PFC Ivia Bilbo Warren

The Purple Heart of a Buffalo Soldier

PFC Ivia Bilbo Warren was serving in the Anti Tank Company, 370th Infantry Regiment, 92nd Infantry Division known as ‘Buffalo Soldiers’ when he was hit in the shoulder by aerial machine gun fire in the Serchio Sector of Italy in April 1945.

The 92nd was the only all black combat division in WWII. They changed history through their ferocity on the battlefield, which paved the way for the desegregation of the military.

PFC Warren was one of 1,891 men of the 92nd Division who was awarded the Purple Heart for shedding his blood in combat.

We met with his grandson Waamiq in the Lincoln Memorial on a rainy Washington DC day. With the mighty statue of Lincoln behind us, and the Washington Monument before us, we couldn’t help but feel the presence of history around us.

Waamiq didn’t know his grandfather, who passed before he was born. Learning that his grandfather was one of the legendary Buffalo Soldiers was particularly meaningful for Waamiq, who felt that the return of his Purple Heart was the opportunity for a new and special bond between them.

Thank you for your service PFC Warren! You are remembered.

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