Last Memorial Day I had the privilege to visit Henri-Chapelle American Cemetary in Belgium where most of the men we lost at the Battle of the Bulge were laid to rest. I actually found the grave of the man that lost his life saving my grandfather’s life on Christmas Eve in 1944 and got to sit down and have a drink of Tennessee Whiskey with him and thank him for his ultimate sacrifice as well as allowing my grandfather to come home.
SGT John Dilliner died in a foxhole after taking shrapnel from a mortar round sacrificing himself to save my grandfather whom he was sharing a foxhole. Because of his sacrifice I got to spend countless hours with my grandfather who was the man that taught me to cheer for Tennessee. I am forever indebted to this stranger and I wish I could come up with the words to justify what his and all men and women that sacrificed their lives for this country means to me on not only Memorial Day but everyday. I hope that this will suffice and I hope you appreciate this post. AATW!
My grandfather PFC Hugh Drake 82nd Airborne 508th Parachute Infantry Regiment
The boys of Company D before the Victory Parade
SGT John Dilliner died in a foxhole after taking shrapnel from a mortar round sacrificing himself to save my grandfather whom he was sharing a foxhole. Because of his sacrifice I got to spend countless hours with my grandfather who was the man that taught me to cheer for Tennessee. I am forever indebted to this stranger and I wish I could come up with the words to justify what his and all men and women that sacrificed their lives for this country means to me on not only Memorial Day but everyday. I hope that this will suffice and I hope you appreciate this post. AATW!
My grandfather PFC Hugh Drake 82nd Airborne 508th Parachute Infantry Regiment
The boys of Company D before the Victory Parade
