ELAND, Wisconsin – Earl Chrudimsky had barely been in the Army six months when he was rushed to Belgium for the Battle of the Bulge. He fought heroically and was seriously wounded in that action to resist the German army’s final desperate offensive in the Ardennes.

Sixty-one years later, several military awards for Chrudimsky’s World War II service, to include a Bronze Star Medal and Purple Heart, finally caught up to the now 80-year-old veteran, April 12.
In early January 1945, Chrudimsky was assigned as an Infantryman in the 1st Infantry Division’s 1st Battalion, 26th Infantry Regiment, and his unit was dug in to prevent the advance of enemy tanks and infantry. When one of his company’s machine gunners was killed, Chrudimsky took over until the gun ran out of ammunition. Then he manned another machine gun until all that ammo was gone as well. Despite the Americans’ best efforts, the German assault proved overpowering, and Chrudimsky’s unit was forced to withdraw. That’s when he was wounded – on Jan. 3, 1945.

With a gunshot wound to the shoulder and disabled from the loss of blood, Chrudimsky was taken prisoner. A German medic treated his shoulder, and Chrudimsky was transported to Stalag III-C near Alt-Drewitz, Germany (now Drzewice, Poland).
After the Red Army liberated the prisoner of war camp, he was eventually moved again – this time to a Soviet hospital in Odessa. Chrudimsky they had two hospital stays in Italy and two more in the United States. By the time Chrudimsky was discharged Sept. 19, 1945, the war had been over for a month.

As the war ended, so did Chrudimsky’s service to the Army and the Big Red One. The awards he should have received for his combat service had been overlooked, almost forgotten … until now.
In addition to the Bronze Star Medal and Purple Heart, Chrudimsky was awarded the Good Conduct Medal, European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal, World War II Victory Medal, Combat Infantryman Badge and the Honorable Service Lapel Button April 12 for his World War II service 61 years earlier.
The awards were presented by BG Kerry Denson, commander of the Wisconsin Army National Guard, who himself is a decorated combat veteran. (Story courtesy of the Wisconsin Army and Air National Guard)

Bill Shaw is an Associate Blue Spader, familiar to many members who met him while he was researching his book about his uncle, Sergeant Frank Shaw, Company E, 26th Infantry, 1941-1945. Bill has now published his account of Frank Shaw's five years of service, encompassing three amphibious assaults, six major campaigns, and three months in three different POW camps.

The full text of Bill's book, described in the Spring 2006 Newsletter, is now available on this site. Instructions on how to obtain a copy of the book from the author are included.
Click here to go to the first page of the downloads section

You may reach Dr. Shaw at wpshaw@chass.ncsu.edu

If anyone is interested there is a web site at www.google.com/maps that is a map, sattelite, hybrid map that can be enlarged and you can go anywhere on earth to view a location.

By choosing the "community layer" in the left hand column you and scanning over regions of Tunisia you may notice some of the 26th Infantry battles from WWII such as the battle for Kasserine Passhave already been entered into the Google database.

Dear Sir's, To whom it may concern, I wonder how many men especially of C.Co. can remember 1939 when the king and queen of England came to the USA and went to New York to see the Worlds Fair.
The whole 1st division was strung along the railroad tracks to protect them.
Me and my buddy Henry Karkowsky where stationed along side of Lake Champlain and it was my turn to be on duty at 3:00 ocklock in the morning, it was dark and spooky as I kept hearing the bell on a bouy in the lake when suddenly I heard a crumpling noise, well the hairs on the back of my neck stood up and I whirled around and there was a big white goat that didn't know how close it was to going to goat heaven because I then realized what training meant as I had taken the 5 round clip from my belt and loaded it into my rifle and was ready to fire all without thinking.
If anyone remembers this incident I sure would like to hear from them.
Oh yes before the kings train came by there was one ahead of it which if the tracks were sabotaged it would be the one that took the hit, the kings train followed a half hour later, I saw the crest on the car.

I'm sorry to see that Bennie Zuskin has passed away and Charlotte and I wish to extend our condolences.
The first C.Co. reunion that I ever went to was at Beinnies in Va at the Chamberlin Hotel I think it was at Ft Myres. about 20 years ago.