Memorial Day

Amen.

...known but to God...

To the families of those who have paid the ultimate sacrifice and to all of you out there who have served or are still serving:

My family and I thank you for the freedom you have secured and maintained for our country.

Thank you.

I would like to thank my father (Army, Korea) and 3 nephews (Air Force, all stationed overseas at some point) for their service.

Thanks for sharing EC Pack.

Maybe we can ask all TimesFour posters to post something about any of their family members who have served.  It would be special for those to get recognition here for all that they have done to further our freedoms.

My father volunteered upon graduating from high school in 1943. He was in the Army 34th "Red Bull" Division that fought in Italy. He received two Bronze Stars for bravery in battle. 

My dad was drafted in February of 1944. He served in the Spearhead Division (Third Armored), 32nd Regiment, E (Easy) Company as a tank driver. Among the battles in which he fought were the Battle of the Bulge, Battle for Cologne and Paderborn. He served with Clarence Smoyer and Joe Caserta of the best-seller book "Spearhead" by Adam Makos. (I have photos!) I didn't realize what my dad lived through until I read that book. Yeah, I cried. My dad sort of downplayed the stories he told me. (He didn't tell me about seeing men blown to bits.) I posted an album of his photos on the Spearhead Facebook group and they went crazy. It was the beginning of Spearhead history for them. Most of the photos are after the surrender but they depict what life was like over there immediately after the war. I found out that the braided cord in the  medal/awards shadow box is the Award of Belgian Fourragere. I've attached two photos of his tank when they were in Cologne. (From an online archive, not what my dad took.)

My brother (Army, Vietnam), nephew (Army, Kuwait), and nephew (Army reserves) also served. (Must be some of that Prussian blood.) Grandson also has that urge to join up after high school.

Proud of them all and I don't mean just my family. Thank you. Words will never be enough.

(Sorry this got a bit wordy.) 

I have relatives that served on both sides of the Civil War, but the most recent service is a close cousin that served in Vietnam in the late 1960's.
He served in a CRIP (Combined Recon & Intel Platoon) unit, and received many commendations and awards.

I am convinced that nobody truly knows the horrors of war unless they have personally served. For us that haven't, I remain grateful for those that did.

No apologies necessary, QO.  I enjoy reading the stories of people who served.  I did not serve nor did anyone in my immediate family.  I had uncles who had served, however.  My uncle Alvin was married (no kids) and in his 30's when he enlisted for WW II.  Amazing man.

Thanks to all who served and sacrificed for our freedom.  QuietOne, wasn’t Easy Company featured in “Band of Brothers”?   Great mini-series that I go back and watch every few years.    

My dad turned 18 in 1945, just as WWII was winding down and they were starting to send the boys home, so he missed the second 'war to end all wars'.  He later enlisted in the Army at the beginning of the Korean War, serving from 1951-1953 as a motor pool sergeant.  He spent much of his time convoying supplies to the front line units.  I don't think that they had any ambulances in their units, but on occasion, they would ferry wounded back with a corpsman.  One of his most vivid memories was when a corpsman asked him to ride in the back of a deuce and a half, with the wounded, on the return trip to base.  He was tasked with holding pressure on a wound while the corpsman attended another injured soldier.
I don't know the end of the story, I never asked, but I gather that the wounded soldier did not survive.  I hope I am wrong.

As a child, I recall that my dad had an aversion to blood, and really didn't like needles.  Not sure if these things are related to his experience in Korea or predated them.

This story was related to me by my mother.  My dad never spoke of it with his children.

My father who just passed on 5.5.20 (age 89) served twice. During WW2 he enlisted, with his mothers approval, only they fudged his age. He went in at 14 years old, went through boot camp and was stationed in Germany towards the end of the war. One day his teacher back home asked why my dad was not in class, she was told he went in the Army. The teacher made some calls to authorities and lo and behold my father was on a boat back home within a couple days to be discharged as being too young to serve. He was a member of the VUMS (Veterans of Underage Military Service) of which there were many (thousands). That group is slowly dying out now, but they had chapters across the US at one time.

After he turned 18 he enlisted in the Air Force and served 4 years, met my mother (who was from Park Rapids, MN)  while stationed near Minneapolis and brought me into this world. He was a remarkable man in many respects. They were married 68 years before his passing. Toasting to you tonight dad on this Memorial Day and remembering all of your many good deeds. He was a good father, husband and man. Tears now remembering.

Watching 1917 tonight.   Heard it was good. 

@Packy posted:

Thanks to all who served and sacrificed for our freedom.  QuietOne, wasn’t Easy Company featured in “Band of Brothers”?   Great mini-series that I go back and watch every few years.    

They were from the 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment of the 101st Airborne Division. Dad's was into tanks. 

Sorry for your loss, DD.

@QuietOne posted:

My dad was drafted in February of 1944. He served in the Spearhead Division (Third Armored), 32nd Regiment, E (Easy) Company as a tank driver. Among the battles in which he fought were the Battle of the Bulge, Battle for Cologne and Paderborn. He served with Clarence Smoyer and Joe Caserta of the best-seller book "Spearhead" by Adam Makos. (I have photos!) I didn't realize what my dad lived through until I read that book. Yeah, I cried. My dad sort of downplayed the stories he told me. (He didn't tell me about seeing men blown to bits.) I posted an album of his photos on the Spearhead Facebook group and they went crazy. It was the beginning of Spearhead history for them. Most of the photos are after the surrender but they depict what life was like over there immediately after the war. I found out that the braided cord in the  medal/awards shadow box is the Award of Belgian Fourragere. I've attached two photos of his tank when they were in Cologne. (From an online archive, not what my dad took.)

My brother (Army, Vietnam), nephew (Army, Kuwait), and nephew (Army reserves) also served. (Must be some of that Prussian blood.) Grandson also has that urge to join up after high school.

Proud of them all and I don't mean just my family. Thank you. Words will never be enough.

(Sorry this got a bit wordy.) 

Wow, I just read that book a couple of weeks ago. That unit endured some tough times and battles with the German Tiger tanks.  Was your dad mentioned in the book?

Hopefully you all remembered to bring your flag in at Sunset unless you have a spotlight on it at dark. 

A little late tonight, but a heartfelt thank you to all who served and those who are serving now. We owe you more than we can ever repay. And to my nephew in the Air Force, take care. And to the other one at the AF Academy, study hard! 

@RochNyFan posted:

Wow, I just read that book a couple of weeks ago. That unit endured some tough times and battles with the German Tiger tanks.  Was your dad mentioned in the book?

No, he's not mentioned by name. But he was in one of the three tanks that were hidden beside the road and had to stay silent all night as the German convoy went by. He would have been in anything mentioned after Oct. 5, 1944. (He came in as a replacement.) I have photos my dad took of Joe Caserta (Joe was one of his tank commanders) and Smokey Davis. He kept a tank maintenance ticket and a pass to Paris signed by Capt. Salisbury.

I missed this yesterday.  My uncle served in WWII.  He was in reconnaissance.  Caught and POW 3 times, escaped every time.  Brought a lot of souvenirs back with him but would never talk about his experiences.  He's been gone 20 years now but will never be forgotten.

My 17 year old dad was on an army troop ship in the Pacific, bound for Guam, when the bomb was dropped on Hiroshima. He wound up in the Pentagon cryptography dept because he could type around 100 words/minute.

His brother in law, my uncle Dale was a sergeant on the beach in Normandy on 6/6/44.

My mom's brother Al was a Marine pvt in Vietnam in 1968.  I remember how furious my mom was when he volunteered for a second tour in the jungle.

Neither Dale nor Al ever said a word about their time in service in my presence.

They all survived their war but they all died early- 64, 55,60

@SanDiegoPackFan posted:

Thanks for sharing EC Pack.

Maybe we can ask all TimesFour posters to post something about any of their family members who have served.  It would be special for those to get recognition here for all that they have done to further our freedoms.

I had a great Uncle Joe who was a ball turrent gunner on a flying fortress in WW2.  All the other members of the crew were killed or wounded and he was the only one unhurt.  He landed the plane skidding onto the air field and he got the silver star for it.  He lived through all 25 missions and made it home without a scratch.

I had Uncles and myself who served in the Marines and thankfully none of us never experienced combat.  

My family's military history is all on one direct line. A direct ancestor of mine fought in the Revolutionary War. His grandson, my great-great grandfather, fought for the Union Army in the Civil War (Wisconsin).  His son (my great-grandfather) fought in WW1. He was wounded in combat and exposed to poison gas. He ended up dying relatively young 30 years later from a cancer type likely related to gas exposure. I never met him but he couldn't sit on the porch and look into the woods without having hallucinations about Germans coming out of the woods (I guess he knew this was crazy, but he couldn't get over it). His son, my grandfather was in WW2. First in Europe and then, after the European War ended, he went through the Suez Canal to eventually get to the Philippines to prepare to invade Okinawa. He always said that if Truman hadn't had the guts to drop the atomic bombs, he wouldn't have made it back alive. His son, my uncle, served in Vietnam on a helicopter. He talks about everything in his life at length, except Vietnam. The stories he does occasionally tell are about things like running around snakes (cobras) on the asphalt (or whatever it was made of) they put in for helicopter launch pads. 

My only war story is that my Grandmother was an ordinance handler at an Army Depot during WWII . I never knew this until after she died and I read about it in her obituary. Would have had a million questions. I always wondered why she enjoyed Hogan's Heroes so much

@Packiderm posted:

. I always wondered why she enjoyed Hogan's Heroes so much

Perhaps she liked Bob Crane a lot 😉

I didn't mention it in my original post, but Mrs. Timmy's Dad served in the Army in WW II.
She broke out his service records one time as we were watching WW II In Color on one of the cable channels. Using those and Google maps, we were able to trace his 'route' from the time he arrived in England just days before D-Day, until he was wounded in action roughly 3 days after. 
His Purple Heart info had the location of the battle (some forest in France) and we were able to pinpoint it on the map.

Thanks for sharing some awesome stories about your kinfolk, all.

Some real sacrifices .

@The Heckler posted:

I had a great Uncle Joe who was a ball turrent gunner on a flying fortress in WW2.  All the other members of the crew were killed or wounded and he was the only one unhurt.  He landed the plane skidding onto the air field and he got the silver star for it.  He lived through all 25 missions and made it home without a scratch.

I had Uncles and myself who served in the Marines and thankfully none of us never experienced combat.  

Your Uncle Joe was lucky to make it back as a ball turret gunner. I met a woman who said her husband was a ball turret gunner. Reached up one day in the middle of a battle to grab some more ammo and lost four fingers on one hand. But he made it home alive. I've seen those ball turrets up close and guys had to be small and then practically lie down to do their jobs. Took some guts knowing all that's between you and bullets, shrapnel, flak, and the ground was some plexiglass. 

@The Heckler posted:

I had a great Uncle Joe who was a ball turrent gunner on a flying fortress in WW2....

Watching some of the WW II in HD shows over the weekend had an especially poignant story about a ball turret gunner trapped in the bubble of a crippled B-17.
The pilots/crew couldn't lower the landing gear, and knew their only chance was attempting a belly landing, although they knew it would mean the certain death of the gunner.
Andy Rooney (60 Minutes ) was a reporter for Stars & Stripes, and was stationed at the base where this plane was trying to land, and wrote about the experience.
I couldn't find any good sources for direct quotes or other info related to this story, but it was featured in this episode:

My oldest cousin, Bobby, was in the infantry in Vietnam from 1970-1972.
Prior to joining the army, he had a reputation as a bit of a hell-raiser.  On one occasion he managed to allude the local sheriff on his motorcycle.  Instead of heading home he went to the farm of a friend who's dad was digging a foundation for a new barn.  Together he and his friend buried the motorcycle with a backhoe so that the sheriff could not recover it for evidence, and Bobby later denied owning a bike.  (I think his parents backed him up on that claim.)
Shortly after that (non?) incident, Bobby entered the army and was sent off to fight the Vietcong.  I'm not sure whether the two events are related, but the timing was at least coincidental.
Bobby suffered a shrapnel wound to the head which required the removal of a section of his skull and replacement with a metal plate.
He recovered, returned stateside and led a reasonably normal life, two marriages, two kids.  He died of a brain hemorrhage at the age of forty eight.
Bobby's obituary in the local newspaper stated that, "He was wounded in action and received two Purple Hearts, a Bronze Star and the Congressional Medial of Honor".  I have no doubt that he received a Purple Heart for his head injury, but the reporter on the obit beat was clearly negligent in his duties.  Bobby is not among the 3500+ soldiers who have been awarded our nation's highest military honor.

@Fandame posted:

Your Uncle Joe was lucky to make it back as a ball turret gunner. I met a woman who said her husband was a ball turret gunner. Reached up one day in the middle of a battle to grab some more ammo and lost four fingers on one hand. But he made it home alive. I've seen those ball turrets up close and guys had to be small and then practically lie down to do their jobs. Took some guts knowing all that's between you and bullets, shrapnel, flak, and the ground was some plexiglass. 

You are absolutely right about turrent gunner and I think the one person on a flying fortress with the shortest lifespan was the turrent gunner.  I only met my great uncle a few times but he said that he got stuck in the turrent because he was really short.  

MichiganPacker, I also forgot to mention that I also had an ancestor who was with a Wisconsin unit in the civil war.  All that is known about him was that he was in the 2nd Wisconsin, his name was Ollie, and he died in 1862.  My grandma had a picture of him in uniform and all the family knew is that he died (no idea of what) and his name.

@SanDiegoPackFan posted:

Thanks for sharing EC Pack.

Maybe we can ask all TimesFour posters to post something about any of their family members who have served.  It would be special for those to get recognition here for all that they have done to further our freedoms.

1990-1991 Iraq.

i want no recognition. I did it for all off us. I actually joined the army in 1990, hoping to go((long story) to the Middle East  I was already 24, not the typical age for voluntary service. Did it to prove my dad wrong that his 10 sons were pussies. Went, saw combat, survived and proud as hell.

i did it for US