Bulge

BOONSBORO Burman Smith said he didn't see the inside of a building from the time his unit got enmeshed in the Battle of the Bulge in December 1944 until fighting in that sector ended a few months later. In addition to fighting the Germans, Smith and other soldiers of the 17th Airborne Division had to survive one of the coldest winters on record. Smith, 90, said he still has pain from nerve and circulation damage that he suffered in his feet after contracting frostbite during the battle.

John Leather wears earplugs to church, but it's not the sermon that the 88-year-old World War II veteran is trying to muffle. He said he wears the earplugs to drown out the rumble of a drum that's played when the congregation sings hymns. “I've had to leave the service a couple of times,” Leather said with a shiver. “It reminds me of artillery coming in.” Nearly 70 years ago, Leather was a sergeant in the 17th Airborne Division, a unit of paratroopers and glider soldiers who saw some of World War II's most ferocious fighting during the Battle of the Bulge and Operation Varsity.

Citizens police academy offered The Washington County Sheriff's Office will hold a citizens police academy beginning March 6 and running for 11 weeks each Tuesday from 6:30 to 9:30 p.m. There also will be two Saturday sessions of practical instruction, along with hands-on exercises using the Fire Arms Training Simulator (FATS) and training in citizens emergency response techniques. Anyone interested in participating should contact either Deputy 1st Class Jim Holsinger or Dan Watson at 240-313-2194 or 240-313-2195.

waynesboro@herald-mail.com GREENCASTLE, Pa. - When Fred Peiffer walked across the Greencastle-Antrim High School stage to get his high school diploma last Wednesday, he knew he was experiencing one of life's precious moments. The diploma was 60 years in the making. Peiffer, 76, of 510 N. Allison St., was supposed to have graduated with his Greencastle-Antrim High School class in June 1945. It was the summer of 1944, World War II was raging and Uncle Sam needed 18-year-olds.

WARFORDSBURG, PA. - Vernon Swain stores reminders of the attack on Pearl Harbor in a small, brown tweed suitcase at his home. Sixty-five years after the Japanese attack, Swain remembers watching the water burn. He remembers watching planes bomb a mess hall while soldiers were eating Sunday breakfast. Linda Hixon unfolded yellowed copies of the Honolulu Star-Bulletin, dated Dec. 7, 1941, as she helped her father tell his story. "They're getting old, like me," Swain, 91, said of the papers.

APRIL 15, 1925-SEPT. 13, 2009 Wayne E. Alter Sr., 84, of Hagerstown, died Sunday, Sept. 13, 2009, at the VA Medical Center in Martinsburg, W.Va. Born April 1, 1925, in Hagerstown, Md., he was the son of the late Ira Doran and Eva May (Bower) Alter. He was the husband of the late Patricia Ann (Glesner) Alter, who died Jan. 23, 1994. Wayne served in the United States Army during World War II, where he was a corpsman in the Battle of the Bulge. He was later honorably discharged and returned to Hagerstown.

BOONSBORO - Burman Smith said he didn't see the inside of a building from the time his unit got enmeshed in the Battle of the Bulge in December 1944 until fighting in that sector ended a few months later. In addition to fighting the Germans, Smith and other soldiers of the 17th Airborne Division had to survive one of the coldest winters on record. Smith, 90, said he still has pain from nerve and circulation damage that he suffered in his feet after contracting frostbite during the battle.

View the slideshow. o Click here to view and purchase more photos from Veterans Day events in Washington County. HAGERSTOWN -- A little cold weather didn't deter two 83-year-old paratroopers from attending the Veterans Day ceremony Tuesday in downtown Hagerstown. "We've been cold before -- believe me," John Leather said as he pushed the wheelchair in which his friend, Fred Wishard, was sitting. In the winter of 1944, both men served with the 17th Airborne Division during the Battle of the Bulge, a German offensive that was designed to break the American lines in the mountain regions of Belgium, France and Luxembourg.

waynesboro@herald-mail.com HUSTONTOWN - Little did Benjamin Lane know that a small kindness he and his buddy showed to a French family in the middle of a war would be remembered 58 years later. Lane, 78, of Hustontown, and his buddy, Alfred Endres, 84, of Lodi, Wis., were in the 35th Infantry Division on its way to fight in the World War II Battle of the Bulge. "We stopped in the town of Metz on the French-German border. There was a bathhouse and it was open," Lane said.

OCT. 19, 1924-DEC. 28, 2008 MARTINSBURG, W.Va. - Allen William Myers, age 84, of Artisan Way, died Sunday, Dec. 28, 2008, at City Hospital in Martinsburg. Born Oct. 19, 1924, in Antietam, Md., he was a son of the late John and Ida Otzelberger Myers. Allen was preceded in death by his first wife, Mary Fern Bowers Myers, on Jan. 18, 1969. He had retired in 1982 from the Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Martinsburg. Allen was a veteran of World War II, serving in the U.S. Army 17th Airborne Division.

John Leather wears earplugs to church, but it's not the sermon that the 88-year-old World War II veteran is trying to muffle. He said he wears the earplugs to drown out the rumble of a drum that's played when the congregation sings hymns. “I've had to leave the service a couple of times,” Leather said with a shiver. “It reminds me of artillery coming in.” Nearly 70 years ago, Leather was a sergeant in the 17th Airborne Division, a unit of paratroopers and glider soldiers who saw some of World War II's most ferocious fighting during the Battle of the Bulge and Operation Varsity.

Russell Ray "Bub" Smoot, 90, of Sharpsburg, passed away Tuesday, April 2, 2013, at Golden Living Center. Born May 12, 1922, in Slanesville, W.Va., he was the son of the late Ray and Hilda (Rowzee) Smoot. Russell worked as a cabinet maker for 41 1/2 years at Statton Furniture Co., retiring in 1989. He was a corporal in the U.S. Army during World War II with 41st Company A, Tank Division, 11th Armour Thunderbolts. He served in Europe and saw action in the Battle of the Bulge.

Maj. Joseph Thomas Forney, U.S. Army, retired, of Berkeley Springs, W.Va., passed away Saturday, April 14, year of our Lord 2012, at the Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Martinsburg, W.Va. Born Aug. 7, 1914, in Brunswick, Md., he was the son of the late Harry Frederick Forney and Mary E. Howe Forney, and stepmother, Elizabeth V. Main Forney. He was a graduate of Bath District High School, Berkeley Springs, Class of 1933. He also attended George Washington University and American University, both in Washington, D.C. In addition to his parents, he was preceded in death by his sister, Betty Lou Johnson, and his brother, Richard M. Forney.

Donald E. "Donnie" DeBold Sr., 88, of National Pike, Hagerstown, passed away Sunday, Feb. 12, 2012, at his home. Born Sept. 11, 1923, in Eylers Valley, Md. (Sabillasville), he was the son of the late William John “Billy” DeBold and Katherine Matilda Naylor DeBold. He was married to Jane Louise Cromer DeBold on July 31, 1948, and she preceded him in death in 1997. He was a veteran of the U.S. Army during World War II, having served during the Battle of the Bulge in the 76th and 90th Infantry divisions.  He was a 1941 graduate of Thurmont High School.

Bundled in their winter coats and shivering from the December cold, members of Hagerstown Choral Arts streamed into Trinity Lutheran Church on a recent evening for rehearsal. Their weekend performance of Handel's "Messiah" was just days away and on this night it was about fine tuning. Clutching their scores, the singers did what comes naturally. First one voice, and then another, and soon the room was swelling with song so rich and strong it almost spilled outdoors. While the local choral group's performance will not approach the extremes that some productions have reached over the centuries, member Jack Myers is confident their rendition will leave a lasting impression on audiences.

DEC. 25, 1923-DEC. 6, 2009 Lee E. Rephann Jr., 85, of Hagerstown, passed away on Sunday, Dec. 6, 2009, at his home. Born Dec. 25, 1923, in Eckhart Mines, Md., he was the son of the late Lee and Gladys (Eisel) Rephann. He was in the first graduating class of Beall High School in Frostburg, Md. Lee was a World War II veteran of the U.S. Army. He was wounded during the Battle of the Bulge and received a Purple Heart. He retired as an automobile insurance adjuster and most recently had worked at Mace Auto Body Shop in Smithsburg, Md. He was a member of the Church of Christ in Hagerstown.

APRIL 15, 1925-SEPT. 13, 2009 Wayne E. Alter Sr., 84, of Hagerstown, died Sunday, Sept. 13, 2009, at the VA Medical Center in Martinsburg, W.Va. Born April 1, 1925, in Hagerstown, Md., he was the son of the late Ira Doran and Eva May (Bower) Alter. He was the husband of the late Patricia Ann (Glesner) Alter, who died Jan. 23, 1994. Wayne served in the United States Army during World War II, where he was a corpsman in the Battle of the Bulge. He was later honorably discharged and returned to Hagerstown.

MARCH 15, 1924-JAN. 28, 2009 CUMBERLAND, Md. - Raymond J. McCabe, 84, of Cumberland, went home to be with the Lord on Wednesday, Jan. 28, 2009, at his residence after a courageous battle with cancer. Born March 15, 1924, on top of Green Ridge, he was the son of the late Michael E. and Effie (Hartman) McCabe. He was preceded in death by his wife of 53 years, Reta (Hiett) McCabe; and nine of his siblings, Arlie Ray Byrd, Edna McCabe, Mollie Robinett, Pat McCabe, Arveda Piper, Elva Slider, Michael McCabe, Roy McCabe and Viola (Sissy)

Editor's note: Each Sunday, The Herald-Mail publishes "A Life Remembered. " This continuing series takes a look back -- through the eyes of family, friends, co-workers and others -- at a member of the community who died recently. Today's "A Life Remembered" is about Allen William Myers, who died Dec. 28 at the age of 84. His obituary appeared in the Dec. 31 edition of The Herald-Mail. By ALICIA NOTARIANNI MARTINSBURG, W.Va. -- People often are remembered for the things they have said.