun because he met different people. One Sunday afternoon, Duffy returned home from an amusement park and learned that the Japanese had attacked Pearl Harbor [Annotator's Note: the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, Hawaii on 7 December 1941]. He was shocked to hear the news and became angry with Japan. Duffy would soon have to quit school to take care of his mother but was drafted into the military in 1943. He selected to go into the infantry and was sent to Camp Perry [Annotator's Note: Camp Perry, Ohio] for induction and then to Fort McClellan, Alabama for basic training for 13 weeks. He recalls the weather being very warm. He had physical training and was taught how to throw fake grenades and use 30mm guns. After completing his training and a short leave [Annotator's Note: an authorized absence for a short period of time], he was sent to Camp Patrick Henry [Annotator's Note: Camp Patrick Henry, Virginia] to be shipped overseas. He boarded a ship called "Louis Pasteur", a French ship. The shipped zig-zagged [Annotator's Note: a naval anti-submarine maneuver] several times during the voyage. The ship docked in Casablanca [Annotator's Note: Casablanca, Morocco]. He noticed that the local population was very poor. He remembers seeing children with flies around their eyes. His unit [Annotator's Note: Company I, 3rd Battalion, 30th Infantry Regiment, 3rd Infantry Division] was camped there for a while before being put on a train traveling across North Africa, finally stopping in Bizerte [Annotator's Note: Bizerte, Tunisia]. Duffy and his unit boarded a ship to Naples [Annotator's Note: Naples, Italy] and bivouacked [Annotator's Note: a bivouac is a temporary campsite] in a racetrack. His unit was sent to the front line on 11 November 1943.

It rained everyday while Donald Louis Duffy and his unit [Annotator's Note: Company I, 3rd Battalion, 30th Infantry Regiment, 3rd Infantry Division] were stationed at the front lines in Italy. He climbed a mountain during a mortar attack. When he reached the top, he found a foxhole filled with water. He developed trench foot during this time. His unit was eventually taken off the line to prepare for combat in Anzio [Annotator's Note: Anzio, Italy]. The attack came in the morning. There were bombs dropping everywhere. They soon heard that K Company [Annotator's Note: Company K, 3rd Battalion, 30th Infantry Regiment, 3rd Infantry Division] was obliterated and his unit was ordered to be sent into the fight. As Duffy reached the top, he was faced with heavy fire. He tried to keep low as much as possible. The unit had separated as they took cover in foxholes. Duffy tried to jump in one foxhole, but it was already taken by someone, so he had to fine cover behind a tank. Later, he passed the foxhole again, and saw that the soldier in it was blown to bits. After the Germans retreated, his unit got to a tunnel that was built by the Germans for the night. The next morning, he was walking along the railroad track, when they came under fire by the Germans. Duffy was wounded during the attack. He was eventually sent back on a Red Cross truck to an aid station. [Annotator's Note: A male voice interrupts the interview at 0:21:46.000.] He was put on a hospital ship in Naples [Annotator's Note: Naples, Italy]. He returned his outfit six weeks later. By that time, they were training for the invasion of Southern France. Duffy recalls getting on the boats for the invasion as the Italians saw them off. After making the amphibious landing in France, his unit was led by the French resistance into the Vosges Mountains. They traveled non-stop for seven days and Duffy remembers being exhausted. His Division met opposition and Duffy was wounded again. He was sent to the Naples hospital and received penicillin. After recovering from his wound, he was sent back to the front lines again. When he found himself under fire again, he asked himself what he was doing here. A voice inside him said to do his duty. At one time, he was put on a patrol with seven other men. They were attacked by artillery shells. Some shrapnel hit him in the ankle. One of his fellow comrades helped him up, and Duffy was sent to the hospital again. Because he was wounded too much, he was reassigned to an artillery unit. His job was to spot enemy planes and report them to his commanding officer. He recalls when a French civilian came over to him and told him that Roosevelt [Annotator's Note: Franklin Delano Roosevelt, 32nd President of the United States] had died. He stayed with the artillery unit until the end of the war.

Donald Louis Duffy was not assigned to a unit until he was overseas and sent to the front line in Italy. There, he was assigned to Company I, 3rd Battalion, 30th Infantry Regiment, 3rd Infantry Division. When Duffy was on the ship being sent to North Africa, he never thought he was going to die. Even though he was injured three times, it did not change his thought about his possible demise due to combat. He figured that because he did not know what he was getting into, he could not worry about it. When he landed in North Africa, what shocked him the most, was the poor condition of the local population. When Duffy reached the front line, he felt prepared and that he was well-equipped. He felt sorry for the Germans because they kept on retreating which gave them a disadvantage. Duffy was wounded in Anzio [Annotator's Note: Anzio, Italy] for the first time. At Anzio, the Germans and Americans were fought a four-month battle. Duffy felt loyalty to the Army and to his fellow GIs [Annotator's Note: government issue; also a slang term for an American soldier]. Duffy feared the German mortars and the 88mm cannons [Annotator's Note: German 88mm multi-purpose artillery] the most because they were the most accurate. However, he believes the American personnel and equipment outmatched the Germans. Duffy thought the battle in Anzio was the worst combat because the Germans had wiped out a whole company [Annotator's Note: Duffy had been told that the Germans had wiped out Company K, 3rd Battalion, 30th Infantry Regiment, 3rd Infantry Division] and Duffy’s company had to go in to replace them. He caught his lieutenant crying which did not make the situation better. Luckily, they had a successful mission. Duffy was carrying two spools of wire during the battle and realized that they were all shot up. His officer told him to go back and get two more spools. On his return to his company with the new spools he realized that they were shooting at him because everything was so chaotic. Duffy was later transferred to 568th Field Artillery Battalion and remained there for the duration of the war. This unit never fired a shot during the war.

Donald Louis Duffy feels that the local population in Southern France was more hospitable and welcoming than the people in Italy. Duffy has a sentimental attachment to the French and the French resistance. The resistance helped his unit [Annotator's Note: Company I, 3rd Battalion, 30th Infantry Regiment, 3rd Infantry Division] advance through Southern France. When Duffy landed in Southern France, he waded in water up to his chin. Then he had to walk seven days without resting. His unit advanced through Southern France so fast that equipment and supply units could not keep up with them. Duffy's clothes were tattered and falling off of him but he had no new clothing supply. Duffy remembers that the Germans easily surrendered as the war progressed. He believes that the Germans knew they were outmatched by the Allies. Duffy was a rifleman during his combat experience and carried an M1 [Annotator's Note: .30 caliber M1 semi-automatic rifle, also known as the M1 Garand] and also carried a tommy gun [Annotator's Note: .45 caliber Thompson submachine gun].

World War 2 changed Donald Louis Duffy's life, which he realized about a year out of service. He matured and became more serious; he was no longer a kid anymore. Many people he met told him how appreciative they were for his service. Duffy was in Holland when the war in Europe ended [Annotator's Note: Victory in Europe Day, 8 May 1945]. He was shipped back home on a Greek ship through bad weather. The shipped docked in the New York Harbor [Annotator's Note: New York, New York]. He was thrilled to see the Statue of Liberty. When Duffy was discharged, he was asked to join the Reserves which made him laugh. He was discharged as a Private. Duffy really enjoyed the camaraderie among his fellow soldiers. Duffy thinks it is important to have institutions like The National WWII Museum [Annotator's Note: in New Orleans, Louisiana] because he does not want future generations to experience another world war. He believes America is wonderful.