As Always, Norb

World War II produced the Greatest Generation. Many millions of Americans joined the war effort both as civilians and as members of the Armed Forces. Millions of the Armed Forces were deployed to combat zones where they fought for our freedom against the Axis Powers of Germany, Japan and Italy in Africa, Europe and in the Pacific. So many of these young military men and women were casualties of the war. Some did not come back and are buried in places like Normandy, France, The Netherlands and the Philippines. Some went missing and would never be found. Many came back without their health, hosting serious injuries, emotional, mental and physical. A lot of them became forever different from whom they were when they were young men and women civilians enjoying America. A large number of these Americans were of German heritage and fought in Europe against their own family relatives. One young man, Norbert Anthony Rawert, twenty-two years old on the day he joined the Army, a St. X High School graduate and a fun filled person from the Schnitzelburg/Germantown part of Louisville, Kentucky was a part of this Greatest Generation. In August 1942 he volunteered to join the fight against some of whom were his relatives in Germany. After joining the Army in 1942 he was assigned to basic training and technical training as a Signal Corps telephone technician. He was then sent to Ft. Jackson, South Carolina and assigned to the 59th Signal Corps where he trained and prepared for the invasion of Europe and the fight to end the war. He landed in Normandy at Utah Beach shortly after D Day and became part of Operation Cobra, the allied effort to rid Europe of Hitler and his control of Europe. In January, 1944, he deployed with the 59th to England where he continued training and preparations for the invasion. The mission of the 59th Signal Corps was to provide communications support for the Army VIII Corps, communications that would allow command, control and air support for the movement of vast numbers of American military in ways that were critical to defeating the German forces in France, Belgium and Germany. Norb fought from the June landings at Utah Beach through France and into Belgium, under very difficult and terrible conditions of war (little sleep, rain, cold, illness) and always facing enemy fire and danger, often witnessing horrific scenes of war. The VIII Corps under Lt. General Troy Middleton was assigned to the First Army and moved west across the Cotentin Peninsula to face the German Line near St. Sauveur along the Douve River. The shelling here was intense and there was often close combat and many snipers. The stalemate here lasted until July 24. Some of First Army headed north to take Cherbourg a major German stronghold and port. On July 24, after Cherbourg fell Norb and the 59th Signal Corps headed south towards Coutances as part of the Operation Cobra Breakthrough, a major and key battle. Ernie Pyle was in the area from which he wrote about the war and our soldiers. After the breakout through the German lines the VIII Corps and Norb’s 59th Signal Battalion continued to move south through Coutances, Granville and Avranches which is very close to the famous Mont St.-Michel, a large and impressive castle which dated back to the Middle Ages. Around August 1st and after the Cobra Breakthrough the VIII Corps was transferred to the 3d Army under Patton until on September 4th they were transferred to the Ninth Army. The Ninth Army was split with some of it moving west to Brest where they lay siege to this important port until it fell in September. Sometime in September Norb’s unit moved east and north to Belgium where some of the worst fighting of the war took place including the Hurtgen Forest and Battle of the Bulge. In October someplace in Belgium he became ill and was evacuated to France then England and then back to the U. S. and finally to the Wakeman General and Convalescent Hospital at Camp Atterbury, Indiana, where he was honorably discharged in January of 1945. He was left as a combat veteran to face the many demands of war and the transition into civilian life. Norb’s family in Schnitzelburg had always been close to their German heritage and family. The family had originally emigrated from Germany in the mid-19th Century for political, religious and economic reasons. Their family home was around Wessum, Germany, close to The Netherlands in Northwest Germany. They were mostly farmers and worked and lived on farms. Before the war when the German people were suffering from the effects of World War I, hunger, unemployment and extreme difficulties, the family in America often corresponded with their family in Germany and sent them care packages to help them through the challenging times. This was especially true during the 1920's and 30's following the imposed ravages of WW I, so, when America went to war against Germany and Hitler and Norb joined the Army to fight his family’s German relatives it made the war and Norb’s involvement very emotional and significant for them. Norb made the comment to his friend before leaving Schnitzelburg for war that he may soon be fighting his relatives in Germany. This statement would prove to be true. Norb spent about two and a half years in the military, six months under difficult combat conditions. During this time he and his family corresponded and created an interesting and important record of his service and what went on during his time in WW II as part of the Greatest Generation. These letters of correspondence, or at least some of them, were retained by the family and passed down through the years. They give an interesting and revealing account of one soldier in the military during the war and during tough and deadly combat operations in Europe. It also provided an interesting account of his family and friends on the home front. Norb, after honorable discharge and recognition as a veteran of WW II made the difficult transition into civilian life and married Alma Pierce and raised a family of three children. The eldest, Carol, who is a veteran of the Viet Nam War era, over the years became very interested in her family’s history and genealogy especially her Dad’s service during the war. Shortly after Norb’s death in April 1988 Carol discovered that her brother was in possession of the WW II letters of Norbert Rawert and his family. She became determined to read these letters and learn about her dad’s service and write a documentary of her dad’s war experiences. Her dad, as many combat veterans do, suffered from a form of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). It sometimes manifested itself in negative outcomes such as drinking, smoking, obesity, serious health problems, emotional and psychological challenges. It made life challenging for the family and Carol during her youth. However, many of these challenges were mitigated by her dad’s natural kindness, progressiveness and willingness to make life good and happy for his family and himself. As time went on, her Dad became an avid reader and student of history and the world and developed a formidable knowledge base and world view from which he could view his difficult combat experiences and understand why his post traumatic syndrome disorder. He used this view to mitigate the potential of a challenging emotional war experience. Carol used the letters and other genealogical and historical information to learn about her family history both in America and Germany. She used this information to develop a relationship with her family’s German family (Josef Effkemann who served in the Nazi Army in the European front) and included pertinent information in this book.