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In reply to the discussion: Check in if your dad was in The Big One! [View all]bmbmd
(3,088 posts)He finished his finals, enlisted in the infantry, and stayed in for the duration. He stayed an enlisted man, and never trusted officers. He described his experience as "a boat ride to Africa followed by a walk to Russia". I guess he was in some serious stuff, but he never spoke of it, to my knowledge. He had a coffee can full of medals, including two silver stars and two bronze stars-but no purple heart. At the end of the war, he dropped out of dental school, went back to college, and became a college professor. His two older brothers-a doctor and a lawyer by trade-were commissioned as officers but never left the states. There was always a strain between them with my dad-cordial, but never close again. He died just before Christmas, 2003.