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T/4 Mainard D. Clifton graduated from Ashland High School in 1939 and attended college.

He volunteered for the Army of the United States in Portland, Oregon on 17 July 1942.

He participated in the landing in Normandy. After meeting up on the ground with a small group of men, they tried to get back to their intended objective but, as Damon later wrote, “an overenthusiastic German ruined a perfectly good GI helmet and about two-inches of Clifton’s scalp.” This, of course, was an understatement — he had been shot and a piece of his helmet was embedded in his skull.

He was taken prisoner, interrogated and taken to a German "Krankenstube" (infirmery) in Saint Come du Mont, along with his battalion surgeon, who had a badly broken ankle, and several other medics. In pain and under extremely dangerous conditions, they provided aid to the wounded for three days. While there, T/4 Clifton was befriended by a French schoolteacher who provided him with local intelligence and extra food. When she was accused of sabotage by the Germans, he immediately rose to her defense at his own peril. He and several other prisoners hid caches of stolen pistols, rifles, and grenades within reach of the wounded Americans so, if necessary, they could defend themselves. When it became clear that the Allies would liberate them shortly, the Germans either fled or surrendered and he and several others could return to Allied control.

After landing near Eindhoven during Operation Market Garden, the mission of his unit was to secure the corridor from the city to the Wilhelmina Canal. They fought house to house and street to street while civilians ran for cover. The bridges came under heavy enemy counterattack. When T/4 Clifton was given the order to assist a wounded soldier, he immediately rushed across open terrain, dodging German automatic and rifle fire to help. He went down, shot in the kidneys and severely wounded.

He succumbed to his injuries on 20 September, the last person from his unit killed during the liberation of Eindhoven.

T/4 Clifton was first buried at the Temporary American Military Cemetery of Son, The Netherlands on 20 September 1944. After being disinterred, his remains were evacuated to Margraten, where he was given his final resting place on 7 February 1949.