John Trush, World War II veteran

 

John Trush, World War II veteran and wonderful man, passed away on February 11, 2015. John and all other veterans deserve our heart-felt thanks; they sacrificed for our country’s benefit. In 2005 he told me the following story about a famous battle:

 

“I remember that bloody battle near the German town of Herrlisheim. It was really a trap set by the Germans. It occurred not long before the war ended, right after the Battle of the Bulge.

 

I remember that because my company was sent north to cut the Germans off in that battle, but the Germans pulled out before we got there.

"I remember the scene of the scene very well. It was early morning and very foggy. At one point our officer, Lieutenant Woods, and I looked out and saw part of the sun trying to break through the fog, and I said, ‘That sun looks awfully bloody up there.’

 "And so we advanced, with Steinwald Woods on the left of us and the Zorn River on the right. We were supposed to cross that river to take Herrlisheim, but before we crossed tremendous fire came from that wooded area. One of the tanks was riding on the top of a levee along the river and slipped down and turned completely over into the marsh. As I drove by it I didn’t see anyone jump out of it; the escape hatch was closed. The firing kept coming from the woods, and it was lighting up our tanks like match sticks. They were full of gas and would explode and burn for hours; I’ve seen them burn all night long. They were firing 88 millimeter canons. Being under heavy fire, Lieutenant Woods called through the intercom for us to back up. He kept hollering, ‘Back it up; pour it on her!’

"We were able to retreat far enough so that the shells began to fall before they got to us. I could see the shells flying by us, quite a few of them. They were almost three feet long and I could see the waves of heat created by them coming towards us—the shape of the shell shimmering inside. As the fog lifted I could see German soldiers coming from the woods. And right away our air force fire-bombed that whole area with white phosphorous, which destroyed the trees and all the German infantry. Those bodies lay there for quite a while—frozen to the ground.

We fought battles before and after Herrlisheim, but nothing as disastrous. It was truly a nightmare. You know, for a long time I couldn’t talk about the horror of that terribly bloody battle. For a long, long while the memories kept me awake—all those men slaughtered … and I came out of it, came home, and I … oh well!”

Second Photo: 20-year old John Trush with his Company A tank buddies in 1945. Note tank and rockets at top of photo.