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Jewish Heroes in World War II by Avi Heiligman
Forgotten Her es Jewish Heroes in World War II
By Avi Heiligman
2nd Division infantrymen on the march at the Battle of the Bulge Landing on Omaha Beach on D-Day Lieutenant Benjamin Grossman and some of his medals
Over the centuries, countless Jewish men and women have answered the call to serve in their nation’s military. There have been some lists compiled of these servicemen and women in America, with most of their stories unknown to the general public. The heroism showed by these service members is incredible. Here are some of their accounts of their bravery under fire.
Sergeant Max Globerman was from Detroit, Michigan, and joined the Army Air Corps in his upper 20s. He was the tail gunner on a Martin B-26 Marauder medium bomber over Europe. In the course of twenty-five missions, he earned sixteen decorations, including the Distinguished Flying Cross for “commendable dexterity” while his plane was fighting off swarms of Nazi fighters.
There were three Jewish soldiers named Edwin Wolf that this author has discovered, and they deserve mention for their actions during World War II. Lieutenant Colonel Edwin Wolf from Baltimore was with the engineers when they assaulted Omaha Beach on D-Day, June 6, 1944. Amid the bloody and chaotic landing, he landed ashore, and his unit was supposed to direct truckloads of supplies onto the beaches. However, his commanding officer was hit by a mortar round, and Wolf then directed the amphibious vehicles amid the devastating German gunfire. He was wounded that day but continued fighting in other battles. He was awarded the Bronze Star as well as a French medal for his actions on D-Day.
Another Edwin Wolf was active in interrogating captured Nazis and participated in recovering rare books stolen by the Nazis during the war. The third was a crewman on a B-25 bomber and was killed when it crashed on a ferry flight over Brazil.
Colonel Ernest Lee was born in San Antonio, Texas, and was General Eisenhower’s aid-de-camp throughout the entire war. The Jewish officer joined the army in 1940 and was
assigned to Eisenhower’s staff when the general was with the Third Army during training maneuvers. Eisenhower liked his work ethic so much that he invited Lee to come to Washington when he was reassigned. Lee was with Eisenhower during his travels throughout the war, including the invasions of North Africa and Western Europe. Lee was given several awards for his service including the Bronze Star and Legion of Merit.
The Battle of the Bulge was a German offensive in December 1944 that depleted most of their reserves in an effort to prevent the Allies from a breakthrough of the Siegfried line. Many new American units were in the Ardennes Forest sector when the surprise attack was launched, and they subsequently suffered heavy casualties. Veteran divisions such as the 80th Infantry Division were rushed to the front in a successful effort to turn the tide of the battle. Lieutenant Benjamin Grossman was with the 317th , Regiment, 80th Division and was wounded in combat. During the next few months, he and the rest of the division pushed forward and pushed
back the Nazis across the Rhine River. In April 1945, Lieutenant Grossman’s company was shot at by a sniper from nearby woods. As he led the effort to clear the sniper, his unit encountered a much larger enemy force. Grossman was wounded a second time in battle but still led his unit to safety. He helped evacuate the wounded, and for his courage he was awarded the Silver Star.
The fight against the Japanese was nothing like the Americans had ever seen before in combat. Japanese tactics were cunning, and they usually fought to the last man – very few were captured uninjured. Corporal William Friedman of Brooklyn was on the island of Luzon in the Philippines as a gunner for a cannon unit during World War II. He was on a tank destroyer when they encountered Japanese tanks and a 47mm anti-tank gun. Friedman knocked out the gun and scored probable hits on a couple of the tanks. Then things took a turn for the worst when the Americans started receiving fire from a distance. A shell hit Friedman’s vehicle but only two soldiers were slightly injured and Friedman himself was unhurt. They say there is no atheist in a foxhole and for Friedman that was especially true. He grew up in an Orthodox home but wasn’t so religious himself. He said of his experience, “But ever since I have been overseas…there hasn’t been one single day I’ve missed my prayers.”
Digging through records and outof-print books can bring up the stories of heroes that have long been forgotten. The courage and bravery shown by these servicemen and women are rarely written or talked about in the media. As this author digs through more records, more information will surface and these heroes’ stories can be told.
