World War II veteran is glad Americans 'remember' on Memorial Day

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White County Veterans Affairs       Military Awards

JamesKenneth.jpg (1349152 bytes)Three Rivers Edition ARKANSAS DEMOCRAT-GAZETTE
By Heber Taylor
PROMOTIONS CONTRIRIBUTING WRITFR    May 26, 2002

   World War II veteran Kenneth James of Searcy is glad that Americans pause on Memorial Day to remember the men and women who gave their lives for their nation. He sometimes wears his Army uniform at Memorial Day ceremonies.
   But for him and other veterans, almost any day is a time to remember their service experiences and comrades who lost their lives then, as well as those who have since perished later or are still living.
   James, who was raised near Rose Bud, was 19 when he was drafted in 1943. He was sent to Camp Fannin, near Tyler, Texas, for basic training.
   He then spent several months as part of the cadre, training other recruits there. He became part of the 70th Infantry Division in the summer of 1944. The division arrived in France that December and was on the front on Christmas Eve.
   On Christmas Day, he was inside an old school building and about to eat a can of C-ration beans when German artillery shells knocked the end off the school. He said his unit moved, but heavy artillery fire followed them.
   In January, some of his fellow soldiers were separated from the rest, and several attempts to supply them failed. James.figured out a way to get the supplies around trouble spots for them. For that, he was awarded the Bronze Star for gallantry.
   His closest call came during night combat when a German bullet creased his helmet. On another occasion, a large German artillery shell landed close to him and a fellow soldier. "The good Lord must have been looking over us because it was a dud," he said.  
   Toward the end of the war, when the army was moving fast, he and a buddy found a German car to ride in. While they were looking for gas, a German officer came walking out of a woods to surrender. His 45 men also surrendered. James and his friend took them to headquarters for processing as prisoners of war.
    His division was in the combat zone for almost three months before heading into reserves for rest. By that time, the division had liberated 58 towns. It lost 835 men in action, with 2,713 wounded, 397 taken prisoner, and 54 missing in action.
   James was a corporal, but while occupying Germany he was promoted to technical sergeant. His job was supervising guards and retrieving displaced persons and sending them to military headquarters for placement.
   Instead of  leaving the Army in October 1945, he re-enlisted for three years. Part of that time was spent inJapan.
   Except for almost four years back home in Rose Bud, from 1948-52, James remained in the Air Force or Army until August 1968. Part of his time was spent in Germany and Holland. He retired as an E- 7, or sergeant first class.
   In recent years, James has lived in Heber Springs and Beebe. He and Mary moved to Searcy last year.
   They have been active in the Camp Fannin Association (Camp Fannin Association, 1324 S. Beckham, Tyler, TX 75701, 903-533-9232) for soldiers who served at Fannin from, 1943-46. James was vice-president in 2001, and wife Mary was president of the women's auxiliary.
   They have attended Memorial Day reunions iri Tyler for several years. Although they are usually held before Memorial Day, it's a time of remem bering those who were killed during World War II and those who have died since.
   As vice-president, James read the names of the veterans who had passed on since the last reunion. He also wrote letters of condolence to families of veterans as soon as the association learned of the deaths.
   Since many Arkansans trained at Fannin, Kenneth and Mary represent the association by attending funerals of those living within 75-100 miles of White County who died.
   James belongs to the VFW and keeps up with his former 70th Infantry as a member of the division's association. Through correspondence with one veteran. James learned that he was the one who carried the veteran to an aid station in France. "We corresponded several times before we realized I had been the one to evacuate him," James said. It happened on James's 21st birthday, Jan. 9, 1945.
   Mary James said she remembers how Vietnam veterans were treated badly upon returning home from that conflict. She's glad they're being honored now, and she hopes that disrespectful treatment never happens again to the men and women who risk their lives for the freedom of this country.