Happy Holidays to you from Hank Nuwer, Lizabeth, Sons, and Jesse James-the-Dog
In Memoriam and Remembrance, Christmas 1941, Fort Benning, Georgia
Sixty-five years ago my dad (Hank Nuwer, Senior; 1915-1984) was a Private First
Class and training at Fort Benning for what became his five-year stint with the
Hell on Wheels outfit, the Sixty-Sixth Armored Regiment (Light). 2nd
Armored Division. *
I guess it's the time of year, but I lost myself this morning
contemplating the few military souvenirs my father brought back from
World War II combat. Why few? When he docked in New York after years
spent as a light tank driver under General Patton in North Africa, Belgium, Sicily, France
and Germany, he stopped at a pay phone to call my mother. When he hung
up, he discovered a thief had waltzed with his duffel bag.
Hank Nuwer Sr. and bride-to-be, Alden, NY family farm
"Welcome home, Dogface," he remarked about the incident in his
laconic way, when I asked what he thought after seeing
the empty spot on the concrete.
He refused to say much more, just as he refused to say much more about
such matters as the death of his tankmate and best buddy who was
blown away by a shell while they were on a break. My dad's tank
was nicknamed Lonely, and that's what's printed on its side in one
surviving photo my mother has.
My Christmas thought for you is to think of my dad and all those other
beloved Dogfaces sitting down to a formal Christmas dinner just weeks
after Pearl Harbor. My Dad had been drafted and in uniform about
one year.
Here is the menu from his Christmas Dinner, 1941, printed in a beautiful red, white and blue booklet.
Appetizers: Oyster Cocktail, Hearts of Celery, Mixed Pickles, Olives, Cream of Celery Soup
Main Course: Roast Turkey,
Cranberry Sauce, Oyster Dressing, Giblet Gravy with Rice, Candied Sweet
Potatoes, Asparagus Tips, Creamed Peas,
Creamed Cauliflower, Apple and Date Salad
Dessert: Mince Pie, Ambrosia, Pound Cake, Ice Cream Beverage: Coffee, Lemonade
Breads: Crackers, Hot Rolls
Fruit: Tangerines, Oranges, Apples,
Grapes, Bananas
Well, because mincemeat pie was my Dad's favorite, I
don't have to
wonder what his dessert selection was. By some crazy coincidence, I
found mince pie yesterday at Wal-Mart, and it is in my
fridge now. I
had not so much as a slice of this dessert since scarfing down my late
Aunt Marion's unbeatable mince pie many, many years ago in my dad's
hometown of Alden, New York.
My new wife Lizabeth's cousin is just back from Iraq, as is my cuz
Lorenko's son-in-law, and we are grateful for their safety and
sacrifice.
So here's to them and you for a beautiful holiday, as I give thanks to
all the veterans (God Bless the Ordinary Troop-level Dogfaces), beloved family,
friends, students, colleagues and casual readers of this web site.
Dad, if somehow you're reading this... "Welcome, home."
You're going to be a Great-Grandfather in January (Update: A beautiful
baby girl was born to son Chris and daughter in law Susan on December
24th!!!!). And for Christmas,
Lizabeth and I are having the same menu you had 65 years ago at Fort
Benning.
We'll lift a thin stem with lemonade and say, "Thanks, Dogface."
--Hank Nuwer and Lizabeth
*In December 1941, the Commanding Officer at Headquarters was Major C. P.
Amazeen and the Commanding Officer was First Lieutenant George C.
Spence. In Dad's Third Battalion, the Commanding Officer was Lieutenant
Colonel Malcolm B. Byrne and other brass included Major Leonard H.
Nason, Second Lieutenant Robert C. Atwood, and Staff Sergeants Harold
S. Bauver and Henry A. Hudson. The other Army men (in case their
survivors are reading this by chance or Google) in L Regiment were
George Gannon, Josef Kastl, Gordon Morrow, Andrew Theoful, Robert
Chandler, Willard Lackey, Charles Meagher, Warren Portwood, Louis C.
Rendina, Marion Russell, Henry Sydlo, James Tainsh, Charles Walters.
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For background on the Hell on Wheels outfit, 1940-91