James Allen Posted May 12, 2009 Share Posted May 12, 2009 I thought I'd share an interesting story with everyone. I live about a half mile from my son's school. So, recently on a very nice day, I decided to walk to pick him up. I walked across a big empty field that has a house sitting on the edge. As I approached the house there was this old gentleman, who turned out to be in his 80s standing in the yard. I struck up a conversation with the gentleman, and to my surprise, he had fought in WW II, in the liberation of France. He had some sobering stories of fighting the Nazis and seeing the gratitude on the faces of the people that he helped liberate. It was one of the coolest conversations I've ever had with anyone. It made me appreciate, again, how lucky we all are to have had men like this gentleman who stepped up and fought to save the world from tyranny. After thanking him for his service, and telling him I came from a military family, with brothers fighting in Iraq, a dad fighting in Vietnam, he, to my surprise, he told me I should walk a little further down the street and introduce myself to another neighbor who received 3 Purple Hearts during three separate tours during Vietnam. I did that, and again was rewarded with meeting a very humble man who was very proud to have served his country. I've lived in my neighborhood for 11 years, and am friendly with my closest neighbors, but I learned a lesson. It is well worth getting to know those who live in your extended neighborhood. You never know who might be living next to you! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jesus Is Dead In My Basement Posted May 12, 2009 Share Posted May 12, 2009 "Stepped up" Weren't people drafted against their will? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MikeRom Posted May 12, 2009 Share Posted May 12, 2009 "Stepped up" Weren't people drafted against their will? Nobody 'willingly' gets drafted. That's called enlisting. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cruznolfart Posted May 12, 2009 Share Posted May 12, 2009 "Stepped up" Weren't people drafted against their will? Drafted or otherwise, those who didn't run, stepped up. " All gave some, some gave all." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jesus Is Dead In My Basement Posted May 12, 2009 Share Posted May 12, 2009 Alright i get the point now, My Great grandfather is the guy who took down the red baron during world war 1. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
callen3615 Posted May 12, 2009 Share Posted May 12, 2009 Thats great. I love talking to old people about stuff like that. There good sources of knowledge. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
callen3615 Posted May 12, 2009 Share Posted May 12, 2009 Alright i get the point now' date=' My Great grandfather is the guy who took down the red baron during world war 1.[/quote'] Why?????? I love his pizzas. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flight959 Posted May 12, 2009 Share Posted May 12, 2009 The lady next door will be 100yrs old this year! How cool is that! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
James Allen Posted May 12, 2009 Author Share Posted May 12, 2009 "Stepped up" Weren't people drafted against their will? After the attack on Pearl Harbor, tens of thousands of men and women willingly enlisted to serve. During Vietnam, there were thousands who were drafted, but thousands also willingly enlisted. I have three brothers in law. All three are career military men. Two volunteered to go to Iraq and fight the Islamofascists. The third brother in law requested to fight during the Bosnian war. He wanted to do what he could to help bring peace to that country. So, your point may seem a good one, but it isn't entirely correct. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
callen3615 Posted May 12, 2009 Share Posted May 12, 2009 The lady next door will be 100yrs old this year! How cool is that! I guess thats cool. I would hate to be 100 years old tho. I hope I die before I get old... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
James Allen Posted May 12, 2009 Author Share Posted May 12, 2009 I guess thats cool. I would hate to be 100 years old tho. I hope I die before I get old... Talkin' 'bout my generation! I used to think I'd rather be dead than be forty. From where I now stand, I'm glad I didn't die at forty! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cruznolfart Posted May 12, 2009 Share Posted May 12, 2009 Talkin' 'bout my generation! I used to think I'd rather be dead than be forty. From where I now stand' date=' I'm glad I didn't die at forty![/quote'] My kids, 37, 38, 39 and 40 are all older than I thought I'd ever get. Much older. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
callen3615 Posted May 12, 2009 Share Posted May 12, 2009 Talkin' 'bout my generation! I used to think I'd rather be dead than be forty. From where I now stand' date=' I'm glad I didn't die at forty![/quote'] Well Im half your age, still feel great? JK. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
djroge1 Posted May 12, 2009 Share Posted May 12, 2009 Great story James. you beat me to the song line though... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hellion102792 Posted May 12, 2009 Share Posted May 12, 2009 My great uncle was a rear gunner on a fighter plane back during WWII. I'm not sure where he fought, I think it was over Europe. A few years ago after surviving pancreatic cancer 4 years longer than his doctor told him he would, he died on a snowy December morning trying to snowblow my grandparents walk before they woke up. His death date? December 7. 62 years to the date after the day that launched us into the war he fought in... Another one of my great uncles went MIA during the Korean War, his dogtags and remains were recovered about a year later. I agree, talking to old people about the past is great, some of the stories they have are really interesting. Something I recommend doing is recording their stories on tape or video, my older brother did it with one of my grandfathers for a 5th grade heritage project, now we have 2 hours of stories about his life on tape. My grandma has Alzheimer's now, but her long term memory hasn't been affected to badly yet. She tells a ton of stories about growing up and life back in the day, I really want to get those memories on tape before it's too late. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rocky4 Posted May 12, 2009 Share Posted May 12, 2009 I have two uncles that fought in WW2. My uncle Carl went ashore on Omaha beach and is spending the rest of his life in a leg brace. When my Uncle Eddie passed away, their were pictures of him in a bomber plane. It was explained to me that he was a bomber pilot in WW2 and was one of the volunteers that bombed Germany at night. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
James Allen Posted May 12, 2009 Author Share Posted May 12, 2009 Thanks for sharing your stories, Hellion. My dad, a Vietnam vet, would fall asleep on the couch when I was young, and he would dream about his time in Nam. Those dreams were pretty scary at times, but he never regretted his service. He'd tell me stories, and I wish I'd been smart enough to record them. But I was a teenager and had less important things on my mind. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
djroge1 Posted May 12, 2009 Share Posted May 12, 2009 I remember my grandma telling stories about working in the factory that made the bombs that were going to be dropped on the Nazis. they used to write notes on the bombs. I'll have to ask my sister if she remembers more details of those stories. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cookieman15061 Posted May 12, 2009 Share Posted May 12, 2009 "Stepped up" Weren't people drafted against their will? it's still here. ugh Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted May 12, 2009 Share Posted May 12, 2009 one of the best threads i've read on here. so just remember, next time you see some old guy driving slow or crazy, with his blinker on for 6 miles, think of what he went through when he was 20 years old. he could've been in WW 2 in hand to hand combat with a german guy with a knife or something messed up like that. cut the elderly guys some slack, they did a lot. if it werent for them we'd all be speakin german today. again, good thread. i wish more young kids today would talk to seniors in their 80's and ask them questions . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cruznolfart Posted May 12, 2009 Share Posted May 12, 2009 Thanks for sharing your stories' date=' Hellion. My dad, a Vietnam vet, would fall asleep on the couch when I was young, and he would dream about his time in Nam. Those dreams were pretty scary at times, but he never regretted his service. He'd tell me stories, and I wish I'd been smart enough to record them. But I was a teenager and had less important things on my mind.[/quote'] My Dad, who set out to be a musician but ended up a 36 year US Army officer, on the day of his 24th birthday. He stepped ashore at Omaha Beach on D Plus One (the name of my business). 11 months as a POW, 2 tours of Korea. 2 wars, eleven campaigns, I forget how many clusters on his Purple Heart. He passed on Memorial Day, 1998 in the Veteran's Hospital in San Jose, CA. I remember his stories of the Oflag. I have his papers and read them frequently. An irreplaceable generation of Americans is leaving the building at a rate in excess of a thousand per day. I grew up among giants who would, to the man (and woman), tell you they were "just doing there job." When that war was over they blended back into society and went about their lives. P.S. My paternal grandfather and great uncle fought in WWI, my Dad in WWII, I'm a VN vet, both of my Sons have served, one is a career officer in the Infantry and has been to both Iraq and Afghanistan on more than one occasion. It's a tradition in our family to serve...although *I* was drafted. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Twelvebar Posted May 12, 2009 Share Posted May 12, 2009 Alright i get the point now' date=' My Great grandfather is the guy who took down the red baron during world war 1.[/quote']heh that honor is kind of split between a canadian pilot, and (most likely the killing shot,) an Australian artillery crew. And although there was a draft, the US military had many many volunteers, and people who waited on their draft notice, without trying to dodge it. In fact the first two world wars there were many underage soldiers, who lied aboout their birthdays in order to serve. This was part of the prevailing attitude at the time that it was an honor to serve your country. things have changed, that's for sure. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Corrosion of conformity Posted May 12, 2009 Share Posted May 12, 2009 heh that honor is kind of split between a canadian pilot' date=' and (most likely the killing shot,) an Australian artillery crew. And although there was a draft, the US military had many many volunteers, and people who waited on their draft notice, without trying to dodge it. In fact the first two world wars there were many underage soldiers, who lied aboout their birthdays in order to serve. This was part of the prevailing attitude at the time that it was an honor to serve your country. things have changed, that's for sure.[/quote'] There's no honor to be gained anymore. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cruznolfart Posted May 12, 2009 Share Posted May 12, 2009 There's no honor to be gained anymore. I honor all those who serve. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
L5Larry Posted May 12, 2009 Share Posted May 12, 2009 My father was an Engineers Corps Major in WWII. He was attached to the European Theater Advance Base Headquarters. They were the engineering and supply HQ for all the US troops during the liberation of Europe. He was very involved in D-Day preparations and eveything elso it took to get the troops and supplies where they needed to be. He was highly decorated by the United States AND the French governments and even had a park named after him in Deauville, France. He was one that never talked about it. He would only tell a few stories about the fun, crazy, or goofy stuff that happened, never any of the "nuts & bolts" stuff. He didn't prohibit me from watching WWII movies on television, but would never watch one himself, he would just get up, leave the room, and go do something else. The only exception was that he did take the entire family to see the movie "Patton" at the theater when it first came out. He felt that at that time he had a job to do, and when it was done, it was time to go home and pick up where he left off, which he did. He also refused to accept any VA benefits. As a kid I did meet some of the other officers he served with, they were all Generals and Colonels, and I didn't realize until many years later that I had meet some very important people in the history of WWII and the Korean War. When the Korean War broke out he was worried that he might be called back, but was appointed Deputy Director of St. Louis County Civil Defense. I've learned more about my father's military career since his death, doing library and on-line research, than I ever did from him. I got really interested in it during all the hoopla for the 50th anniversary of D-Day, and by that time he was gone so it was too late to ask him. I wish I had had the interest and balls to ask him when he was still alive. So, as has been said above, if you have any elderly friends, relatives, neighbors, etc, ask them about the "old days" before it's too late. You never know what you might learn. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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