Early Life
"Wimpy," as he was known, was born in Cleveland, Ohio, the son of Joseph "Joe Winnie" Winpisinger, a journeyman printer with The Plain Dealer, and Edith (Knodel) Winpisinger. He was President of his freshman class at John Marshall High School on Cleveland's West Side, but he left highschool before graduating. He enlisted in the U.S. Naval Reserve on October 14, 1942. Testing by the Navy revealed leadership potential, and he was assigned to the Navy V-12 Program, designed to provide a college-level education to potential junior officers. He left the program after several months and was transferred to the USS LST 310 where he served as a motor mechanics mate. He saw action as a crew member of the LST 310 in the invasion of Sicily and the D-Day invasion at Normandy, where the ship landed troops on Easy Green beach.
Discharged from the Naval Reserve on July 15, 1947, Winpisinger returned to Cleveland where he worked as a "gypsy mechanic," repairing automobile transmissions at local service stations. He married Pearl Foster (born January 15, 1927, in Cleveland, Ohio) on July 16, 1946.
Read more about this topic: William W. Winpisinger
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