Here is where the 442nd finally broke through to the 1st Battalion of the 141st Infantry Regiment that had been surrounded by the enemy. We have all heard of the so called "Lost Battalion" who knew where they were all the time, but I suppose the name was adopted because if the 442nd or some other unit had not broken through the enemy lines, the Battalion running out of ammunition and supplies would have been lost. The 442nd lost many lives, but like good soldiers did their job without thought of the sacrifices they had to give to get the job done and they certainly accomplished their mission. Three of the Veterans in our group laid a wreath at the foot of the monument and the Ladies of our group then placed their own wreath in the name of peace. Again, a beautiful and meaningful ceremony we were most fortunate to be a part of.

We boarded our bus to again return to Fraize and the Hotel di Centre for lunch which featured the specialty of the area which was some delicious ham. The lunch was hosted by the town officials. After this very fine meal and wonderful hospitality, as usual, back on the bus over the Vosges into the Rhine valley and the Colmar pocket.

Seemed like everyone retired early after a fine dinner at the hotel. After a nice rest and another great breakfast, we were off to Riquewihr. The old Vets began to loosen up and share their war time experience with the rest of us via the speaker on the bus. Atop Marie Pass, the cement bunkers which the Germans built to serve as roadblocks were still visible. Every one of them had to be destroyed before our troops could move on to the next objective.

One of our group, Cewrin Johnson, was one of the men who climbed the mountain and was admitted by the care-taker after applying rifle butts to the heavy door. He told us that to ward off the bitter cold and not having blankets the squad he was with pulled the ancient and very valuable drapes from the walls of the castle to cover themselves. How did they know, these fighting GI’s, that those wall coverings were priceless. The fortress building itself covered, I imagine, at least an area of two city blocks and was very impressive in its size and architecture.

On to Kientzheim where Cewin Johnson and his good Buddy, Curtis Alley, who were in the same Company, wanted to find the place where Cewin as a forward scout found a German tank waiting to ambush his Company. The tank did fire on them but because Cewin had been able to warn his Company, there were no casualties. We found the exact spot where the German tank, and another plus was marked up for our tour guide Dennis Ross.