As Fr. Maternowski walked back down the country lane after speaking with the German soldier, he was shot. Theories vary on who fired the weapon and whether or not Fr. Maternowski saw who his assailant was. No one living at the time of this reconstruction saw it happen.
We do know that Fr. Maternowski lay in the road for three days following his untimely death that morning. He was 32 years old and five years into his priesthood. On June 9, 1944, American soldiers were able to retrieve his body for burial near Utah Beach. In 1948, he was returned to the city of his birth for a solemn Mass and burial in South Hadley, Massachussetts.
Today, a memorial to Fr. Maternowski rests at the site of his death, honoring the heroism and bravery of this brother in arms.
