DEVOTION & DUTY   
Ferdinand J Bronzell 
Litter Platoon, Company B 110th Medical Battalion 

       On January 4th 1945 the 137th Infantry Regiment, a part of the 35th Infantry Division, was engaged in fighting in and about the village of Villers-la-Bonne-Eau, Belgium. The American and German armies had been engaged in combat here and at the neighboring village of Lutrebois since the 29th of December, as the Battle of the Bulge reached it climax.   

      Despite instructions not to go forward in the face of heavy fire to retrieve casualties, on January 4th 1945 a four man litter team from Company B of the 110th Medical Battalion led by Technician 5th Class James Gollinger of Massena NY went forth to aid wounded soldiers. The team was hit by a mortar round, killing Gollinger, Privates Gerald Fenner of Carthage MO and Louis Beauchaine of Warwick RI, and seriously wounding the fourth, Private First Class Ferdinand Bronzell of Chicago IL. All members of the litter team were awarded the Silver Star.     

        Discharged by the US Army January 29th 1946 from a hospital in Springfield MO, Ferdinand Bronzell returned to civilian life in the Chicago area. A 1943 graduate of DePaul University, Mr. Bronzell worked as a teacher and principal.   
       He also had a second career,  serving in the Veterans of Foreign Wars and the Military Order of the Purple Heart. He served as the Post Commander of the Wilber J Roeder Post 1229 of the VFW, a state commander in Illinois of the Military Order of the Purple Heart, and for over 15 years, the editor of the Purple Heart Magazine. He was a frequent writer to local newspapers.

        The letters appearing on this page are courtesy of his wife Edythe Bronzell.