February 19, 2014
The French government presented F. William Bauers with the Legion of Honor at a ceremony on June 6, 2011, at the World War II Memorial. It is the highest honor awarded by the French government.
Stories this photo appears in:
Obituary: F. William “Bill” Bauers
F. William Bauers Jr. was just 18 years old when he joined the Texas National Guard with plans of getting an appointment to West Point. But he was called to active duty less than a year later, qualified for Officer's Training School and went on to get his pilot's wings before ending up in Europe in January of 1944 flying B-26 Marauders. “It was exhilarating to be a pilot back then, to be in Europe and to be part of a force fighting against what we perceived as the enemy,” Bauers would recall of his service during World War II. “The war created a sense of urgency because we never knew when we said goodbye if it would be our last time.”
Comments
Use the comment form below to begin a discussion about this content.
Sign in to comment
Or login with:
OpenID