Christmas Combat
Joseph "Jack" Jagodinski

In December 1944, I departed for LeHavre, France, and entered combat on December 24, 1944.

During our combat period, we were strafed by planes and attacked by the German 88's. We did not remain in a position for more than one or two days, as there was a great need for our guns.

During one of our firing positions, the 88's zeroed in on our gun position. One shell hit the cooks' tent, which was just to the rear of our gun, causing a death and injuries to our cooks. As the shells were zooming in, a fellow crewman by the name of Private Friel suggested we dash out to our howitzer and return the unfired shells into a nearby dugout. Hurriedly, the two of us moved the shells under cover. The 88 shells were dropping around our guns. Fortunately, [there were] no further hits on us. Orders came through to pack up and move to another position.

During the snow storms, our prime mover with howitzer attached was not winterized for snow travel, and in traveling up or down hills, we were forced to take our winch, pull it to the top of the hill, tie it around a tree, and pull up our vehicles.

During our missions, we fired from positions located at Longwy, Beyern, Goesdorf, Galhausen, Wiltz, Andler, Bastogne, St. Vith and many more.

Excerpt from Veterans of the Battle of the Bulge, edited by Robert Van Houten. Paducah, Kentucky: Turner Publishing Co., 1991. (ISBN: 156311013X)

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