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-Obits-
Medal Of Honor Staff Sergeant Walter D. Ehlers Passes On At 92
2014-02-25
Citation
For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty on 9-10 June 1944, near Goville, France.

S/Sgt. Ehlers, always acting as the spearhead of the attack, repeatedly led his men against heavily defended enemy strong points exposing himself to deadly hostile fire whenever the situation required heroic and courageous leadership.

Without waiting for an order, S/Sgt. Ehlers, far ahead of his men, led his squad against a strongly defended enemy strong point, personally killing 4 of an enemy patrol who attacked him en route. Then crawling forward under withering machinegun fire, he pounced upon the guncrew and put it out of action.

Turning his attention to 2 mortars protected by the crossfire of 2 machineguns, S/Sgt. Ehlers led his men through this hail of bullets to kill or put to flight the enemy of the mortar section, killing 3 men himself.

After mopping up the mortar positions, he again advanced on a machinegun, his progress effectively covered by his squad. When he was almost on top of the gun he leaped to his feet and, although greatly outnumbered, he knocked out the position single-handed.

The next day, having advanced deep into enemy territory, the platoon of which S/Sgt. Ehlers was a member, finding itself in an untenable position as the enemy brought increased mortar, machinegun, and small arms fire to bear on it, was ordered to withdraw. S/Sgt. Ehlers, after his squad had covered the withdrawal of the remainder of the platoon, stood up and by continuous fire at the semicircle of enemy placements, diverted the bulk of the heavy hostile fire on himself, thus permitting the members of his own squad to withdraw.

At this point, though wounded himself, he carried his wounded automatic rifleman to safety and then returned fearlessly over the shell-swept field to retrieve the automatic rifle which he was unable to carry previously. After having his wound treated, he refused to be evacuated, and returned to lead his squad.

The intrepid leadership, indomitable courage, and fearless aggressiveness displayed by S/Sgt. Ehlers in the face of overwhelming enemy forces serve as an inspiration to others.
Posted by:Omavising Ebbemp9815

#4  R.I.P. S/Sgt. Ehlers, you well deserve the peace.
Posted by: JohnQC   2014-02-25 18:57  

#3  Mr. B - your cousin's story is hauntingly similar to my uncle's. He landed at Utah and was wounded at Bastogne. Non-life threatening but medevac was not option anyway as he was inside the cordon. Stayed in the ETO until the end and lived a long happy life.
Posted by: Bangkok Billy   2014-02-25 05:44  

#2  I travel today to attend the funeral of an 88 year old cousin and veteran of the Battle of the Bulge. My aunt got a telegram informing her that "he had been wounded in action the European Theater of Operation." His folks heard nothing more for another six weeks. His wounds were not life threatening and he finished out the war, returning home to get married and raise 4 children. He was married for 63 years. They are all leaving us now, those brave soldiers.
Posted by: Besoeker   2014-02-25 01:22  

#1  The NYT writeup on his passing ended with following interesting bit:
His brother Roland and he were both in Co. K, 18th Regt, 1st Infantry Division & slated to hit Omaha Beach together. Their commander anticipated heavy casualties & split the brothers up. Walter was re-assigned to Co. L and went on to win multiple awards for heroism from D-Day onward. His brother Roland was killed by shellfire as he stepped onto Omaha Beach. From the article: "For all the plaudits Mr. Ehlers received, the loss of his brother haunted him.

“I used to have nightmares every night,” he told The Orange County Register after the 60th anniversary of D-Day. “Nightmares about my brother coming home. He always showed up immaculately dressed, and he had that beautiful smile, and we’d talk. I’d go get something and come back, and he’d be gone. Then, I’d wake up.”

What “broke the cycle,” he said, was when he spoke at Omaha Beach, telling of how he had waved to Roland as they prepared to board their ships to cross the English Channel. “My knees were trembling when I stood before the audience that day, with 14,000 vets and 17 heads of state,” he said. “But after that, the nightmares went away. I came to grips with his death. They say when you talk about something you finally let it out.”

His thoughts of Roland, and the distance between them at the shores of Omaha Beach, never left him, however.

“I still can’t talk about him without bringing tears to my eyes,” he told The Register. “I felt like if we’d been together, that wouldn’t have happened. But God sent us in different ways. "
Posted by: Anguper Hupomosing9418    2014-02-25 00:31  

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