Tributes are being paid to a D-Day war veteran who has died aged 97. Royal Marine Jim Healy's proud family described him as a modest 'reluctant hero' - one of the lucky ones to survive the largest seaborne invasion in history.
He was just 19 at the time.
The Royal British Legion meanwhile, who supported him when he visited the shores of Normandy in France again in 2019 to mark the 75th anniversary of D-Day, said he leaves behind 'an incredible legacy'. Jim was one of the few D-Day veterans still living in Greater Manchester.
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Jim, who lived in Middleton, landed on Juno beach on June 6, 1944 - D-Day. As a coxswain, he was in control of a landing craft assault tasked with carrying Canadian troops up and onto the coast of Normandy, despite the fact he couldn't swim at the time and hadn't been to sea before.
Speaking in 2019, after being honoured by Rochdale council at a special ceremony, Jim said he would never forget the horrors of the Second World War. His skill and bravery ensured the boat, which was carrying 35 Allied soldiers at the time, reached the shore, but Jim said he didn't know how many of them survived on land.
"The D-Day landings seem like yesterday and, all these years on, I can still vividly recall the moment the boat landed on Juno beach," he told our sister title The Rochdale Observer.
"It was a huge operation and I was honoured to have played my part in helping to defeat evil and protect our freedoms. I was one of the lucky ones who survived, many of my comrades didn't. I never forget.
"I still don't know which of those soldiers we dropped off died and which ones survived, which is sad for me. I often think about them and we offer our condolences at various times each year."
Jim's parents went on to be told he was missing in action, until he returned home on a period of leave.
The decorated corporal - a father-of-three who was awarded the Legion d'Honneur, the highest French military honour, in recognition of his service - passed away peacefully on August 17 after a short illness.
His daughter, Jennifer Stack, said: "He saw some terrible things during D-Day, and never really spoke about it until the Royal British Legion began organising trips back to Normandy. He was a modest man, a reluctant hero, and it always amazed him that he was selected to be a coxswain because he had never been to sea in his life, living so far from the coast, and couldn't even swim.
"He knew he was lucky to survive D-Day - ten of their boats didn't make it - and it always hurt him that he never knew which of the soldiers on his landing craft died and which ones survived. Despite the passing of eight decades, my dad always remembered the events with incredible clarity, and we are all immensely proud of him."
Jim, a member of the congregation at St Peter's Church in Middleton, married his late wife, Marie, when he was 25 and they were together for 38 years before she passed away. A printer by trade after the war, he had two brothers, both in the military, and a sister.
The Royal British Legion said Jim had vivid recollections of D-Day. Once, they said, his landing craft became damaged and he was stranded with his crew for 10 days, sheltering from the German military in a tiny harbour.
Stuart Steel, a membership support officer for the Royal British Legion, said: "Jim was well-known in Greater Manchester and we were honoured to be able to take him back to the beaches of Normandy in 2019. He leaves behind an incredible legacy, and all our thoughts are with Jim’s family and friends."
Jim went on to serve in the Far East in Burma before the end of the war. Operation Overlord saw some 156,000 Allied troops landing in Normandy on June 6, 1944. It is thought as many as 4,400 were killed, but the action paved the way for the Allied liberation of Nazi-occupied Europe.
Jim's funeral will take place at St Peter's Church on Taylor Street, Middleton, at 11.30am on September 6, before burial at St Joseph Moston Cemetery on Moston Lane at 1pm.
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