Jim Sterner’s narrative doesn’t just stop at the battlefield; it travels across years, connecting the past with the present through the miraculous power of technology. A heartwarming reconnection facilitated by Facebook brings Jim face-to-face with the family of a fallen comrade from the Sherwood Rangers. Discover how the bonds of comradeship and shared histories continue to inspire generations. Whether it’s about the harrowing five days and nights attacking a formidable German pillbox or the profound experiences shared with fellow soldiers under the strains of war, Jim’s recount transports us to a time of intense adversity and unyielding human spirit.
SPEAKER 04 :
World War II, Korea, Vietnam, the Gulf War, Afghanistan, and her other wars and conflicts. America’s fighting men and women strapped on their boots and picked up their guns to fight tyranny and stand for liberty. We must never forget them. Welcome to America’s veteran stories with Kim Munson. These stories will touch your heart, inspire you and give you courage. We stand on the shoulders of giants. Here’s Kim Munson.
SPEAKER 03 :
And welcome to America’s Veterans Stories with Kim Munson. Be sure and check out our website. That is AmericasVeteranStories.com. And the show comes to you because of a trip that I took in 2016 with a group that accompanied four D-Day veterans back to Normandy for the 72nd anniversary of the D-Day landings. And returned stateside realizing that we need to hear these stories. We need to record them and broadcast them and archive them. So hence, America’s Veterans Stories. I am thrilled and honored to have on the line with me Jim Sterner. He is a World War II veteran. He fought at Battle of the Bulge as well as the Rhineland. And it is great to have you on the line, Jim Sterner. Welcome to the show.
SPEAKER 07 :
Thank you very much. I’m glad to be here, Kim.
SPEAKER 03 :
Well, let’s start with what year were you born, Jim?
SPEAKER 07 :
I was born in 1923. So if you do the arithmetic, I’m 99.
SPEAKER 03 :
You sound like you’re 60, if that.
SPEAKER 07 :
Thank you.
SPEAKER 03 :
I am so excited to hear your story. Where were you born?
SPEAKER 07 :
I was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. I was raised in Allentown, Pennsylvania. And when I went to high school, we moved to Wilmington, Delaware. So I was graduated from high school in Wilmington, Delaware.
SPEAKER 03 :
Okay. And do you remember when you heard that Pearl Harbor had been bombed?
SPEAKER 07 :
Absolutely. Absolutely. It was Sunday, and I was going to the University of Delaware, and I was 18 years old, physically fit, and I was living in a fraternity house. and the phone started ringing and all of the fathers were calling down there to plead with their sons not to do anything rash to take it easy and uh we listened most of us listened to our fathers and did not quit school and enlist there was one fraternity brother who, two days later, he was just about to enter his last semester in chemical engineering, and he came in the fraternity house, and he had just enlisted in the paratroops. He had a toothbrush in his jacket pocket, and we all said his nickname was Streaky, and we all said to him, Streaky, One more semester and you can do a lot more good for your country than you can running away now and joining the paratroops. And his answer to us was, which was typical for the time, my conscience dictates. And Streaky Shorter was off, went through the whole European campaign, D-Day, the bulge and everything else, became a top first sergeant in the paratroops.
SPEAKER 03 :
And he survived World War II?
SPEAKER 07 :
He survived World War II. That is correct. He’s gone now.
SPEAKER 03 :
That is absolutely remarkable. So then he must have jumped in behind enemy lines on D-Day, yes?
SPEAKER 07 :
Oh, he did. He did. He has a remarkable record. And as I say, he became a first sergeant. Now, with three and a half years of chemical engineering, I’m surprised he didn’t get a commission. But somehow or other, he didn’t.
SPEAKER 03 :
That is absolutely fascinating. So the rest of you listened to your fathers. You did not quit school and enlist. But how did you end up then in the… I just want to ask, was Streaky 101st Airborne or 82nd?
SPEAKER 07 :
I can’t remember, Kim. I’m sorry.
SPEAKER 03 :
Oh, that’s okay. That’s okay. No problem.
SPEAKER 07 :
So let’s talk about… What was the Band of Brothers? Was that the 86… He was in the same division as the Band of Brothers.
SPEAKER 03 :
I should know that, and I don’t. So that’ll be homework for all of our listeners, Jim, okay?
SPEAKER 06 :
Not now either.
SPEAKER 03 :
Okay, well, let’s talk about you. So 1941, you are in college. What’s your story? What happens during the war? How did you end up in the Army?
SPEAKER 07 :
Well, as a teenager… I was bitten by the army bug. And during the between the two world wars, the United States had a program called Citizens Military Training Program. It was held in the summers only. And you had to be 16 years old to enlist. And when I was 16, I enlisted and I went to Fort Dix, New Jersey for the summer. And it was a program, looking back on it, I think primarily to keep reserve officers up to date. But there were teenage boys from the whole area. Most of the people in Fort Dix were from New York City. But we spent a month at Fort Dix learning military discipline, close order drill, open order drill. We went to the rifle range, did all the things. that the soldiers did. And in those days, a private’s pay was $21 a month. Or as a lot of people said, we were paid $21 a day once a month. So I was red hot to go in the Army, and I enjoyed that very much. And then when I went to the University of Delaware in September of 1941, I had two full years of reserve officer training. It was what was then called the Coast Artillery. We were dealing with 155-millimeter guns. So while I was at Delaware, we went on an accelerated program. They were turning out college graduates in three years rather than four. So I was able to get into two years of reserve officer training. And I enlisted while at the University of Delaware in December of 1942. because I was anxious to go in active duty. And I had a guilty conscience, I remember, getting on a bus or going in a crowd. I figured everybody was looking at me and wondering, why isn’t he in the service? So I enlisted in the Reserve Corps and then quit school so I’d be called up. And I was called up. and did basic training in Camp Walters, Texas. And while at Camp Walters, I qualified for the Army Specialized Training Program. Have you ever heard of it, Kim?
SPEAKER 03 :
I have heard of it, but I don’t know much about it.
SPEAKER 07 :
The Army’s ASTP was a program where if you qualified, the Army sent you back to college. But while you were in that program, you could not even get a promotion to private first class. But it was a good deal because the Army sent me back to college, and I was in college again for six months until that program was discontinued. As I understand it, the Army was looking ahead to D-Day. And they were scraping the bottom of the barrel for personnel. And some general looked over his shoulder and he saw 10 or 15,000 physically fit young men that the Army was sending to college. And he figured, man, if we stop this program, we can fill three infantry divisions, which are around the country, that are all about half full. And we can get two men for every man that’s in college. And I think the divisions that we were sent to were the 84th, which was my division, the 106th, which you may recall was the first division to take the brunt of the German attack in the Ardennes, and the 102nd. And so that program was discontinued in May of 44. And I personally was sent to Camp Claiborne, Louisiana, which is near Alexandria. And I was a private. in a frontline infantry rifle company, much to my amazement, because I had thought with my two years of reserve officer training and my summer of citizens’ military training camp, I figured I was pretty much of a hotshot, and I was a shoo-in to get a commission. But I found myself as a buck private in a frontline infantry rifle company.
SPEAKER 03 :
Wow, and that’s May of 1944 as they’re preparing for D-Day. So what happens then, Jim Sterner?
SPEAKER 07 :
Well, we trained in Camp Claiborne, Louisiana. We reported there on April Fool’s Day, and some of us thought the Army was playing an April Fool’s joke on us by sending us to the infantry, but they were not. So it was dead serious. And that was April. And I have to interject here that on July 1st, my girlfriend and I decided to get married on my overseas furlough. So I was married on July 1st, 44, and went back to Camp Claiborne, and my wife was still going to the University of Delaware. And in September of 44… We sailed out of New York City to Scotland and got on a train in the Firth of Clyde to an Army base in southern England. We were there about a month, and I think it was October 30th, we went to Southampton, got on a ship, and… crossed the channel, I somehow or other got picked to drive a Jeep. So I went over on an LST and landed on Omaha Beach in November 1st, 1944.
SPEAKER 03 :
Okay. Hey, I tell you what, Jim, that is fascinating. Let’s go to break. I’m talking with World War II veteran Jim Sterner. He’s sharing his experience during World War II. And before we do that, though, as you know, a nonprofit that I’ve adopted is the USMC Memorial Foundation. And they are raising money to remodel the Marine Memorial out at 6th and Colfax here. And they have an amazing event that is going to be October 26th, 1130 a.m. to 130 p.m. at the Hilton Denver Inverness. And the keynote speaker is Commander Navy SEAL. Rourke from Denver, and then there’s going to be some Iwo Jima World War II veterans there, as well as some Broncos and sports celebrities. So to get more information, go to usmcmemorialfoundation.org. That’s usmcmemorialfoundation.org. We will be right back with Jim Sterner.
SPEAKER 11 :
RE-MAX realtor Karen Levine helps bring to life the individual stories of our servicemen and women. With her sponsorship of America’s Veteran Stories with Kim Munson, Karen honors the sacrifices of our military and is grateful for our freedom. As a member of the National Association of Realtors Board of Directors, Karen works to protect private property rights for all of us. Karen has a heart for our active duty military and veterans and is honored to help you buy or sell your home. Call Karen Levine at 303-877-7516 to help you navigate buying or selling your home. That’s 303-877-7516.
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All of Kim’s sponsors are an inclusive partnership with Kim and are not affiliated with or in partnership with KLZ or Crawford Broadcasting. If you would like to support the work of The Kim Munson Show and grow your business, contact Kim at her website, kimmunson.com. That’s Kim Munson, M-O-N-S-O-N dot com.
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And welcome back to America’s Veteran Stories with Kim Munson. Be sure and check out our website. That is AmericasVeteranStories.com. I’m thrilled and honored to have on the line with me 99-year-old or 99-year-young Jim Sterner, World War II veteran. We’re talking about his experiences. Jim, just a couple of questions. First thing, on your overseas furlough, you married your girlfriend. She became your wife. There had to be a lot of emotion between the two of you because there was a lot of unknowns, correct?
SPEAKER 07 :
Kim, you hit the nail on the head. There was a tremendous amount of family pressure on both sides against us getting married because, as I said, I was a private in a frontline infantry company. I was gun fodder.
SPEAKER 03 :
Right. And
SPEAKER 07 :
There was a tremendous amount of pressure from our parents to not do such a dumb thing as to get married. And, of course, everybody just knew that I might be crippled or blind or whatever, return home and have a young, beautiful wife. And they thought we should wait until after the war. But… I don’t know whether you can take this comment or not, but that was 1944. We were madly in love. We wanted to sleep together. And we wouldn’t do it unless we were married. So we decided to get married. And to us, it was that simple. To the parents, it wasn’t quite that simple. But they did… uh put on a big wedding in wilmington uh in a very short time and uh my father-in-law actually at one point was going to refuse to give away his daughter but he did and everything and we had 76 years of a beautiful wonderful married life we have five daughters and uh from my point of view, a wonderful life together.
SPEAKER 03 :
That is a remarkable story, Jim Sterner. I just got chills as you were telling me that. That is just amazing, so thank you. Okay, so, and I’m just thinking about your wife saying goodbye. I mean, I just can’t imagine the emotion. So you’re off to Europe, and… You go on to Omaha Beach in November after the initial landings were in June. What did you see and what did you think when you were landing this LST with this LST on Omaha Beach?
SPEAKER 07 :
My biggest thought was, my God, how did they do it? I’m glad I wasn’t here. and and i was a guy who was gung-ho in the army i was a guy who was anxious to get into combat i i had ups and downs kim there were times when i didn’t want to go to fight and there were other times when i did in claiborne I became convinced that the 84th Division wasn’t going to get to get overseas while the war was still on. So I actually volunteered for the paratroops so I could get over and do some fighting. And yet I took advantage of the Army Specialized Training Program where I let them send me to college, which was a long way from any injury. In fact, one of the theme songs we used to sing in ASTP was, take down your service flag, mother. Your son’s in the ASTP. He won’t get hurt by a slide rule, so the goal need never be. So we were a little bit self-conscious about that. not being in the war. But on the other hand, we were greedy enough to take advantage of a free college education.
SPEAKER 03 :
If there was going to be a free college education, I think that this is one I could probably get behind because of your service on that, Jim Sterner.
SPEAKER 07 :
I certainly did. And luckily for me, I guess… After my initial interviews to go into the paratroops, the division was alerted for overseas and all transfers were canceled. And so I did get to go overseas.
SPEAKER 03 :
But not as a paratrooper, correct?
SPEAKER 07 :
But not as a paratrooper, as an infantry private. And K Company of the 333rd Infantry Regiment, 84th Division.
SPEAKER 08 :
Okay.
SPEAKER 07 :
The 84th Division was nicknamed the Rail Splitters because it was, in World War I, an infantry division from Illinois, and it was called the Abe Lincoln Division. You may recall Abe Lincoln was a rail splitter. And our patch had a white axe into a log, and so we were called the Rail Splitters.
SPEAKER 03 :
Okay, so it’s November 1944. You’ve gone on shore at Normandy. What happens after that, Jim Sterner?
SPEAKER 07 :
We got on trucks and had a convoy across France into Holland. And I think we spent the best part of a week in that convoy going across France. A lot of rain, a lot of mud. And we got into Holland, and we were in a little town called Heerlen, H-E-E-R-L-E-N. And we lived in a schoolhouse and getting ready to go into action. And it was mid-November, I think it was November 17, that we— crossed the border from Holland into Germany. And at that time, the 333rd Regiment was on loan to the British Army. So we were really, in fact, we were Sherwood Rangers yeoman. And the only difference we really saw between being in the British Army and the American was that we got a rum ration from the British. So every morning we had about a half a canteen cup of rum while we were in reserve. When we actually got into the battle on November 17, the rum ration quit coming up to the front. But we started the attack, and we were supposed to take a little town named Wurm, W-U-R-M. And we went through a pretty sizable city of Geilenkirchen. We had no trouble capturing Geilenkirchen. The Germans just completely withdrew the battalion, which was four companies. had one casualty in the capture of Guyland Kirkland. That casualty was the Catholic chaplain. Nobody knows to this day how in the world he got wounded. But we took Guyland Kirkland and then proceeded through some fields, and we ran into a German pillbox. Do you know what a pillbox is, Kim?
SPEAKER 03 :
I do, but explain that to our listeners.
SPEAKER 07 :
Well, the easiest way to explain it is to think of Jackie Kennedy. She wore a pillbox hat. A pillbox in Germany was part of the Siegfried Line, which was a row of these reinforced concrete houses, maybe 20 feet in diameter, reinforced concrete walls. Oh my gosh. Very, very thick reinforced concrete walls. They were built so strong that I actually saw an American dive bomber come in and drop a bomb on this pillbox that I’m talking about. And the pillbox looked to me as though it raised up about six inches, shook a little bit, and went right back down. And the firing from the pillbox never stopped. They were magnificent structures. And K Company attacked that pillbox for five days and five nights. And when we started the attack on November 17, there were about 197 men in the company at full strength. After five days and nights of attacking, we were pulled back into reserve and we got our mail. And at that time, there were only 44 of us left on our feet to receive our mail. And we had not captured the pillbox. So this was one little battle that I think you’d have to say the Germans won.
SPEAKER 03 :
I’m just thinking, and just describe this, five days, five nights, you’re sleeping on the ground, food, tell us about that during this battle.
SPEAKER 07 :
Well, there’s a whole lot to tell about that battle. There’s a lot of stories from five days. we captured a German chateau, a beautiful structure, one wing of which was totally on fire. The chateau was the company headquarters and it was the aid station. And we attacked out of there across a field which was planted with sweet beets and We crossed a stream. It was called the Wurm, W-U-R-M, River, but it really wasn’t a river as we think of one. It was more of a stream about waist or chest deep. And we crossed it, and there were six of us that got within about 30 feet of the pillbox, And it was night. This was all done in the dark. And we were receiving a lot of artillery fire. The German 88-millimeter gun, which was probably the best weapon in Europe in World War II, was firing at us. And when we got to within about 30 feet of the pillbox, The machine gun fire and the small arms fire was so heavy that we ducked into a German house. We were lined up in the house and I was on the we were in an alleyway that went across the back of the house to the street. And I was standing on the left end of the line with our backs against the brick wall, which was facing the Germans. And a good buddy of mine was on my right and another guy from Wilmington, Delaware, on his right. And the Germans let loose with an 88, which hit right behind the man two down from me and just totally shattered him and wounded everybody on his right. So there were six of us left in the house, and we decided the place to go was in the crawl space. So we found a door in the living room. We stayed in the crawl space for 24 hours, having a discussion about what to do. And I was all for making a run for it. But cooler minds prevailed, and they decided we should stay there until the shelling let up a little bit. And there’s a little bit of a side story here. Do we have another couple of minutes, Kim?
SPEAKER 03 :
You know what? Let’s go to break and come back, and we’ll keep that as a cliffhanger on the side story on this. I’m talking with World War II veteran Jim Sterner. Before we go to break, one of the great sponsors of both my shows is Hooters Restaurants. They have five locations, Loveland, Aurora, Lone Tree, Westminster, and Colorado Springs. They have all kinds of lunch and happy hour specials throughout Monday through Friday. Part of mine is a great story about freedom and free markets and capitalism. You can find that at my website, KimMunson.com. We’ll be right back with Jim Sterner.
SPEAKER 09 :
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SPEAKER 03 :
And welcome back to America’s Veteran Stories with Kim Munson. Be sure and check out our website. That is AmericasVeteranStories.com. On the line with me is 99-year-old Jim Sterner, World War II veteran. We’re talking about this battle regarding a pillbox, correct, Jim?
SPEAKER 06 :
That’s correct.
SPEAKER 03 :
Okay. Before we went to break, you said there was a side story regarding you’re in this crawl space trying to determine what to do. You said cooler heads have prevailed. So what’s this side story?
SPEAKER 07 :
Well, while we were in that alleyway before the 88 shell hit and killed some people, I was standing at a position where I could look out. the side door across the street and i saw as i said we were in the british army at the time we were assigned to the brits i saw the sherwood the sherman tank which was manned by british soldiers come up And the tank commander was standing up in the turret of the tank, and he was directing fire at the pillbox. And the reason I could see this all at night is because the Germans were firing tracer bullets. And they were firing so many hundreds of tracer bullets that it was really lit up at night. and i could see the tank commander who was trying to give us relief he was directing fire and i saw him get killed and slump over in the turret of the tank and i think he recognized that we were in the house and in a jam and he was trying to give us relief so that we could stay alive wow i have thought about this man ever since this was november 22nd 1944 and through the miracle of facebook and your friend and mine ralph peters in holland I have met this tank commander’s son who lives outside of Nottingham, England. His name is Michael Augustus Butler. His father was Gus Butler Sr. The boy, who’s now 82, was five years old when his father was killed. And through the miracle of Facebook, Gus and I have become friends, visiting each other electronically and on the telephone. And I have been able to tell him exactly the situation of his father’s death, the fact that his father was there to help out six Americans And we have visited the father’s grave with Ralph. And for me, very emotional. And Gus and I have shed a few tears together. In fact, I’m moved right now. I am, too.
SPEAKER 03 :
uh i am too jim sterner and this has got to be so powerful for gus just a five-year-old kid when his father was killed in world war ii and then to connect with you after all these years and the work that ralph peters is doing is absolutely amazing and so at this point in time i’d like you to share with our listeners what’s going to be happening here within the next few days with Ralph and Ron over in Europe. I think it’s super important if you let people know about that.
SPEAKER 07 :
I will do that, but may I interject something before that?
SPEAKER 03 :
Absolutely.
SPEAKER 07 :
Ralph and I have become friends. In fact, Ralph has visited me here in my cottage. I’m in a retirement community in Pennsylvania, and Ralph has visited me here. Ralph and Ron… took me on a tour of this area. This house that we were in was in a little village called Muhlendorf, Germany. Ralph and Ron took me on a tour of the fields, which look the same today as they did in 1944. He has taken me to the house where we were in the crawl space. And I have guided him again through the miracle of facebook i have guided him to that exact spot and i have told him where the tank was where gus butler was killed and i said now ralph if you walk up that street in front of you about 30 meters or 40 meters something like that that’s where the pillbox was Ralph and Ron walked up there and it was silence on the phone for two minutes, maybe. And all of a sudden I hear this yelling and screaming. They had found the remains of the pillbox. It’s still there. So what a thrill. And they pushed back some weeds, and I actually saw the reinforced concrete remains of part of the pillbox. Now, what’s going to happen on Sunday is Ralph and Ron are going to Belgium, I think, for some— Battle of the Bulge type of reunion, but they’re going to go and they’re going to visit a village. named Bourdon, B-O-U-R-D-O-N, Belgium, which is the largest city near there, is a city called Marche, M-A-R-C-H-E. I think if you want to get a little Frenchy, you call it Marche, on Femon. And We’re done is the little village where on December 26, 1944, I was wounded. And Ralph and Ron are going to go to the spot on the road, which we know exactly where it is, where I was wounded. And they’re going to relay this scene back here to my cottage and one of my daughters. I guess the one that you’re in contact with, Tavison, is going to be here at 8 o’clock Sunday morning. And we’re going to revisit Bourdain, Belgium at that time with Ron and Ralph.
SPEAKER 03 :
Well, and Ralph, I know well. When I was over in Normandy in 2016, he traveled with our group, and so he is a friend. And he actually was stateside here in Denver a few years ago and spoke at some different organizations here. And he is just a gem. And also I’ve interviewed Ron, and I just love the work that they’re doing. So this is so exciting what’s going to be happening with this Jim Sterner. So…
SPEAKER 06 :
I was thrilled to me.
SPEAKER 03 :
What kind of emotions are you feeling as you’re going back via Facebook, via technology, to when you were doing battle in World War II? What’s going through your mind?
SPEAKER 07 :
Totally amazed. I wish I could understand it. It’s very emotional. In fact, it’s tearful emotion. and uh but to think that i was there when we were there we used to pull up which turned out to be sugar beets we thought they were rutabagas but it turns out that ralph went there and while ralph was showing me the chateau which i knew quite well and I was telling him how we pulled rutabagas out of the ground. He pulled one out of the ground, and he said, the only problem is it isn’t a rutabaga, it’s a sweet pea. But we went back, and I say, unbelievable emotional to see the pillbox fall. Incidentally, I think the Americans never did conquer that pillbox. The Battle of the Bulge came, and then we went in and around it and eventually shut it down by coming in from the rear, from the German side. But that was a tough battle and a lot of memories. One of the things that happened in the battle, a group of us, Somehow, and this is totally unexplainable, some of us got out in front of the rest of the American lines, and we ended up about 200 or 300 yards behind German lines. And we came upon a house, and we started receiving a lot of small-arm fire from this house. And… We jumped in shell holes and started firing back. And it was at that time that the tank commander, Gus, saw what was happening, and he pulled his tank up on our left flank and started rapid-fire 75-millimeter gun into the house. And he was going kapow, kapow, kapow. And after a little bit, a white flag came out of the house, and 36 Germans surrendered to us.
SPEAKER 03 :
What did you do with 36 Germans then?
SPEAKER 07 :
Well, we lined them up in a column or two and searched them for souvenirs.
SPEAKER 03 :
Did you get any souvenirs?
SPEAKER 07 :
I got a watch, which I did not have a wristwatch at the time for some reason. So I borrowed a German’s wristwatch that he had. And after I had time, when we were pulled back in reserve, I examined the wristwatch and I found French engraving on the back of it. I don’t know the truth, of course, but I’d like to believe that the German took it from a French soldier. I took it from him. And when I was wounded, the medics took it from me. But he probably bought it in Paris is what really happened.
SPEAKER 03 :
Okay, well, that’s quite a story. Hey, let’s go to break. I’m talking with Jim Sterner, World War II veteran. And before we do that, though, I want to say thank you to Tricia Hood, who has been sponsoring the America’s Veterans Stories shows. And we’ve interviewed her, and we’re doing this in honor of her husband, Don Hood, who is a Vietnam veteran. He has passed on since the last number of years, and as well as in honor of her.
SPEAKER 01 :
daughter chelsea hood russell and i really appreciate trisha’s sponsorship of these shows it’s so important that we know these stories so we’re going to go to break we’ll be right back with jim sterner if you’re 62 or older a reverse mortgage could be a great tool regarding retirement and estate planning it is essential to understand the process lauren levy with polygon financial group has nearly 20 years in the mortgage industry and has the experience to answer your questions Lauren understands that each financial transaction is personal. If you’d like to explore your options on a reverse mortgage, remodel your home, buy a rental property, or move, call Lauren Levy at 303-880-8881. Licensed in 49 states, Kim Monson highly recommends Lauren Levy for all your mortgage needs. Call Lauren at 303-880-8881.
SPEAKER 02 :
You’d like to get in touch with one of the sponsors of The Kim Munson Show, but you can’t remember their phone contact or website information. Find a full list of advertising partners on Kim’s website, kimmunson.com. That’s Kim, M-O-N-S-O-N dot com.
SPEAKER 04 :
From the mountains to the prairies,
SPEAKER 03 :
And welcome back to America’s Veterans Stories with Kim Munson. Be sure and check out our website. That is AmericasVeteransStories.com. On the line with me is Jim Sterner, a World War II veteran, 99 years old. And Jim Sterner, you’re over in… We’re talking about November 1944 into December 1944. What’s the next story that you have that you can share with our listeners?
SPEAKER 07 :
Well, I think a story that people seem to enjoy is… After we finished with that pillbox, we got a bunch of replacements to get the company back near full strength. And we moved across some muddy fields into a town called Lindern, Germany. Our mission in Lindern was a holding action. We had foxholes around the perimeter of the city, of the village, I want to call it. It was big enough to have a railroad station. It’s about as much as I can say about Lindern. But we… stayed in that position for, I think it was nine days, actually, at which time we would spend half our time in a foxhole and half our time in a cellar in the village. And one time… I was in a foxhole and for some reason didn’t get relieved. So instead of spending about 12 hours, I spent 24 hours in that foxhole. And it just happened I was with a buddy from Texas who… Had a mental problem. In those days, we called it shell shock. I think today the polite thing is post-traumatic stress syndrome. And he could not stand watch. So I stood on my feet for 24 hours. And when I was relieved, I went back into the village and I went into the first cellar I could find. And in that part of Germany, most cellars were built like forts. They were built with stones in archways with a house built above it. The cellar I happened to go into was built with concrete block like an American cellar. And the owner of the house had coated the concrete block with plaster so that every time a German artillery shell hit anywhere around town, the concrete blocks vibrated a little bit. And the atmosphere in the cellar was a fog of plaster. And a very close buddy of mine, in fact, the man who was my best man when my wife and I were married the previous July 1, came into the cellar with me. And he looked around and he said, Jim, I can’t stay in this place. This is a death trap. He said, I’m going to go look for a better cellar. So I, at that point, was so tired that I lay down on the cellar floor and I was out of it. A couple of minutes later, Don came back in and he said, hey, I just found a great cellar right across the street. Let’s go over there. And I said, Don, I am so tired that I don’t care if I get killed. I cannot walk up those steps and across the street. I’m staying here no matter what happens. Well, here’s this guy that he and I had taken basic training together. We were roommates in college. We are in the same platoon in the division. He was my best man. And I refuse to move, and he doesn’t want to stay in a death trap. So he thought about it a little bit and finally said, well, if you’re going to stay, I’ll stay with you. And I was glad because against all Army regulations, Don carried a blanket in his combat pack. So I knew that if he stayed there, I would be able to sleep under a blanket that night on the dirt floor. So Don decided to stay. And somehow, while all this was going on, a third member of our platoon, Faustino Guerra, from San Antonio came in. So Faustino and Don and I slept under Don’s blanket. And I always like to add that Faustino and I insisted that Don sleep in the middle where it was less cold than on the outsides. The next day when we got out and about in the village, we found out that during the night That cellar across the street had been hit right in the cellar steps, in the cellar door with a big artillery shell. The house collapsed. There were eight men killed, and everybody else in the cellar was wounded to one degree or another. Lots of concussions. And our cellar… Our seller, the Death Trap, came through with flying colors.
SPEAKER 03 :
Boy, it seems like the hand of divine providence was upon you that night, Jim Sterner. That is an amazing story. Let’s talk about Battle of the Bulge. We’ve got a few minutes left. Tell us about that.
SPEAKER 06 :
Well, the Battle of the Bulge, we didn’t get there.
SPEAKER 07 :
until about the 22nd of December. And by then the Germans were pretty well beat. So we didn’t really see intense fighting. We were stationed along a road which had been dug into the side of a hill And we could walk up and down that road freely, and the Germans couldn’t hit us even with a mortar. One of the stories that we tell is that this gentleman, Don, of whom I’m speaking in the cellar, on Christmas Day, 1944, Don and I were assigned to a bazooka. And there was a German tank with an 88-millimeter gun on it about 50 yards in front of us. We were assigned to the bazooka and told if the tank moves, knock it out. Don and I, the place was frozen. You couldn’t dig a foxhole. And we were lying on top of the ice. And after about 10 minutes, I said to Don, I hope you know how to fire this thing because I’ve never even seen a bazooka fired before in any way, shape or form. And he said, I don’t know how to fire a bazooka. So here are two guys on the front line. to knock out a tank that we don’t know how to fire a bazooka. But we took the rockets out of the ammunition bag. We examined it and decided what we would do in case the tank moved, which it didn’t, by the way, luckily. And it turned out that We analyzed it properly, so if the tank had moved, we could have at least gotten a shot off. Now, what damage it would do is another story. Years later, some people found out who the tank commander was of that tank. His name was Gerhard Tebbe, and he came over to the United States to a reunion. which unfortunately I did not go to. And Gerhard Tebbe told us at that time that he was a tank commander and there were 12 tanks. The one that we saw was right in front of us. The other 11 were in the woods behind him. And we said, why didn’t you just roll over us and kill us all? And he said, well, we couldn’t because we were out of gas. You may remember the story, Kim, about the Americans burning our gas. Yes. Well, that decision probably saved my life.
SPEAKER 03 :
Wow. Okay. Yeah. A tank’s not of much use if it doesn’t have any gas. We’ve got two minutes left, Jim. You were then wounded, correct? Correct.
SPEAKER 07 :
Well, in two minutes I can tell you that our artillery decided they were going to knock out the tank. So a 4.2-inch mortar about a mile to the rear fired a shot to knock out the tank, and that shot hit on the road that I’m talking about and hit me in the right calf. And I sat down to check the wound, and my friend Don was sitting on my right, and two medics came out to look at me. And at that time, a second shot came in at the same place, and it killed both those. Those two medics took all the shrapnel, which would have killed Don and me. And those two medics fell over my legs. And I pushed them off my legs and started crawling down the road. And the artillery forward observer came up and said, don’t worry. He said, I didn’t see the first round come in. So I called a second round at the same spot. But there won’t be any more. I know what’s going on now. And so that’s how I got wounded by friendly fire.
SPEAKER 03 :
Wow, that is quite a story. Jim Sterner, thank you so much for sharing this story with us. Your final thought you’d like to leave with our listeners?
SPEAKER 07 :
I don’t know what to say, Kim.
SPEAKER 03 :
Well, I so appreciate you sharing your story with us, and I’m excited to reconnect with you after you’ve been with Ralph and Ron as well. So Jim Sterner, indeed, thank you. It’s been an honor to get to do this interview.
SPEAKER 07 :
It’s been my pleasure, Jim. I enjoyed it. I hope somebody listens.
SPEAKER 03 :
They will. I guarantee it. I guarantee it. So, Jim Sterner, thank you so much. My friends, indeed, we stand on the shoulders of giants. So God bless you and God bless America.
SPEAKER 04 :
Thank you for listening to America’s Veteran Stories with Kim Munson. Be sure to tune in again next Sunday, 3 to 4 p.m., here on KLZ 560 and KLZ 100.7.
SPEAKER 08 :
The views and opinions expressed on KLZ 560 are those of the speaker, commentators, hosts, their guests, and callers. They are not necessarily the views and opinions of Crawford Broadcasting or KLZ management, employees, associates, or advertisers. KLZ 560 is a Crawford Broadcasting God and country station.
