Old Recordings Reveal A Soldier’s Lost World War II Stories

ACROSS AMERICA — After a day of clearing war-torn buildings and working patrol, U.S. Army Pfc. Elmo Jones and the rest of B Company bedded down for the night after coming to the small French village near the Siegfried Line into Germany.

Jones saw some of his most intense combat of World War II in and around Haguenau, with German counterattacks coming two and three times a day. But after a day of work on the front lines, the young soldier stretched out in his sleeping bag to catch some rest at the foot of a staircase before doing his best to survive another uncertain day in the war.

At some point during the night, however, Jones and a buddy were both stirred awake by a loud noise upstairs in their building. Civilians had long since been ordered to evacuate the city or were otherwise cleared out before the fighting broke out, so the two young men set out to investigate.

"I said 'boy grab your gun, let's go,'" he would later recall. "About the third door we opened, a woman screams 'Don't shoot! Don't shoot! Don't hurt us!' She wasn't an old woman. I asked her what she was doing there and told her 'you're not supposed to be here, it's too dangerous.' ”

The stories and others, once thought lost, are brought to life by Elmo Jones’ grandson. Like many who fought in that literal war of good versus evil, he was never keen on sharing his memories from it, which included being wounded in combat and seeing a Nazi concentration camp with his own eyes. Read the full story on Tuscaloosa, Alabama, Patch.

100-Year-Old’s Bar Is Loaded

At 100, Edith Murway-Traina never let a little thing like age get in the way of having fun and staying active, whether it's dancing, socializing with friends or earning a Guinness World Record as the oldest female competitive powerlifter.

A celebration of her spirit of adventure and healthy lifestyle was planned Sunday at the Jackson Springs Community Center in Tampa, Florida.

Her last powerlifting competition was in 2019, and after taking a pause during the coronavirus pandemic, she’s back in training again. Read the full story on Tampa, Florida, Patch.

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