Through Their Eyes; 2

Hello and welcome to our special presentation entitled through their eyes remembering the Warriors. My name is Bill McShane and my father Lee served in the United States Navy for several years during World War 2. He kept this diary about the hardship of life aboard ship and how much he missed our family. My father passed away in 1909 but I will cherish his words forever. World War 2 touched the lives of every family on every street in every town in America. Through their eyes remembering the Warriors is a collection of oral histories from Virginia residents who experienced the war firsthand including U.S. and German veterans family members and a concentration camp survivor. The documentary originally premiered on Blue Ridge PBS December 7th 1990 the 50th anniversary of the attack on Pearl Harbor in 2007. The documentary was remade into a four part series and digitally remastered with additional archival footage and other enhancements. Since the original broadcast many of those who share their experiences in this documentary have passed away this

documentary is dedicated to them and all those who served and sacrificed during World War 2. Our first episode explored the origins of the war in Europe and the Pacific after defeating Rommel in North Africa. The Allies prepared to invade Italy in the Pacific. The island hopping campaign has begun. We pick up our story at sea OPP the beaches of Guadalcanal in 1942. This production contains some graphic images and stories reflecting the realities of war. Parental discretion is advised. We went in Guadalcanal in the seventh and very early in the morning

on the 9th is when we were attacked. And this was also a wound that night. We knew where the Japanese ships were. We knew that there was a large Japanese taskforce force coming down at that time we knew exactly where they were how many ships they were how long it would take for them to get there and all like I think the word that we had gotten the instruction we had gotten was that they couldn't get there before daybreak and we expected the attack or something like that about six o'clock in the morning. We were waiting for you know we were actually waiting for him but turned out that they got there at 1 o'clock in the morning and we weren't ready for him. And when they came in the reason they were able to get there much faster because they were able to come through areas at least we were told that we thought we were impassable to the larger ships. But they did

get there at one o'clock in the morning instead of what we thought was six they called us and no question why my complete surprise. But anyways the Japanese ship came in and they they fired a large number of them. That's what we call star shells at that time. And he lit up the entire area by this time. No one was ready for it was a tremendous amount of confusion. We didn't even know who ship was what ship it was. Our ship and which ones were there they were actually in in among the our own ships. And so the firing began at that time and they took the the Quincy and of in sounds both heavy cruisers almost immediately but they really took down and with heavy casualties. And they also had gotten the Australian cruiser Canberra that night on a communication between the ships. There was a lot of your

fire at me you know kind of the our ships were actually fire on ships. And of course the Japanese were firing at us. Maybe they knew a little bit better where they were than we did. So there was a lot of a very large amount of confusion. No one was I don't think anybody really knew who was shooting at who. So what was happening was that if you shot the one ship was shooting at you you just are trying to fire and you didn't care. And. Well when the confusion in a sense was over the Japanese fleet actually came through and these are all ships. And as I understand submarines too they got the other three ships that were actually sunk three heavy cruisers were actually sunk. I was the fourth heavy cruiser was now the I think we were the only one who was left in that group of three or four. There were at least four heavy cruisers in there they came in and now they came up both sides of our ship and they were

pounding at us with gunfire. How far away. Point blank as we called it you see and you see the gunfire right from you know it was in the channel between Sable Island and Guadalcanal. And so we were just pounded and in a way that is very difficult to appreciate. They had leveled just about everything from the communication tower communications office there all the way back to the hangar were levelled with the ground but we did not take any torpedo they just beat us. Was shell fire and then by the time I got the communication off just before I went into the office we got hit very close to that which I received fire the concussion sort of a stinging effect but not actually hit there at least not wounded. Anyway so I went into the communication office and and here too was much confusion here as was anywhere else.

No one in a Cessna would have done but we all got on our stations and trying to communicate with whoever we could communicate with. It wasn't long before we took another hit on the right side on the on the port side and then I guess the one mediately after that the shell hit the the port side of the the Radio Shack medication off where I was at. And of course everything went blank when I first came to and looked up I saw a light coming through the bulkhead as we color the area that had been opened up. I knew I was hit. I thought I was dying. And as I laid there I. My first reaction is that I would die and it's just a matter of time. And then little by little I realized I was not die and I was still alive. And so then I started moving around and by this time I had a few places that burned and blood

running down my face and. And my I had two shrapnel hit one in each foot and both of in a sense were no oh I guess I laid there for a half an hour or so. And then we were given instruction to by an abandoned ship the vessel was sunk. It did go down. How large was the crew. Eleven hundred on board. I want to show you how many of you were here. Well let's see. I understood at that time they told us we were five or six hundred were killed and two or three hundred were wounded which I was one of that group. And evidently somebody did manage to survive. The war was a kaleidoscope. The spout of them seemingly happening at a random and different parts of the world in Eastern Europe. Hitler's orders were to start preparing the conquered countries for the future as he envisioned it. Again Max

trumpeter. There was getting all the Polish Tonawanda I want it drawn on another time on expected. They killed all the people in the city of meow it's it's where I called I was living in reality and I come to try to push my family moved out of it. He was living without a mission in life. Father had a boat train there wonder brought against upper body to destroy the city of a lot of Michelin. Friday night when the Jewish people got to God to save the synagogues and only had nobody out the seventh high minds had it told me then this city is going to get to start on Sunday and they're on it think you will got rid can go to that camp. So you don't

go there when you volunteered to go to work I want to help me find out who died and then it's gone to Saturday afternoon is going to be our talk in that in that camp they go in take out maybe about 50 or 60 people and that's going to be able Gomer survive a life of this style. On Sunday I had to go. How did you go to get her you got her the drug. OK we got to talk. Maybe my father got to do coke and he bought me my father my younger brother was Knox in Moser's was oh yes a year younger and he bought the ones 13 years old. They come to talk. I says you good non ice like that you get none of it is no. I've gotten my other children home with my wife with you. Do you not do it with my wife and just can't leave. Well there's going to have with me is going to have an

adult was taught to assess her glow. So I told my brother was name my brother's name the younger one. Do you or do you know so he's name was shallow. How long when he was peace. I could take him at a talk he could get by first 17 18 years old. Maybe you got to go installation maybe survived. I asked my father you want to go and talk he said no I he says a hoss my cello. But nothing can just come out to my mind a challenge be with you. Let Peace be with you. I was thinking about the whole family my mother my team. Oh to all on my sisters and daughters. Let Peace be with your set I was afraid to take him because I was afraid. There said if Dave discovered it and the people was not that I'd take it and they get on and talk a day they're less than

80 years old to go and get shot and you're going into the camp they're going to get shot. Remember this is yet another talk minded guy in my Mordecai and I waved away and the last time I saw you were called out left. The whole time I was really so down. Towards. Him. O'Connor's. Journal no different than your phone. It's. Locked on your phone. For some time. Very offended and all kind of swoops. SS It's time when you said. You know that stuff and. The headlines were being grabbed by victories in the Coral Sea in a bad way. Hard fought and bloody. But the strategists had already come to the conclusion that the key to victory lay in Europe and the first task was to get millions of American soldiers from here to there and often it was messy.

There were no season October. The end of September 42. Gangland doing that now like to touch on a little bit coming. I were only Queen Mary. Queen Mary. Now 100 16th inf. it's what we were in London 16th inf. was from Roanoke. MARTIN Salle Bedford Lynchburg Harrisonburg employer. Sean Bell. You know just around central Virginia here. You know the whole hundred 16th infantry and attach troops with it. Represented some like 13000 troops. Yeah that Queen Mary traveled alone. Yeah I went fast because I'm Steve Young. Speed. But about a day and a half off the coast of Scotland they sent a man sweeper out to protect us and they got to sweep in back in

front of us here with all these troops up on deck and all over the place. We cut that ship and had. It within five minutes. Three hundred and thirty British sailors that half the ship went down one sat half the other. Where were you when this happened they had a half off Kosova Where were you. Person I was up on deck. We you were looking at the minesweeper when you know you want to hit it. Well we really didn't. You couldn't see from back where I was but all at once I felt a Queen Mary quiver. You know you could tell it someone's wrong and the first thing I think you will you know talk Peter hit the ship because that's what I had to back him on the line all right but the point I want to make that the Book of these troops in 100 sixteenth of a tree were from central Virginia. Yes oppose that accident. There was no way we could have been in the survivors if a Serb had a got a U boat. Of that accident with that ship had been worst and it was a knot hole in the Queen

Mary and you could put a house in but they were able to seal off the partners and kept going. You know the next day we were in Scott. They just say put it would have been had we all drank part of the young population of the entire center we'd been 12 to 13 fellows from this section of Roanoke East I think was three hundred thirty two British sailors who died right before us. That was our first taste of combat. Could you see them struggling in the Yeah Yeah you know what do you think tomorrow you can stop all of it. Queen Mary did not blow his whistle. I went over in a big convoy you know said look all round this ship ships there were all kinds and it took 15 days to do it and I think going across the North Atlantic and you know a German U-boat was I-30 it and they told us about that. But it became a part of the first hundred han a killer group that was formed in the Atlantic. We didn't actually travel as a

convoy escort we were either and from where we were a start of Omar we were up off to one side and we would we would hunt submarines and we were very successful I think altogether the group killed about 12. Well I was a teen. Each bomber pilot four engine bomber pilot that's about like being a Teenage Werewolf I was always younger than everyone else. Indeed I was the youngest B-24 first pilot in the war. And people give me a hard time on account of this. On the weekends if you went out you had a girlfriend some guy older and you invariably wound up taking her away from you for example. It became a serious thing of Eventually when I got my first crew and I was the youngest guy on it. They were all aware that all my in CEOs and the officers the other officers with three officers and six and CEOs on the crew other than myself and it did put some special pressures on it and I guess probably the second happiest day of my life was the 20th of April May

10th of April of 1944 when we were taking off from our Cynthia West Palm Beach Florida going to combat. It was my 20th birthday I was no longer a teenager. You're leaving there to go the southern route down to South America fly the South Atlantic that would have been over there for their own good. That was latter interesting to the age of 20 years and eight days the day we actually made the Atlantic crossing. I was a young US pilot to ever fly the Atlantic Ocean nonstop and still am. We were confident we were cocky nervous scared a little bit of course but convinced that with Americans going to battle in North Africa and then Italy the world would soon learn how quickly we could bring this whole mess to an end. After the first engagements British war hardened veterans were heard using a variation of the title of a popular movie of the time How Green Was My ally. It was not undeserved.

Why first taste of combat came. During the landings at. The Del. Mar Roxas. My landing. Gear were taken under fire as we approached the beach. By a French strong. Car our right flank was on the point. Of the knowledge that we received a 50 caliber machine gun fire and some. Were. Fired. At a tank caliber fire probably thirty seven millimeter. Fortunately none of us hit our craft all old several rounds did hit the grass near us when we were. Hit the beach. Among the first things I saw were several of our soldiers who would who would fall and one said that they were. Father for the first. Catholic chaplain. For chapel. Hill.

Who. I was the. One. And I remember well trying to put it as kind of possible but with me we were in experience. I got a lot to learn to. All we did one know when I think back on our state of training when we hit the beach is that in Morocco in November 1942. I would almost have to shutter. Had we had to face a and experienced the term sizable enemy. Fortunately the French were prepared to present an honorable opposition before the armistice. And that spared us not only many losses but conceivably many embarrassments simply because of our green house. But

gradually as time wore on we became very experienced. So that was it the initial exposure. Later in Sicily where I was the first part of that op. Reason for very rapid advance northward through the island to level the second eastward thrust of the scene. A feature that would be a very bitter. Fight with the Germans fighting a retrograde type action and. A. School full adult. And we paid quite a toll for that. And we not only gained a healthy respect for the ability of the Germans to. Handle themselves well technically but also to use their weapons to very good advantage particularly the landmines which were a curse to us so throughout the war. You remember that first combat jump and I remember that.

System. Might deem to order the third. Coming that you know we would. Lift carillon North Africa and through adult water and jumped it. But 15 minutes after way of. Midnight. I've got close to the coast. Seriously there are some anti-aircraft fire. Going down in the Himalayas. An aircraft fire can. Cause the pilots to veer off course and in fact was we have to jump all over says you didn't land we were supposed to land. Oh no not not were brought by Dan miles off. Or coming down. Oh yes sir. Remember. When I remember. Little shooting at us to.

Jump to one to allow it to Granta could have been after you had. But that you got on the ground whatever bad it was they were trying to get together. Was it like you thought I was going to be. I didn't think it would get that bad but it also you guys you have to have a man laying there and you could do things that are going to bother you but much that bothered me but lost about it yesterday. We now know you but you didn't know but you still were not terribly experienced it on CNN. I mean the entire round seal landing was my exactly a hugely successful operation immediately. Well the landing itself technically as far as the planning and the execution

was exceedingly well done. Again against very light opposition. Now what happened after we got ashore of course has been the subject of grand debate ever since these and resulted in the relief of the corps commander. It was alleged had failed to be sufficiently aggressive to carry the beachhead forces inland to cut Highway 6 thereby breaking the back of the German line across the AF and eins to the south a casino. And as a result of that. Lack of aggressiveness the beach had stabilized rather quickly for him. Throwing out look at training forces when we were held there from the 22nd of January the day of the landings until a breakout the latter part of May we jump behind our alliance. General Clark's basted was threatened so they jumped us

and got his strength and they cheered and pushed the Germans back. We're not doctors. Look man the biases are very going to the mountains. Have when Germans are. One and done away with Devin. So we had to work the right way over the mountain from down the saddle. Get rid of them so we could. Get I mean you know across man and he supplies through there through this tunnel. The lessons had been hard won but learned and applied as training in England for the climax to all this came to its conclusion. We were getting ready for the invasion of the continent. Where were you when you first knew that you were going to be part of the operation was going to take place and you were going to be part of it. We had an inkling still

early on that we had to be in the invasion because we had been training in England saw training under you know under the auspices of the British commandos and so forth and we knew that something had to happen you know what we didn't know when of course nor where did you enjoy your time in England. Oh yeah I liked and there's so many things I didn't see. I would be interested in Stonehenge for instance yet own 25 mile march as we went back several times. It one of the biggest cathedrals in in England salt dissolves back. And I remember one time I dated a girl from cells buried one Sunday afternoon and she said Would you like to see the cathedral I said no this go down to the park down by the river you know if I had to go over I would look at so many different things. I didn't bother with it and I was old and rested a good time. But life turned pretty earnest after a short time right here after we began to

pick up train and they start taking us out on ships you know. It's a bark and a landing craft and hit the beach. Yeah all along that area down there first lapped and sands and. Plymouth all down and. At. It. We begin to. Read the training intensified more you know and you can tell that. Things were getting ready in the scene more and everywhere you looked the same supplies and troops. Pouring into southern England. When they briefed us we had a sand table a model of the beach just a like just like it. You know we encountered and the bluster and the very real church steeple that we were to God on the verbal draw. It's all right on the table and we knew exactly where we're supposed to hear or what our job was so Joan stood up and I can fit five gallon drum. That's when we found out where we were going solo as we were going to

France so we were right at the English Channel man and go load up. He said his goal be men killed and he said it's going to be a lot of five going on and he said if things go according to playing we'll do this that the US if they showed us where to mine field. We don't have this taped or if you drive in his area. And so the last thing I remember him saying was he said we've got plenty of equipment. Don't worry about when a lot of this didn't plummet I never see as much of equipment and trucks in my life in the ships. As you can see another time comes and US sequester you're behind barbwire you're not going to go out again this is it. Let's going inside bobsledders that's nothing. I mean I was I was I knew that war was you know was bad and so forth that I had so much supreme confidence in my ability

that I had no fear whatsoever. I was just I mean I was eager you know just like going to plan a football game you're all psyched up when you're ready to go and you you know you're not fairly fearful at all because I heard the first shot fired in anger I didn't know what it was like to see my buddy get his head knocked off you know so I didn't really know what it was like even though I thought I did but I did I had no idea. How can you possibly recreate D-Day for a generation so far removed from such an experience. Well let's try a picture first the south of England as one immense armed camp vehicles moving everywhere harbors clog was shipping uniformed man Americans British Canadians and yes French Dutch and still others all tense all knowing that the climax of this war. They just ahead. Pictures I'm laden down with the tools of war. Clambering clumsily aboard landing craft looking over at Stuart said. Every kind of war vessel imaginable almost sixty five hundred of them in

all so many it seems a sea couldn't contain such numbers. The sea is gray. So why the overcast sky resounding and Linley with the roar of aircraft overhead. The power troopers went in last night. Now picture yourself probably East Moline steam boat smells bad. The laughter of the camp the bad jokes the horse play all behind you and the engine of your slab sided landing plan rushed into action and now you and the rest of the cement are in motion. Moving toward the shore 20 miles away but you know. An entrenched enemy. Just here just destruction of what the standing means for the future of the war as any of us. Waits in his pill boxes and the front doors. Every weapon of his armory painted on that beach where you and 176 thousand others will soon strike a commission and he thought. He may have had. One. Only. In one in. The combat zone. And. Among all those others.

Along. With. Will have trouble making the pick for reality. But then see it through the eyes of some who did it including one who was in the room. Where the decision to go was made the most important thing I witnessed was I will have a say in that we invade Europe on June the 6th. If that decision had been made to try to get very regular weather. But if he had not ultimately just sized everything up and said we're on June the 6th I don't know that none of us would be sitting in this room on. This. I've never came around you know and I wish I felt looked new with a new song you know you you know he can run waving at us and what he said would be if we looked out of it was against Mali he would do serious. You're jumping around on the continent you know invading invading Europe and you knew it was going to be

there's going to be rough. We got out our joint problem in the great big bomb where you know it bombed the heck out of there American Air Force and there was a feel and a hole I get bigger room here. I laid out in the bottom of it got out more how felt I ought to fix a millimeter mortar and I got out that hole and we're going to try to farm because we're going to clip in things you look like and yeah and there was click and there were and I would write for them they were there for me so I got the green light and would jump right in. I would say that my yard day out of town that St. Mary delays. How long were you in the air. Oh a matter of seconds you guessed it made not over a minute but quick to get on the ground. You know there by trying to get together enough we can use these things.

Yes that's right they had the famous crickets. That's right and the night was full of that sound like a loving gun free zone your honour's an air man. I'll be all right Expeditionary Force you are about to embark upon the great crusade for which we have striven these many months. The I you know I want I want you. The word come that night that afternoon light. We go tomorrow. And if they come in for my eyes and I was read to everybody and you spent that night. No no I don't think it about have slept much because from what we were shown you see that those maps it was perfectly obvious we were in for a hard task. Those cliffs sadly knew those pill boxes in those clips. We knew there were Germans in there and no matter how much they softened it up we knew they still go be fight when we got there. This is three o'clock in the morning and the planes are flying. They were firing they were

dropping their bombs supposedly on them on the beach. Did. You know I would reflection you can actually feel the vibrations explode. For flecking off the clouds. I don't but three in the morning. It's when we start to load out on smaller craft. I think we're probably 10 12 miles off the coast of Normandy and cause everybody is going around saying go back. Famous saying without sea on the beach because everybody thought he was going to make sure you're young. Oh yeah. We were well-trained. We felt like there we were and had enough training. We read. Going to get over it.

Going in we had to circle the salon until everybody was loaded and everything was done on a time schedule you know. And we circled for a long time before we broke off and study and breast you know like in at I think you had six or seven boats with. The big guns broke loose. I don't know where the bell shields and crews came from but it came up from way. Right challenge just fine. And finally we got him close now when we see that mountain OK you know we know we need to see an explosion go

today. As far as you could say there were ships their way we could hear planes going oh as we got in Battleship Texas was off downright pasty it was going and came to the Navy knew that it. Was getting closer we saw our rocket. And these rocket. Fire amethysts. Hold may at one time. I'm sick I'm seasick and I'm cold and I move along. Right. You know you're you know these things are not going to be exactly what we thought. We start finding. Out about. Two or three. Doors. Sure. They were firing. Artillery. You.

Never. Saw him. More. Room. For a lot of. Pounding these guys are so you know way up in the air and water would come back to him. And then get in a little closer and. That's. That's what hit us. You know machine. But before we got in that close I'd say was still a good 50 60 yards out I stood up for some reason. Stupid I did I stood up and I and I could see the right. Landing Craft authority ramp down in a manner of trying to get off and they were all they opened up on him to see if they would just get the wife down. I would say 150 yards. In a British Cox and said I can't go any further. He dropped and ran and when he did now a company which was from Bedford right here disposed of lead in front

of us. But I looked over I couldn't see us out on that beach. The machine gun fire and smoke. I didn't see it. But they just about got wiped out. The net ramp went down and machine gun opened up. It was a cross from. The standard. Those guys had been there for you. They had those machine guns locked in the place where they could just sleep at beach. And hear exactly where they were fighting at the end. Oh really. Do that much. I mean we're not. All killed but you know in a reason I didn't get killed. When it comes time to go off that boat was jumping up and down and it threw me off the SAT. You know I was pretty heavily loaded and I hooked my heel us up and I went off the side of the ramp. Down in the water. Straight to the bottom where the water was up to my.

Neck. Not come up. CAPTAIN. Hollered he was hit he was probably 10 feet. Two feet from. Started toward. He was down. None of the others and I see. Them. In that. Twenty minutes later I was still struggle around it there was a mortar shell a sudden hit real close to me and not begrudge it but there were some mylar Auxerre were mine on a bottom up while those that exploded near were slow. Just a log float and I hung on to that until my head cleared up and some guy from another company I never knew who it was it was in that water and help me get assaulted. Once I got this out jacking off I could crawl in fairly good and I pushed out logs and crawl till I got to the beach to Montana

and the first first not seen on the beach men were dead laying everywhere. Man Rena wanted to roll tide roll. Close. To deprive. You. He said I'm here. Enough time to crawl over to. The he raised up on his hands you know and when he did this type of hit in the head his face just dropped in the same. Lot of people in our craft. One of the you know I want to go outside of course we had heavy equipment and then the coxswain wanted to drop the wrap about 50 50 yards out then I put in charge of the front right front of the craft. I was sitting about six or seven from the front on the left. So I heard what he said he told the guys you know you that they can always stand there they've got heavy equipment on became British. It's going to be a QO office all the way and then the

guy wouldn't he said no it's not proper I'm told that it's 45 and stuck it up to this here he's an hour away and then he took us all the way way west on the right flank of the whole thing was too far to the right. The best way the tide car the same way the boat when Ian and we'd landed and we had to face about a 40 foot cliff straight up and coming off our boat we hit a sand bar code when you know hit a sandbar and then it hit the sand bar the cab dropped the ramps and everybody started going out an innocent another dip by the waves. Doug I would say as much. When I hear that I was weighted down with I Want A. Solid jacket. Rifle and now this kind of stuff say and I had to shuck it right in the water because I couldn't swim with it and there was a lot of over my head but I held on to my rifle and a couple of vandalism ammunition around the neck and made it to

shore and we did this one boy and I both. Got shot. Down. Germans up on top of this cliff. And they opened fire on a boat just as a ramp come down. And I was at last. Scuse me I was the last man to come off the boat because I was in charge of the boat and I had to make sure everybody was off when I came out and he was wounded and bleeding in the water and I drug him as far as I could. I like because the way is a washing back was involved and got him up on a rock left him laying on that. But it eventually died because we couldn't get him in. No first day I wake up we got wiped out and they were down they were down 100 yards to the right of us we landed to the left of where we were supposed to but thank God we did if we land from that drawl just like make up some of the. Craft and become your life right there in that same place behind they and they got wiped out. With nothing in front of you but the bluff and driving from us. Were. Down a lot of

job lot of Germans. No one knows. And I would have stayed in water but i m. I got down in the water. Just. Here. Showing. And. There were few. And No. People man getting hit by screaming and blood in the water and you know and it was it was carnage carnage. Hall. At the police Abed behind the wall. And little of the taxi just discussing the pinot. Hill but. He was sniping and if you moved on at Beachy shot you just like you did decide to write. A mood real slow round bodies crawling on my hands and lay my head down to say and it wants to live until I made it to this wall. And behind a wall that's protection it was for other fellows that. It would they were Dubai does reflect me and just with the tide washed in as the

waves brought them in. Some were still alive. We would pick those up and send them you know Duba could for a lot of our day and just drag the wet to the sad so the Tad did get up. And basically that's where I spent most of that day. It was 10:30 in the morning and he said All right. LCT number five twenty two go for a sailor. Put on his helmet and lifejacket got a Thompson submachine gun and went up to the front. And this thing came only him and he dropped a rail. Let's go. I we when you still have not. I was getting a little bit but not panicking not you know not really. And off I went we've been training for the last you know off into what I went. Well I drove about maybe 25 or 30 feet. Water came on up in floorboard

and what you couldn't see was a crater you know a shell crater in my truck. Then I hit a crater. The truck went up on Sat and I bailed out and they told us how to just drop it and I dropped everything when I got to France. In other words when I quit spitting salt water I was soaking wet and all I had was a gay ass manse and run a little pouch. Then I had a little can of oil and a few patches you know cleaner I was all I when I got to France I lost all my equipment to keep from drowning. Sure they were I got to the sea wall and right after that my gun jammed full of sand so I had to take my rankled off spread it out. That's when I saw the holes in the rank of bread. I think that my mom and want to part start clean. And. Organize a squat. I.

Didn't have a gun I had a proper nobody had a weapon. Why did he carry that tripod. Why didn't. He just a tremendous soldier that's why he was the most the bravest guy I've ever seen. But there was nothing to put on it nothing to put on it but we found something to put on. We hooked up with some people from HQ with his secretary and. They had again with no traffic. So we got we got together and had a machine and we actually fired into some pill box there on the beach not that we didn't do any good but it would be released that little. Minute little anger he clammed up hand over hand that Bob wanted to get up to the top and we got up and the Germans had disappeared then and we took over that position at the top of this cliff got in their own mailboxes and things and we stayed at that afternoon. And course we could see the Germans out in front of us. One of them in a row. Some of them know myself and know that they didn't have approach to come back to

the beach where we were located. Time just I can't I just don't know what time it was but some time probably in the mid morning or something we hooked up with some man from becoming a bill Presley was he let our little group and we got on top of the hill we could see the Germans firing a number of efforts you know the screaming meemies more rocket motors so they all had remembered down down the hill that he had seen and now you will. Oh. Observation officer with a radio on his back. So Bill went back down the road down to the beach retrieve dead radio and went back up on the Hill and directed the far from the story. Chaplin directed on that than I will for. Not. And that night we got orders to come back. Down the cliff and come down to beat to join what was left of our company. And we walked this whole

beach and bodies were watching me and I was just like cordwood rolling over backwards and forward dead bodies and you had to step over those as you went down the beach. To get down to where we met the rest of the what was left of our company. My surroundings were in fact so they just file bombed out trucks and have tracks sciatic brought foot soldiers in knocked out up there and the first date American I saw was a sail that out realized and asked up to do the ones you hear going over is what you don't have to worry about me. All right I heard it counted and that's when I really panicked and when I fail in the saying and there was a sailor then they're looking at me and I realize he was gone. Then I said Oh God. And then I began to look around. Reed warns the 1st Infantry Division and twenty nine theater and I'm told

that twenty five hundred Americans lost their lives that day. When did you start to think you were going to survive this May the 8th 1945. I was at they the war and that's when I thought it was there but the imminence of death of all that the whole time I didn't I never thought I'd get back. No way. For the Germans. Everything was changing. The beachheads had been secured. Allied troops were moving inland. The battle for France had foully started and they were losing. But then the time went by and the war went on. And 1943 happened and you were drafted. I was drafted. You remember how you felt that you know. And I was not alone. We called ourselves the witch landslips to Hoffnung Germany's last hope like they haven't done a Disfarmer. We can do it either but we have to go. That's why we felt you

know we were retreating we lost standing right by that time we lost North Africa. I don't know how to describe that feeling. You were drafted but you don't really know for what. Did you go where did you go into action first. I think it was sent a lot of we were coming in at night and I saw some of the heavy tanks meeting us. And I asked one of the guy where are you going. He said we're going to reassemble back here and you know I didn't like that feeling you know they were going back the heavy weapons were going back and we were going in. And. We were finally surrounded. I think there said they. Had their loot. And there was. A 24 hour a day somebody. By their own bio Tillery. Yeah I had taken cover in a foxhole.

And. When I finally saw a gun pointed at me and a guy said. Come on. I just dropped everything I had and came out there was there was a bunch of Canadian tanks and soldiers rounding us up and I was surprised how many of us survived that. A bombardment. War is someone has said 90 percent boredom and 10 percent stark terror is also wounds it is death. But in this war thanks to the tremendous advances in medicine and the fantastic devotion of the medics for the first time your chances of survival if you were hit were good then f out. July the 13th. Friday July the 13th Incidentally I got hit bad I'm

just saying hello. When I had to be evacuated got a Purple Heart that right you know when you get hit driver to say no. I'm not. It was on the morning of July 13th. There was a heavy mist. And I had been on guard duty with my B.A. are right on the road that led to. Saint known factors the. Market said four kilometers to say no. I just laid there watching for anything that might come up to the road and then there became a brook Brodeur motor show off so I thought I better get back in my hole. So I did. About that time. One landed very close and first I got first so you know I kind of. Felt a trickle down my

face and I don't know whether I went up there and saw but I don't. But but I I knew something had happened. So they brought a man to take care of me. How could you stand it. Well it was just slower warded body. We were so busy you didn't have time to think. You just worked. It's 20 out of I as I knew worked and if we had a lot of casualties come in and we continued to work. Maybe a few hours off and then back around us so it was nothing else to do. You are out in the fields and you lived in a tent and you worked right there. You worked 12 hours a day or at least more than I remember one day. In Belgium I was walking down the hall and the soldier reached up for me and he said You're the American girl aren't you. Well I was anything but pretty. I mean three things that I was not a beauty by any means. And he looked at me and started crying and

and I said yes where the girl said how you do a lot of us that time anyway I kept talking to him and said How old are you. He said I can't armors said 17 or 18 I said how long you been in the service. He said six weeks. I said when did you go into combat and he said this morning and he was crying his eyes that he was a baby it should been homilies mother. Now that bothered me an awful lot. People who are involved in fighting a war do not spend their time dividing it into neat phases. If they're at the top they're involved with making plans. Others are more likely to be intimately concerned with the details of survival. Prepare yourself to bear this for a single occasion is hard enough but now what have we faced tonight. Tomorrow and again and again. I'm Joe Michaels and we'll see what that was like in the next chapter when we look at the war.

Through their eyes.