OUR WWII STORY: A Paris reunion

In August, in response to the call for World War II stories ahead of the 75th anniversary of the end of the war, Alfred Cordova of Neal Thomas Jr.-Centennial American Legion Post 209 in Colorado Springs, Colo., submitted to the Legiontown site the story of how his father and uncle encountered each other in the wake of the war’s end.

“My father's World War II service was somewhat unique in that he served in both theaters, Pacific and then European, as an Army infantryman. He followed his younger brother Paul into service as a draftee in April 1942. His brother had been drafted in late January 1942 and served with the 90th ID in Europe. Initially my dad (Alfred) served with the 7th ID in the retaking of the Aleutian Islands from the Japanese. Once that campaign was over he was returned to the States for radio school, but for some unknown reason ended up being reassigned to the 71st Infantry Division as it was forming and training, not as a radioman but again as an infantry rifleman. The 71st ID would deploy to Europe in February 1945 for the final stage of World War II primarily in Germany and into Austria.

“In the last week of April 1945, he suffered a leg wound in a convoy ambush by SS troops. The conflict in Europe would end about 10 days later. He convalesced at an Army hospital in Paris until September 1945 before being returned to the States. During the summer of 1945, as the 90th ID stood down, his brother Paul traveled to Paris and located him. He also had been a victim of combat injuries and had been awarded two Purple Hearts. The reunion was joyous as the two brothers saw each other for the first time since January 1942.

“Both were very humble about their military service and did not talk about it much. My dad passed away from cancer at age 58 in 1972, revealing very little to me about his service. Meanwhile my uncle Paul passed in 2006 at age 86. Most of the information for this short narrative was provided by him.”

You can still submit service stories of the war to Legiontown; start the submission process here.