On February 13, at a ceremony at the French Embassy in Washington, Mr. Hughes became a Chevalier of the Legion of Honor of France. Mr. Hughes attended the ceremony in Washington with his wife Lucille, son Terry Hughes of Verona, and daughters Susan Mead (Charlotte, NC) and Patricia Hutchinson (Belmar, NJ), and their spouses, Maria, Paul and John.

In the 68 years since his service in World War II, William Hughes, a resident of North Huntingdon Township, has said little about his experiences during the winter of 1944 and ‘45. Like many of his fellow veterans of that war, their service was a matter of duty, and the circumstances they endured helped shape the aspirations upon which they went on to build lives. Together with his four brothers, Vincent, John, Emmet and Gerald, William Hughes brought his parents the distinction of having five sons in the US armed forces simultaneously, the number one service family of  Osceola Mills, a small mining town in central Pennsylvania. 

Thinking back on that time, Mr. Hughes now 88, remembers arriving in northeastern France in November of 1944, fighting house to house near the towns of Nancy and Metz. Then on December 16, the 80^th infantry division was moved to Luxembourg for what became known as the Battle of the Bulge. After five weeks fighting in the snow, wearing camouflage made from bed sheets by the women of the nearby villages, Mr. Hughes suffered a severe head wound. He recalls waking to a medic saying to him “The war is over for you, soldier,” and offering him the piece of shrapnel that had shattered his forehead. Said Mr. Hughes, “I don’t know why I didn’t take it. I guess I just wasn’t thinking about souvenirs.”

Mr. Hughes, who spent the subsequent 6 months recuperating in hospitals in Luxembourg, England and Virginia needed no souvenirs to remember his wartime experiences. Neither, it seems, did the people of France. On February 13, at a ceremony at the French Embassy in Washington, Mr. Hughes became a Chevalier of the Legion of Honor of France. He was joined in this honor by thirteen other American veterans of the four pivotal campaigns of the liberation of France: Normandy, Provence, Ardennes and Northern France. In a stirring address, Olivier Serot Almeras, Consul General of France in the US, explained to the veterans that “this award is a sign of France’s gratitude and appreciation for your personal and precious contributions to the US’ decisive role in the liberation of our country during World War II.”

The Legion of Honor was created by Napoleon in 1802 to acknowledge services rendered to France by persons of exceptional merit. The ceremony was followed by a champagne reception.

Dear History Enthusiasts, Professors and Friends,

Hope you are all doing well!  Please excuse this impersonal invitation to a rare opportunity. The WWII Veterans of the Battle of the Bulge – Northwest Chapter (#6) are having a Spring Luncheon on April 13th and we’d LOVE to have you attend.

It is going to be a grand event and I’ve attached a flyer so you’ll have all the details.  Alice Miller and Peter Lahmann will be presenting a special program on military uniforms and their stories.  (I’ve put some information on Alice and Peter below.)  This is going to be a terrific event with great food, an awesome presentation, outstanding displays, and an opportunity to meet some people who made WWII history!

The flyer includes a registration form for anyone who would want to attend.  Also, we would appreciate your assistance in getting the word out about the event.

If you have any concerns or questions, please feel free to contact me.  We look forward to seeing you in April!

With God’s love, Beth (and Jim) Pennock

Presidents of the Northwest Chapter of VBOB

(206) 783-0212

Alice Miller is a nationally recognized historian who also specializes in military uniforms – more than 140 vintage uniforms ranging from World War I to Desert Storm to today. She tours and hosts shows and displays for Children’s Hospitals, United Service Organization (USO) galas, schools, senior centers, museums, fund-raisers, special military events, historical societies, and was invited to Pearl Harbor in support of a December 7th commemoration to portray women in the service.  She is also a Living History performer at the Museum of Flight.  Alice’s passion is sharing about women’s military uniforms – their histories, origins and the women who wore them so proudly.

Peter Lahmann did his first historical military display in November 1981.  Historical displays have led Peter from 24 years of displays for Armed Forces Day at Ft. Lewis, to the Beaches of Normandy, and to the frozen Hills of the Ardennes, supporting the display efforts of friends in Longchamps, just outside of Bastogne, Belgium.  He has done displays ranging from WWI to Desert Storm sometimes covering Marine Corp and Navy as well as World War II Infantry and Engineers.  He currently, in addition to uniforms, patches, equipment, and paper items, owns and maintains seven military vehicles ranging from WWII to Vietnam, five of which are running at the current time.

Click here to read his story that appeared in the Weatherford Democrat, Weatherfrod, TX

Once again our soldiers were called to duty to stop the German advance at Fort Indiantown Gap in January 2013. Dan Santagata 5th Infantry Division, 7th Combat Engineer Battalion was one who participated in the event coordinated by Dave Shaw.
Letters written by local school children were given to the veterans. Click here to read a letter.
 

The Remember 39-45 Museum was created and maintained by Mathilde and Marcel Schmetz, who  are known by all United States Veterans of the Battle of the Bulge  as the Belgian M&Ms  is setting up a special area to display memorabilia about “Rosie the Riviter”. Mathilde and Marcel would like any Rosie the Riviter to please send them any pictures taken during World War II and a current photo, which would then be displayed in the museum.

The Remember 1939-1945 Museum was opened by American veterans in June 1994. It is a private collection made up mainly of objects abandoned by the GIs in December 1944 in the farm of the owner, before they set off for the battle of the Ardennes. The various dioramas, divided up on three floors, trace the history of our region, part of which ended up annexed to Germany. The museum’s mission is primarily educational, which is why all visits take the form of guided tours. This is a chance for children in new classes to take a history course with images and relief works. Many are the US veterans who have entered this museum, happy to to see that what they did for us has not been forgotten.

After their visit, all visitors feel a sense of gratitude towards the Belgian and American veterans who risked their lives to offer us a present that we shall probably never be able to give back to them: Freedom

Address and contact information for the museum:
Les Bolles, 4
4890 Thimister-Clermont
Phone 087 44 61 81
Fax 087 44 65 08
Web site www.remembermuseum.com

M&Ms are asking all veterans of the Battle of the Bulge to please help them contact any of their acquaintances who may have been a Rosie the Riviter. Anyone desiring further information may contact:
Christian W. de Marcken
Secretary and historian of chapter 22, Central Massachusetts
e-mail cwdemarcken@verizon.net

Hello, 

 My name is Louis Vander Stuyft. I’m 17 years old living in Belgium. For school I need to make a paper about a certain topic we can choose. Because I’m interested in the second world war I choose the topic: The Battle of the Bulge.
The title of my work is:How did the Allies counter the german attack at the battle of the bulge at world war II?

I already described what I found in history books. To make my work more personal I would like answers to the following questions.

What is your name?
What is your nationality?
How old were you when you fought in the battle of the bulge?
In what division, battalion, regiment did you fight in the war?
What rank did you have?
How did you get involved in the war? Did you volunteer?
Where and when did you fight in the battle?
Did you thought the war was as good as over before the Germans launched their offensive in the Ardennes?
What did you think when you heard the Germans launched a big offensive?
Was the battle of the Bulge a battle like any other battle in the second world war or was it different at any way?
How was the moral of the troops, of your friends, of you at the time?
How was the weather?  Did you or your friends had trouble with the weather conditions? What did you do against it?
Did the enemy had more recourses (weapons, ammunitions, food …) then you did?
How did the allies win the battle of the bulge? Whas it the courage, the hard fighting of the troops on the field or where it the plans of the generals who made the difference (or a combination of both)?
Were there many casualties in your unit?
Did you get help from the people who lived in the area of the battle?
Did you ever return to Belgium? How did it feel? 

Do you have some more interesting information,  facts, stories…?  You can always tell me.
Can you maybe add a picture of you (at the battle)?  

Thank you very much for your help! Kind regards

Louis

                      ***************************

Please forward your response by 3/1/13 to either of the following:

Ralph@battleofthebulge.org

or

VBOB, PO Box 336, Blue Bell, PA 19422

Ten members of the Lehigh Valley Chapter, pictured below, were awarded the French Legion of Honor at the French Embassy in Washington DC on November 20, 2012.

Front row (l-r)
William Leopold – 75^th Infantry Division
Evangeline Coeyman – 59^th Field Hospital

Back row (l-r)
Gene R. Nadig – 750^th Tank Battalion
Morris D. Metz – 94^th Infantry Division
John A. Caponigro – 87^th Infantry Division
Jack A. Lippincott – 8^th Convalescent Hospital
Nathan Kline – 9^th Air Force
Roy A. Minnerly – 11^th Armored Division
Frank Maresca – 75^thInfantry Division
Donald W. Burdick – 16^th Field Artillery

Two other chapter members were awarded French Legion of Honor, but are not in the group picture

Six members of the Veterans of the Battle of the Bulge who are also members of the Lamar Souter Chapter of  VBOB were awarded the French Legion of Honor on October 23, 2012.

(l-r standing)
Robert Nordgren – 83^rd Infantry Division
Fabien Fieschi – Consul General of France
Frank Woolridge – 90^th Infantry Division

(l-r sitting)
Armand Descoteau – 80^th Tank Battalion
Edward J. Pizzetti – 75^th Infantry Division
Margaret Hammond Walenski – 16^th General Hospital
Roger Wheeler – 702^nd Tank Destroyer Battalion

Submitted by Christian W. de Marcken, Associate

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