Amos Joseph Almeida, WWII Paratrooper and War Hero, Dies at 90

The following obituary was provided by .

Almeida, Amos Joseph, one of the original 101st Screaming Eagles, passed away at the Missouri Veteran’s Home in the Bellefontaine Neighbors on Friday, Aug. 31. He was 90 years old.

Born in Somis, CA, a small farming town north of Los Angeles to Mexican immigrants Luis and Teresa Almeida on Dec. 28, 1921, he was the oldest of 12 children. He also had three older half-siblings.

Amos quit school in the ninth grade to help support the family and joined the U.S. Army in 1942, volunteering to become a paratrooper for the extra $50 monthly “jump pay” to send home to his mother.

Amos jumped into Normandy on D-Day and also jumped in Holland for Operation Market Garden then off to a brutal winter and battle in Bastogne in what became known as The Battle of the Bulge. Two of bothers, Charlie and Louie, also served during the war in the Navy and Army, respectively.

His parents received a telegram from the War Department that Amos was Missing in Action in the Invasion of Normandy just a few days after receiving a telegram that their son Louie had been killed in the Invasion of Saipan.

Amos received a Purple Heart and Bronze Star for his actions in Europe and in January of 2010 was named a Knight of the Legion of Honor by the President of the French Republic for his “valorous action during WWII…and invaluable contribution to the liberation of France.”

Amos worked as a lumberyard foreman for 40 years. It was during this part of his life that he developed an avocation for wood working, making various items for friends and family. He was a lifetime supporter of the 101st Airborne Division.

Amos married the late Rose Marie Ferrer, having three sons, Frank who resides in Glendale with his wife Pam, Albert of Lake Oswego, OR, with wife Ricci, and Joey in Santa Barbara, CA, with his wife Barbie. His oldest grandchild, Joseph Albert resides in Dallastown, PA, with his wife, Christine. Grandson Alexander Ryan lives in Portland, OR, and granddaughter  Kelly Rose lives in Santa Barbara, CA.

His second wife of 32 years, Jeannette McCreary, passed away in 2006. Amos moved to Glendale in early 2007.

Amos’s namesake, Amos Almeida of Forsyth, MT, was born to Charlie and Eleanor Almeida when Amos was MIA during the Invasion, once said of his uncle, “He’s a good man that did a great thing.”

A memorial service will be held Friday, Sept. 7, 3:15 p.m., Chapel, Missouri Veterans Home, 10600 Lewis & Clark Blvd., St. Louis, MO 63136.

In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations be made to the Missouri Veteran’s Home, 10600 Lewis & Clark Blvd., St. Louis, MO 63136.

Condolences can be left at the Bopp Chapel website.