FReeper Canteen ~ Hall of Heroes: Joseph R. Beyrle ~ January 17, 2011

Serving The Best Troops and Veterans In The World !! | StarCMC

[Kathy in Alaska]

 

Our Troops Rock!  Thank you for all you do!

For the freedom you enjoyed yesterday... Thank the Veterans who served in The United States Armed Forces.

Looking forward to tomorrow's freedom? Support The United States Armed Forces Today!

---

~ Hall of Heroes ~

Joseph R. Beyrle

Info from here and here.

           

Joseph R. Beyrle (August 25, 1923 - December 12, 2004) is thought to be the only American soldier to have served with both the United States Army and the Soviet Army in World War II. Born in Muskegon, Michigan, Beyrle graduated from high school in 1942 with the promise of a scholarship to the University of Notre Dame, but enlisted in the army instead.

Upon his enlistment, Beyrle chose to become a paratrooper, joining the 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment of the 101st Airborne's "Screaming Eagles" division, specializing in radio communications and demolition, and was first stationed in Ramsbury, England to prepare for the upcoming Allied invasion from the west. After nine months of training, Beyrle completed two missions in occupied France in April and May 1944, delivering gold to the French Resistance.

On June 6, D-Day, Beyrle's C-47 came under enemy fire over the Normandy coast, and he was forced to jump from the exceedingly low altitude of 120 meters. After landing in Saint-Côme-du-Mont, Sergeant Beyrle lost contact with his fellow paratroopers, but succeeded in blowing up a power station. He performed other sabotage missions before being captured by German soldiers a few days later.

Over the next seven months, Beyrle was held in seven different German prisons. He escaped twice, only to be recaptured each time. Beyrle and his fellow prisoners had been hoping to find the Soviet army, which was a short distance away. After the second escape (in which he and his companions set out for Poland but boarded a train to Berlin by mistake), Beyrle was turned over to the Gestapo by a German civilian. Beaten and tortured, he was released to the German military after officials stepped in and determined that the Gestapo had no jurisdiction over prisoners of war. The Gestapo were about to shoot Beyrle and his comrades, claiming that he was an American spy who had parachuted into Berlin.

Beyrle was taken to the Stalag III-C POW camp in Alt Drewitz, from which he escaped in early January 1945. He headed east, hoping to meet up with the Soviet army. Encountering a Soviet tank brigade in the middle of January, he raised his hands, holding a pack of Lucky Strike cigarettes, and shouted in Russian, 'Amerikansky tovarishch! ("American comrade!"). Beyrle was eventually able to persuade the battalion's commanders to allow him to fight alongside the unit on its way to Berlin, thus beginning his month-long stint in a Soviet tank battalion, where his demolitions expertise was appreciated.

Beyrle's new battalion was the one that freed his former camp, Stalag III-C, at the end of January, but in the first week of February, he was wounded during an attack by German Stuka dive bombers. He was evacuated to a Soviet hospital in Landsberg (now Gorzów Wielkopolski in Poland), where he received a visit from Soviet Marshal Georgy Zhukov, who, intrigued by the only non-Russian in the hospital, learned his story through an interpreter, and provided Beyrle with official papers in order to rejoin American forces.

Joining a Soviet military convoy, Beyrle arrived at the U.S. Embassy in Moscow in February 1945, only to learn that he had been reported by the War Department as KIA on June 10, 1944 on French soil. A funeral mass had been held in his honor in Muskegon, and his obituary was published in the local newspaper. Embassy officers in Moscow, unsure of his bona fides, placed him under Marine guard in the Metropol Hotel until his identity was established through his fingerprints.

Beyrle returned home to Michigan on April 21, 1945, and celebrated V-E Day two weeks later in Chicago. He was married to JoAnne Hollowell in 1946—coincidentally, in the same church and by the same priest who held his funeral mass two years earlier.  Beyrle worked for Brunswick Corporation for 28 years, retiring as a shipping supervisor.

His unique service earned him medals from U.S. President Bill Clinton and President Boris Yeltsin of Russia at a ceremony in the Rose Garden of the White House marking the 50th anniversary of D-Day in 1994.

Joseph Beyrle gives a detailed, dispassionate account of his experiences here:

http://www.506infantry.org/stories/beyrle_his.htm

Beyrle died in his sleep of heart failure on December 12, 2004 during a visit to Toccoa, Georgia, where he had trained with the paratroops in 1942. He was 81. He was buried with honors in Section 1 of Arlington National Cemetery in April, 2005.

His son, John Beyrle, was appointed the United States Ambassador to Russia in July 2008.

On September 17, 2002, a book by Thomas Taylor about Beyrle, The Simple Sounds of Freedom, was published by Random House. A Ballantine paperback version, Behind Hitler's Lines, came out June 1, 2004.

In August 2005, a plaque was unveiled on the wall of the church in St. Côme-du-Mont, France, where Beyrle landed on June 6, 1944.

An exhibition devoted to Joe Beyrle's life and wartime experiences opened at the State Russian Museum in St. Petersburg in February, 2010 and at the Museum of Great Patriotic War on Poklonnaya Gora in Moscow on May 6, 2010.

Please remember the Canteen is here to honor, support and entertain our troops and their families.  This is a politics-free zone!  Thanks for helping us in our mission! 

[Kathy in Alaska]

Last walk by the computer on my way to bed. Thank you, Allegra.

I hope all is going well for you. Stay safe! ((HUG))

[Kathy in Alaska]

Good morning, E...((HUGS))...thank you. All is well here, except it is -13 degrees. You and Bo have a great Monday.

[tomkow6]

Happy Birthday, Kathy!

[luvie]

Bummer! You should have a holiday for YOUR birthday! :)

Hope you have an easy day and that they bring you cake! LOL

[beachn4fun]

Good morning, Everyone. Good morning to our

Military, our Allies, and their families. THANK YOU for all you do.

Thank you, Star, for preparing the Canteen for today’s activities.
Great story of the American fighting spirit!

DC Metroland weather report

~ Today...Cloudy. Temps nearly steady in the low to mid 30s. Winds E at 5 to 10 mph.

~ Tomorrow...Snow this evening will give way to a combination of rain and freezing rain late. Low 31F. Winds NE at 5 to 10 mph. Snowfall around one inch.

Why, oh why, do I have to wake up so early on a day off?

Oh well I'm up and posting. I won't be here long this morning since I'm going shopping with some gift cards I received at Christmas. And, this afternoon another dental appointment. A crappy way to spend my day off.

Going to make my rounds. Remember...I'll be bock!

Now remember, the Canteen is

So, come on in and sit for a while.
There's always plenty of coffee, pancakes, conversation, silliness, and plain old BS

REMEMBER THEM

DEFENDERS OF FREEDOM

FR CANTEEN MISSION STATEMENT
Showing support and boosting the morale of our military and
our allied military and the family members of the above.
Honoring those who have served before.

[beachn4fun]

Good morning and HAPPY BIRTHDAY, MA ((HUGS))

Hope it is a special day for you. Treat yourself to something nice.

[ConorMacNessa]

Good morning, Beachy!

*HUGS*

The dreaded winter mix combined with a Monday! UGH!!!

Lamh Foistenach Abu!

[luvie]

Well, guess all the Early Birds
are sleeping in on this holiday!
Everyone have a great one!
...(while I am hard at work! LOL) ((hugs))

[ConorMacNessa]

Good morning, Luv!

*HUGS*

This early bird is up and at 'em! How are you doing this dreary Monday morning?

Lamh Foistenach Abu!

[E.G.C.]

((HUGS))Good morning, Ladies. How’s it going?

[E.G.C.]

((HUGS))Good morning, LUV W. How’s it going?

[DollyCali]

Hope your day sparkles & is full of laughter Kathy

[Arrowhead1952]

Good morning to everyone at the Canteen..

[luvie]

Good morning! Well, bummer you have to be out and about!

I don’t think it’s dreary here...suppose to be up to 75 today!

Hope the sunshines for you later! :)

[beachn4fun]

Good morning, CMN ((HUGS))

Just keep repeating...”spring is only a couple months away”...

I need to get going soon so I can hit the mall and be back in time to go to dentist.

Farmer’s Almanac is calling it close to our locals:

January 2011
16th-19th. Fair, then stormy.

20th-23rd. Major storm Eastern seaboard; gales Atlantic Coast.

24th-27th. Showery, blustery for most sections. Snow westernmost section.

28th-31st. Clear, with widespread frost.

Old man winter, huh? keep repeating...”spring is only a couple months away”... LOL

[luvie]

Hi, EGC! It’s going well. Gotta go get ready for work.

Hope you and Bo have a wonderful day...and week! (((hugs)))

[beachn4fun]

LOL

Good morning, night owl ((HUGS))

I did sleep in a bit. Not as long as I’d like.

Gotta get on the road soon, so hope you have a good day at work.

[Arrowhead1952]

[beachn4fun]

Good morning and ((HUGS)) EG. All is well, except it’s Monday again. And, nasty weather on the way.

Howz it going out your way?

[beachn4fun]

Good morning, dear ((HUGS))

A busy Monday here even though I’m off today. And, we’re in for another round of nasty weather tonight into morning.

Howz things with you?