Photo By John Crosby | Members of the 95th Infantry Division Association watch from their bus as Soldiers...... read more read more
CAMP ATTERBURY JOINT MANEUVER TRAINING CENTER, Ind. – The 95th Infantry Division suffered 6,370 combat casualties in 151 days of heavy fighting in Nazi-occupied Europe, more than 72 percent of the unit's strength. Today, 66 years later, these veterans' surviving numbers continue to dwindle, claimed now by old age. However, throughout their years, the "Iron Men of Metz" bond has remained strong, the type of bond that can only be forged by the fire of combat.
"You're real close when you're infantry," said Ceo Bauer, a Purple Heart recipient of the 95th Infantry Division's Company I. "It's as close as you can get as far as being comrades. It's as close as you could be. I know it's the same for the troops today."
Bauer and 10 of his Soldiers he served side-by-side with in Company I held an annual reunion, May 14, touring the Camp Atterbury Joint Maneuver Training Center in central Indiana.
"We were quite impressed with the Soldiers," said retired Col. Vincent Geiger. As a captain in War World II, Geiger served as commander of Company I for most of their deployment. He joined his men's ranks 11 days into their tour after their first two commanding officers were killed in combat.
"I think what impressed me most was their age," said Geiger, referencing current Soldiers at Camp Atterbury. "They weren't kids. Most seemed to be in their early twenties. I was proud of them," he said. "We got to talk to a few of them in the mess hall and saw what they were doing. Of course a lot of them are going through training for deployment. They all seemed quite professional."
The men of Company I fought a very different war in a very different era than today. Joining together with friends and family, they recalled their experiences in combat together.
They landed in Europe with both feet moving forward into battle. They lost more than 90 men in the first two weeks of fighting, most in a night assault on a German position in Lorraine, France.
The men fought on as a part of Gen. George S. Patton's Third Army to liberate Lorraine's capital city of Metz, a heavily fortified German position. The men pushed through, crossing the Moselle River in assault boats and began their attack. The long and bloody battle claimed more than 600 men of the 95th Division, 608 of which are buried on the battlefield, and more than 5,000 others were wounded. Company I lost five of their six officers and about half of their personnel during their first actions in World War II.
"We lost a lot of key manpower," said Geiger. "A lot of key non-commissioned officers and a lot of key officers, but we dealt with it. You know, you do what you have to do … and we did … And we did it well."
The high price paid resulted in a success. The commanding general of the German forces there, Lt. Gen. Heinrich Kittel, was wounded and captured. Geiger and Company I assaulted the enemy headquarters there and accepted the general's surrender. The division earned its nickname the "Iron Men of Metz" from this action. It's still debated today whether a Company I rifleman wounded the general.
After the war, the veterans returned to France and to the scene of the action that took so many of their brothers-in-arms' lives. As the years passed and their visits continued, they began to build bonds with the French there.
"We just built up more and more friendships with many people that were very, very grateful to us for having been liberated," said Geiger. "As the years have gone by, our friendships have increased tremendously to the point where some of them are coming over here to visit us, or we go over there to visit them, every year."
In the spirit of these bonds and carrying on the legacy of the men that sacrificed their lives to liberate Nazi-occupied Europe, the 95th Infantry Division Association holds a reunion at a different city around the world every year, as does Company I. Visitors from France traditionally visit both.
Although few of these men are left, their legacy lives on in the generations of family that follow them. One such generation actually helped reunite several of the veterans again more than 60 years after the war.
"Growing up as a kid, my father never talked about the war much," said Rick Ross, son of Company I veteran Bob Ross. Bob was wounded on the night assault in Lorraine. "Of course we always asked questions, but he was always hesitant to talk about what happened on that night. A few times, he would speak about people that he knew in the military."
In 2006, Rick began searching the internet for his father's unit, and the names of the old Army friends of whom his father spoke.
"I found the association, and it turned out that his friends were actually the leaders of the group," said Rick. "They'd spent the last 20 or 30 years trying to find him without success. I arranged with them to meet on the next veterans meeting."
Rick reunited his father Bob with his two best friends from his Army days, Steve Bodnar and Ceo Bauer. They all served in the same platoon together, and all three were wounded during the night assault.
Bob, Bodnar and Bauer were evacuated to the same field hospital, and later recovered together in the post operating room after surgery before being evacuated again to England and the U.S.
Bob sustained injuries to his leg. Bodnar lost a leg, and Bauer suffered shrapnel wounds to the entire right side of his body. They laid in their hospital beds and spoke about the night attack, unaware that it would be more than 60 years before the three best friends would reunite.
They came together again four years ago at a reunion in Fredericksburg, Texas.
"It was emotional to say the least," said Bauer. "We talked about family, how we were and what we'd been doing since the war. We talked about what happened that night, and we immediately made plans to see each other again. It was an emotional thing for Bob, for Rick and for the families. His family and mine. And for the surviving I Company veterans."
Bob Ross was unable to attend any further reunions due to his declining health. He died earlier this year.
"I think it's important to keep what they've done … keep it alive," said Rick. "We're able to pass on this information and this feeling to others. We can pass the accomplishments they've made in the past. I think quite often it's forgotten."
Company I has held a reunion every year since the early 1950s. They get together for two or three days in a different city every year. The veterans and family of Company I also attend the 95th Division annual reunion.
"I think our association has about a thousand veterans left and we're losing numbers every day," said Geiger, referring to the 95th Division Association.
Although these men of the "greatest generation" will inevitably pass on, their legacy thrives with their children and the children of those who were liberated from Nazi tyranny six decades ago.
"They see for themselves that the people in Europe, most of them are pretty grateful for what we did," said Geiger. "They're proud of what we did, as we are."
The 95th Division Associations plans to hold next year's reunion in Boston.
| Date Taken: | 05.14.2010 |
| Date Posted: | 06.08.2010 17:36 |
| Story ID: | 51082 |
| Location: | CAMP ATTERBURY, IN, US |
| Web Views: | 223 |
| Downloads: | 104 |
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