While Veteran’s Day may be ending soon on the East coast, the meaning of this holiday should always be close to our hearts. Everyone likely knows family, friends, colleagues, classmates, and acquaintances who have served this great nation of ours as Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen, and Marines or who are currently serving. In my life, the two people who stand out are my grandfathers, both WWII veterans. One of them, Grandpa Eldon, was a Soldier who served in Germany during the war. He grew up in Iowa and enlisted in the Army “because it was the right thing to do.” He received a Purple Heart for being wounded in combat. Earlier this year, he was also awarded a Bronze Star for having served in three or more battles, including the Battle of the Bulge. I’ll always remember when he showed me his uniform, some of the artifacts from the war, and his honorable discharge paperwork. There is also a very handsome picture of my grandpa in his uniform. He looks like the great American that he is, the kind of person who defended his country, then went on to work hard and live out the American dream. He was a part of the famous capture of the Bridge at Remagen, which was called the “Miracle of Remagen” because it opened the way for Allied troops to drive into the heart of Germany. The Germans were expected to blow up the bridge before American troops got there since Hitler had ordered its destruction and were shocked to see it was still standing. The Americans then were able to capture the bridge even though the Germans did eventually detonate an explosive that lifted the bridge from its foundations. Members of the 9th Armored Division, 1st Army were able to secure a perimeter and secure the bridgehead giving the Allies a foothold on the east bank. Pretty impressive, if you ask me!
Grandpa Harry was half of a world away, in the Pacific Theatre. He enlisted as an Airmen after the attack on Pearl Harbor. When he first went to sign up, he was three pounds too skinny and was told to eat a bag a bananas, then come back, which is exactly what he did. Looking at him now, you might not guess that he was three pounds too thin, but that was indeed the case. Grandpa Harry was an Air Force flight navigator and flew in the plane that was the decoy mission for the Enola Gay. At this time he and the rest of the flight crew didn’t know what was going on and were not told until later what had happened. My grandpa sat next to the photographer who took the famous photo of Hiroshima, although at that point the photographer wasn’t sure what was going on. Grandpa Harry even has original photos of the Japanese emperor and President Truman signing the Japanese surrender paperwork on the U.S.S. Missouri. Following WWII, he continued to serve and was career Air Force.
Both of my grandpas are truly heroes of mine and I look forward to following in their footsteps. On this Veteran’s Day, I want to thank those who serve and those who have served, from the 19 year-old currently who is currently deployed in Afghanistan to the 89 year-old who tells his great grandchildren the stories of Normandy, Iwo Jima, and Midway.
Patriotism consists not in waving the flag, but in striving that our country shall be righteous as well as strong. ~James Bryce
To all those who strive or have striven to make this country righteous as well as strong, God bless you, and God bless America.
when i was in high school, i held down a job at a corner store (like many south philly kids did) selling groceries. it wasn’t glamorous, and most days it was actually pretty hard. standing around for 8-9 hours at a time at the cash register, stocking shelves, or delivering produce to local customers — it would wear you out.
some days, however, this old WWII vet would come into the store. coincidentally, his name was john too. john would tell all these stories of life on the european front — how he met his wife in france, memories of old war buddies, and even some of the darker moments. those were the days i really enjoyed. i knew, sadly, that he was pretty much alone at the twilight of his life and i knew how much just listening to his stories made *his* day better.
those WWII soldiers were uncommon men. they all deserve the utmost respect — as do all veterans, past and present.
great post, k
My 3rd cousin was at the “Miracle of Remagen”. Do you have a list of the NC soilders that died on 03/04/1945 or 03/07/45?
My cousin, Archie C Hillard, Jr., Ninth Armored Division, lost his live there. He was 19 years of age from Greensboro, NC.
Any help would be so appreciated.
Regards,
Tonya Angel
Greensboro, NC