A Day Of Thanks And Remembering
My grandparents had 2 kids, my Uncle Billy and my Mom.
When my Mom was 14, Billy, her only brother entered the service. He was going to go to college and be a Pharmacist when he came home, he & my grandfather were going to open a Drugstore.
April 14, 1945, was the day of Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s funeral & there was no school. My Mom, then 16, was home alone, listening to the news reporter describing the procession on the radio. Her Father was at work and her Mother had gone to the grocery store.
A young boy, on a bicycle, knocked on the door to deliver a telegram. She knew it was bad news & knew that it had to be about Billy. She didn’t open it, she called her Mom’s best friend in the neighborhood, who came to sit with her and called her Father at work. The telegram was opened once he got home, and it was the news that Billy, their only son, had been killed March 26th crossing the Rhine River.
My grandfather wrote this after Billy died:
WILLIAM LLOYD GEORGE
1922 -1945
You don’t know what the war has meant
to those who fought and those who won.
you don’t realize the price we paid,
unless you lost your only son.
We had a Son and only one,
he grew so handsome in everyway,
But then the mighty conflict came
they called him to war one day.
He seemed to enjoy while on our soil,
each army task he tried to do.
But one day a letter came that said,
“I must cross the ocean blue.”
Then we knew that on that side,
he did not have an even chance.
The first letter received from him
was written in Rowen France.
“They lifted restrictions on our mail today, I’m in Patton’s third
army,” the next letter said.
“We are taking some prisoners,
and fighting too, but slowly moving ahead.”
“I have experienced so many things,
and still am doing fine.
But the next time you hear from me,
I’ll be fighting on the Rhine.”
That next letter never did come,
but a message from the Government instead.
“Your son is missing in action just now”and they finally found he was
dead.
We looked up to God in whom we trust,
and thanked Him for our sons birth,
and for the many happy hours
he spent with us here on earth.
Written by: WP George
(father)
My grandparents are no longer with us, but, today, we remember the sacrifices made for our freedom.
Mom, I am sorry for your loss. I know you loved him very much!
Steven Fitzgerald says
Hello Dian,
I enjoyed this very touching personal story. I am sure that your Mother is pleased to see this tribute to her brother.
As the son of a career soldier and an Army retiree myself I come from a heritage of service to our nation. I had several other family members who served in several different branches of the military, but by the grace of God none of us made the ultimate sacrifice or were severely wounded in battle.
I experienced the lose of a number of my fellow soldiers over the years and some of them died, like Billy, at very young age.
I use to feel guilt for having survived 20 years without barely a scratch, but I have come to believe that God took them because they had already earned their reward and the rest of us needed to stay here awhile longer and keep working on ours.
I hope that you and your readers have a fun and safe Memorial Day.
Steven
US Army – Retired
STILL PROUD. STILL SERVING. STILL SALUTING
Betty Harris says
Thanks, as I get older it seems harder for me! I guess the main reason is that he was my only sibling! I thought so many times that it would have been nice to have had Nieces & Nephews but God knew best!
I Love You,
Mom