A veteran from Inglewood who served in World War II was honored by President Biden in France on the 80th anniversary of D-Day.
Louis Brown, 98, took a trip to the shores of Normandy Beach where he was honored alongside other veterans who served during the war in the 1940s.
Brown, originally from Mississippi, was drafted into the Army when he was a teenager in 1944.
“Being a little young fellow in there, we didn’t know [anything],” Brown said of joining the Army. “You know, we were kind of excited to be over there. I didn’t know I was making a part of history or anything like that.”
At such a young age, he said he didn’t realize what he was stepping into and his eyes were opened to the world during a time of incredible strife and the threat of Adolf Hitler’s Nazis in Europe.
Brown eventually became a corporal in the 4036th Quartermaster, a convoy unit that was known to operate 24 hours a day, at times under enemy fire, to deliver urgent supplies to the frontlines.
On the 80th Anniversary of D-Day, Louis Brown, 98, visited the shores of Normandy Beach in France where he was honored alongside other veterans who served during World War II. (Brown Family) 
Louis Brown sharing photos of his time in the Army during World War II with KTLA’s John Fenoglio. (KTLA) 
Louis Brown joined the Army in 1944 and served during World War II where he became a corporal and later, a staff sergeant. (Brown Family) 
Louis Brown joined the Army in 1944 and served during World War II where he became a corporal and later, a staff sergeant. (Brown Family) 
Louis Brown and a fellow veteran reminisce on the 80th Anniversary of D-Day where he was honored in a ceremony with President Joe Biden in France. (Brown Family) 
On the 80th Anniversary of D-Day, Louis Brown, 98, visited France for a ceremony where he was honored alongside other veterans who served during World War II. (Brown Family) 
On the 80th Anniversary of D-Day, Louis Brown, 98, visited the shores of Normandy Beach in France where he was honored alongside other veterans who served during World War II. (Brown Family) 
On the 80th Anniversary of D-Day, Louis Brown, 98, visited France for a ceremony where he was honored alongside other veterans who served during World War II. (Brown Family) 
Louis Brown seen at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at a D-Day Anniversary ceremony held at the Arc de Triomphe in Paris, France. in June 2024. (Brown Family) 
Louis Brown and other veterans make their way down a parade path in France as locals cheered them on in June 2024. (Brown Family) 
On the 80th Anniversary of D-Day, Louis Brown, 98, visited France for a ceremony where he was honored alongside other veterans who served during World War II. (Brown Family) 
Louis Brown visited France on the 80th Anniversay of D-Day in June 2024. (Brown Family) 
Louis Brown relaxing outside of his home in Inglewood, California. (KTLA) 
On the 80th Anniversary of D-Day, Louis Brown, 98, visited France for a ceremony where he was honored alongside other veterans who served during World War II. (Brown Family) 
Plane ticket to France for the 80th Anniversary of D-Day. (Brown Family)
Just days after the D-Day Invasion in June 1944, Brown arrived on Omaha Beach, one of the five landing areas of the Normandy Invasion.
“When we got there, the ocean was still bloody,” Brown said. “The ground was all blood. That’s where they killed killed everybody. There was a lot of blood.”
Brown also participated in the Battle of the Rhine and the Battle of Germany. In 1945, his unit was sent to Southern Germany to help liberate the Dachau Concentration Camp where tens of thousands of Jewish and other minority prisoners were held captive.
Brown said it was a horrific experience that he will never forget.
“It was hard for me to believe that a man could survive that and live,” Brown said of the concentration camp. “There were bones sticking out of [the prisoners]. It was terrible. That’s the only thing I can say.”
Earlier this week, President Joe Biden honored Brown and dozens of other WWII veterans at a ceremony in France, honoring their service and remembering the over 4,400 Allied troops who were killed on D-Day.
Video from loved ones showed Brown participating in a parade where French locals cheered him on. He later returned to the shores of Utah and Omaha beaches to honor his fallen comrades during a time that forever changed the course of history.
“To me, I was no hero,” Brown said. “But it’s an honor to serve your country, particularly if you love your country.”
Brown was discharged as a staff sergeant from the Army in 1946. He married in 1950 and had two daughters.
He settled down in Southern California and worked as an equipment operator for the city of Los Angeles for 33 years.
