Given Clifford Grooms was born on August 31, 1922, in Adams County, Ohio. He was the son of Elbert Lyman "Delbert" Grooms Sr. and Hazel Opal Herdman Grooms. He attended Waverly High School before entering military service at Fort Thomas on November 10, 1942. He served in the 718th Bomber Squadron, 449th Bomber Group, Heavy, as a Staff Sergeant and Radio Operator of B-24 #41-29217 during World War II.

On January 30, 1944, B-24 Liberator 41-29217 departed its base at Grottaglie, Italy, on a bombing mission against the German-held airfield at Udine in northern Italy. After completing the bombing run, the formation came under heavy attack from German fighters and anti-aircraft fire. The B-24 was severely damaged during the engagement and was observed losing altitude with its right wing burning as enemy fighters continued their attacks. Unable to remain with the formation, the crippled bomber descended toward the northern Adriatic coast and eventually crashed on Morgo Island in the Grado Lagoon, near Grado, Italy. Of the ten airmen aboard, nine were killed, while Staff Sergeant Harvey Gann was the sole survivor and was taken prisoner by German forces.

SSgt Grooms was killed in action, and his remains were initially listed as missing. For more than eight decades following the loss of his aircraft, his fate remained unresolved. On June 10, 2026, the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency officially accounted for SSgt Grooms. His name is permanently inscribed on the Tablets of the Missing at the Florence American Cemetery, and he is now buried in the Mount Latham Cemetery, Waverly, Pike County, Ohio, USA.

Sources of information: www.findagrave.com, www.dpaa.mil, 449th Bombardment Group Historical Association, weremember.abmc.gov