ONE VETERAN'S STORY

   SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 11TH., 2018
                   FAMILY HEREOS!

     Veteran's Day seems like an appropriate
time to tell you about my cousin Billy.
      We've had a lot of family members
who have served in the military through the
years. In fact, one of the relatives on my
mother's side of the family served in the
Revolutionary War!
         My uncle Grady was a career
serviceman who was in World War II and
Korea.
         Cousin Billy along with his brother
Mike were two guys boasting Italian
ancestry who found themselves fighting
Italians and the Germans in 1944. He was
with the 5th Army, 85th Division. He was
awarded a Battle Star and Infantry Badge
while in the battle of Rome-Arno, then
received two Oak Leaf Clusters and his
second Battle Star following the battle of
Apennines, Italy.
          That battle also saw him awarded
the first of what would become three
Purple Hearts! Because he was in a front
line position his wounds, the last of which
was extremely severe, necessitated his
being treated in the field until he could
finally be removed to a hospital.
           What I remember most about
my cousin was his smile. I can't remember
ever seeing him without it in spite of the
lasting physical injuries he endured through
the remainder of his life. I don't believe he
ever missed a family wedding and he
raised a wonderful family himself!
            Bill passed away 6 years ago at
age 87. We all miss him and think of him
as a family hero. That title goes as much
for the way he lived his life after the
war as for his service during the conflict.
            Hope you're remembering the
"Billy's" in your life today and that all
your NEWS is good!