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We regrouped and jumped off again, not far from Le Ham. "F" Company was on the right of the road leading into Le Ham. Because we had been ruffled up and had lost a good many men, as we advanced the men began to run and yell. In the only charge I ever saw or participated in, we moved into Le Ham. Sergeant Fred A Mason of Ridgeville, Indiana, led down a hedgerow. I was second, and behind me was Sergeant Albert Kost from Weirton, West Virginia. All of "F" Company came rushing behind us and as we were just through town, an artillery shell landed very, very near us. Sergeant Mason was hit in the foot. Sergeant Kost behind me, was mortally hit and died screaming as I administered morphine to him. Again, I was not hit - hard to explain. We took up defensive position and came up under the heaviest 88 fire of the Normandy offensive. We were passed through and relieved to the rear to lick our wounds.

On about June 15th we were placed into the combat line again with an attack on Ste. Saveur Le Vicomte. In this next action, Major Roscoe Roy and our beloved Captain Porter were killed. Major Osborne Leahy, a West Pointer who later became a Major General, took command of the Battalion, and shortly was transferred to the 3rd Battalion. Major Majors took command of the 2nd Battalion for the rest of Normandy. All the action was piecemeal and after short series of fire fights we would be pulled back.

We were withdrawn back to a rest area, our first out of the line since D-Day. Before we could dig in, I was called to Battalion Headquarters and told of a new mission that night to cross a river and come in behind the Germans at the crossing. Today, I have no idea what river this was (I have been advised that this was the Douve River and this was about June 18-19th). The crossing was by small boat, companies in file. The attack was made with "E" and "G" abreast, with "F" Company in reserve, and the 1st and 3rd Battalions were in a frontal attack. The front companies were on each side of the road. When the Germans discovered that we were attacking in their rear, they came pell mell down the road on foot and a good many bicycles. The firing was terrific, and as they drew abreast of "E" and "G" Companies, firing was ceased for fear of firing into each company across the road. The Germans completely withdrew from the crossing. One of our men was night blind, and I discovered that he was tied to the man in front of him. Each takes care of his own. That man did not have to be in combat, but he was.

Around the end of June, we again went into the line with the 82nd Division mission to take Le Haye Du Piuts. Bad weather closed in on Normandy, and we went into defensive positions. We spent several days here and although we didn't know it, no supplies could come for our advance. We continued to have artillery casualties. On Sundays a printed sermon would come down from headquarters. Everyone read it, and I say that there were no Athiests in fox holes. Right after July 1st, I was called to the rear and headed a Battalion contingent to return to England and prepare for the Battalion's return to England. Happy Day. Our combat in Normandy was over. "F" Company had myself, Lt. Woodruff, Lt. Hahn, and fourty-eight men, out of 5 officers and approximately 150 men. "E" and "G" Companies had less. In Normandy, "F" Company was a fighting company - good Lieutenants and good Sergeants to lead good men.

Scraptoft was heaven on Earth for the 325 Glider Airborne Infantry regiment. We now knew what an airborne unit was and how it operated. We refitted and received replacements. I cannot name a one of them. We did more Good Ol' Infantry Tactics, and I don't remember a word being said about the tactics of an Airborne unit. The highest ranking squad leader I saw in Normandy was General James Gavin in or near St. Mere Eglise. He rounded the corner, M1 rifle and all, hollering "Let's Go!" and away he and his squad went. We missed the boat on not having more Normandy tactics.

During this period I was awarded the Silver Star, and to this day I am proud of it. Some of it belongs to Sergeants Kost and Mason and the rest of the Company. I was supercharged that day, and it was relayed to my "F" Company in the attack on Le Ham. I am grateful to those 40 or so men.

When we left France and returned to England, I was in a state of deep depression, and I couldn't shake it. I changed my friends in Leicester and kept to myself. The talk began about future missions. Regiment called us several times to give us a new mission, but General Patton kept overrunning our missions. We cheered him on. The Generals were anxious to get us back into combat. That was their world. Us ol' front line infantry men would just as soon let John Doe do it. Well, finally we received it - a mission that patton couldn't beat us to - Holland.

We left for a staging area about the middle of September, and on September 17th, the paratroopers of the 82nd and 101st Airborne Division jumped into Holland. Due to bad weather, the gliders went in about one week later. Our flight was in a CG4A, an American glider, and it was very treachorous because of the flak. A lot of men sat on their entrenching tool for vital protection. Gliders and tow planes were shot down. My friend, Shelby White, a member of the Division Staff, was hit in the rear. He's well and alive today, however. The landing was good as far as glider landings goes. My conditions were bad and the night after landing, Captain Tom Slaughter, who was for some reason unknown to me, commading the Battalion, told me to report to the Field Hospital. After around one week, it was decided that I not return to combat. The war and "F" Company was over for me, but "F" Company was in the good hands of Lt. Woddy Woodruff, who went on to be a hero of the Battle of the Bulge. General Custer is accused of saying, "Men may die, but the Regiment lives on. It has an immortal soul of its own." "F" Company went on to great Glory under "Woody of the Wadii".

The deaths of Captain Irvin Porter, Lieutenant George Greene and Captain Irvin Bloom were great losses to "F" Company and deeply felt by all of us. In the last year, we have lost Woody of the Wadii - a True Warrior.

I don't recall having been in Regimental Headquarters during combat, and often only knew where Battalion Headquarters was because I had phone contact. We hit here and there and push until some Battalion or Regiment passed through us. Defense was something that we knew little about and weren't too good at. It seemed foolish to have men die just lying there, but someone had to be on defense and I'm glad that it was the Germans who were on the defense in Normandy.

This account has been written almost entirely by memory, and it has been forty-some odd years. I had a copy of Chaplain Henry Wall's company roster, he was a hero in his own right, to help identify the enlisted men.

It was my privilege to have served with the men of "F" Company.