On Jeep's 70th Anniversary: In Search Of "The Greatest Generation"
AOL Autos Editor David Kiley journeys to Germany and Belgium to find a lost uncle killed in battle
Posted: Jul 29, 2011
Estimates are that there are about 1,000 World War Two veterans dying each day. When America and the rest of the world commemorate the 70th anniversary of the D-Day Normandy invasion in 2014, and the anniversary of the end of the war in 2015, the ranks of those who survived the epic battles of the war will be thin.
World War Two occupies a special place in American culture, even today. Perhaps that's because it was the last war fought by the U.S. with such clarity of purpose going in, as well as clarity of victory at the end. It is rather amazing that there were five feature films released in 2009 and 2010 starring Hollywood's most bankable stars set in World War Two.
There is hardly an American family that doesn't have a connection to World War Two; parents grandparents, uncles, cousins who fought in the war or at least played a role in defeating the Axis forces of Germany, Japan and Italy. In that war, after all, unlike the wars fought today, even civilians played a role--living through food rationing, organizing metal and rubber drives, selling and buying war bonds and even training as coastal airplane spotters.
My father, Charles Kiley, led a story-filled, exciting war. A correspondent for the Stars and Stripes newspaper, he finished the war at the side of General Dwight Eisenhower, covering the future President as he and his staff negotiated the final surrender by Germany. But he had a brother, Eddie, who lived a very different war. An infantryman in the Fifth Armored Division, he was killed on December 11, 1944 at the age of 24 in a place called the Huertgen Forest in western Germany.
For most of my life, all I knew of my Uncle Eddie was what I could see in a painting done by my Uncle John. Too, there was a photo of my father and Eddie in London when they found themselves together on one of Eddie's few leaves. But that, and just a few stories my father imparted, were all I had to go on.
He was a mystery that tugged at my curiosity for years. Before all the WW2 veterans are gone, and we can no longer commemorate and mark their sacrifices with them in our midst, I wanted to forge a closer connection to the uncle I never knew.
Earlier this month, I took a Jeep Wrangler from Berlin to the Huertgen Forest to see the place where my Uncle fell, and then on to Belgium to the American cemetery where he is laid to rest. Why a Wrangler? Jeep is celebrating its 70th anniversary this month. The brand started with the Jeep Willys MB, and the Wrangler is the mechanical descendant of that Jeep, which General George Marshall said was "critical" to winning the war.
I know that the only time my father visited his brother Eddie's grave was during the war. And he drove a Willys Jeep MB from Liege, Belgium to his initial battlefield resting place. I thought I would recreate that visit as closely as the modern day allows.
Watch the video here, and journey with me into history. We hope it may inspire you to find your family's connection to the war that so defined what author and newsman Tom Brokaw called "The Greatest Generation."
[To read posts about our trip, the places we stayed and some of the sites we saw in Berlin, please go to David Kiley's posts on AOL Travel here.]
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Your article on Goodyear, get a life, really. A 40 year old ad? With relevance to today? What did you do 40 years ago that impacts your type of journalism today? Might get out of the fantasy that is Ann Arbor( we recently did)- a city that prides itself as "the new chic" 30 miles west of the greatest debacle in America- and one AA never impacts positively.
Jeez, an article abotu a 40 year old ad, and folks wonder why AOL is suffering.
I WENT TO GERMANY WITH THE 28TH IN 1951 AND SERVED UNTIL APRIL OF 1953 . . . HAVE BEEN BACK SEVERAL TIMES . . . PATTON'S GRAVE IN LUXOMBORG ,THE CAMPS IN DACHAU ETC., I PLAN TO RETURN ON D-DAY AND PARTICIPATE IN WHATEVER ACTIVITIES I CAN IN 2014 . . . THESE GUYS WERE SUCH WONDERFUL HEROES . . . HSR
July 31 2011 at 11:09 PM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down ReplyMy stepfather Robert Styvesand saved thousand of Jews from the gas chambers by being a member of a human smuggelers ring the transferred jews from south Africa Johannisberg to san Francisco USA. He had to flee Germany because he was in a disagreement with a German General Charman .
July 31 2011 at 2:52 PM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down ReplyBOB N
GOD BLESS all you folks involved in this STORY and rememberance of US OLDER FOLKS that served in THE BIG WW2. It very sad that in the WARS of recent years that the patriotism is lacking. These troops that are fighting, loosing there lives and getting cripeled up for life , are doing that for us and the suvival of our life style. I would HOPE that our LEADERS???? take a hard look at what's going on and put the U S A and our freedom and SURVIVAL, first in their choice of any and all Financial SUPPORT that our COUNTRY hands to other NATIONS I truely feel that the U S should be able to ABTAIN OIL in payment for OUR TROOPS , EQUIPMENT
that are being used in these COUNTRIES. IF IT WASN'T for the GULF WAR, KUWAIT would be controled by IRAN, would't that be SWEET., OIL AT $7.00 per gallon or more. The U S would have unemplowment of 30 %
or more, IT WOULD BE UGLY, so folks don't . THE OLD STORY IS THAT THE GOLF WARS ARE ALL ABOUT OIL , AGREED, BUT try to get along without IT..
BOB N
Dear david,
Thank you for GREAT video tribute! I would like to tell the personal story of your father on my website www.storiesbeyondthegraves.com
Its non commercial! Its just a tribute to the soldiers who give there live for the freedom of the world....
PLEASe send me a message i would be honored to tell your uncle's story on my website.
thank you for your family Sacrifice.
for the liberation of europe.
Ralph
Thank you, David Kiley, for your beautiful story! My father was a sailor near the end of WWII. He was only 17 when he enlisted (lied about his age). He never talked about his experiences until about 3 years ago. He became very excited when he searched on his computer and found a photo and information about one of the ships he served on as a "sonar man." There were many photos of his ship, the destroyer "USS MYLES C FOX." The best picture was of him and his "Sonar Crew" on the deck of the ship. I went home and looked it up myself. I was able to enlarge and print beautiful 8x10 photos. I had them professionally framed and captioned, and gave them to Dad for his birthday. He said it was the best gift he ever got. I was astonished to find that he had also somehow come into email contact with one of his best buddies (who was also in the group picture). His friend was born within 3 months of my father...so they'll both be 84 this year. Dad says they "talk" at least once a week by email. This fact is pretty amazing in that my father is not very computer savvy....he mainly just plays card games on the computer, ha, ha! Anyway, I'm so glad he's finally telling us of his experiences during WWII, in Japan after the war, and the Korean Conflict. I'm very proud of him!
July 31 2011 at 1:47 PM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down ReplyI am also humbled by this clip. My father served in WWII and while he was one of the fortunate ones to come home alive, the memories of the fallen soldiers, the prisoners that were liberated from the prison camps, never left him. He was proud to serve his the great country of ours, as are all service men and women. Thank you for your story.
July 31 2011 at 1:44 PM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down ReplyAbsolutely touching clip ... I have visited the war graves in both France and Belgium and, although not knowing even one of the fallen, an overwhelming feeling of pure patriotism filled my heart and brought tears to my eyes.
July 31 2011 at 1:05 PM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down ReplyAll were Heroes. The Greatest Generation is not behind us.
July 31 2011 at 12:11 PM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down ReplyGreat piece! It should also be a reminder of what patriotism is about.
July 31 2011 at 11:26 AM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down ReplyModel Spotlight
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