Warren Jensen was awarded the French Legion of Honor from the Consul-General of France, Mr. Roman Serman, in San Francisco on May 27, 2013. Mr. Jensen was a gunner in the 793rd Field Artillery Battalion, XIX Corps Artillery. The unit was equipped with M115 8-inch tractor-drawn howitzers. They supported the 2nd Armored and the 29th, 30th and 83rd as well as other Divisions.

Warren landed on Omaha Beach (at Easy Red) in June, 1944 shortly after D-Day. His campaigns included Normandy, Northern France, Ardennes Offensive, Rhineland and Central Europe. He served in the Battle of the Bulge from 16 Dec ’44 – 03 Feb ’45. He was part of the 1st Army and then eventually with the 9th Army. He was in Giessen Germany on VJ Day.

(Note: Warren is the current Secretary/Treasurer of the Chapter. He was also a founding member of VBOB National.)

William (Bill) Armstrong was awarded the French Legion of Honor from the Consul-General of France, Mr. Roman Serman, in San Francisco on May 8, 2013.  Bill was in the 26th Infantry Division (Yankee Division) and landed in France at Utah Beach on Sept 7, 1944. The 26th ID was involved in the Battle of the Bulge from Dec 19, 1944 until Jan 25, 1945 while in Luxembourg.  They were engaged in combat in six countries, France, Luxembourg, Belgium, Germany, Austria and Czechoslovakia.  Bill says he was extremely proud to have served with the Yankee Division.

(Note: Bill is a former President of the VBOB Golden Gate Chapter.)

The Legion of Honor Award was created by Napoleon in 1802 to acknowledge services rendered to France by persons of exceptional merit. It was presented to Warren for his service in the liberation of France.

Article and photos submitted by Doris Davis, Associate