ELKMONT WWII VETERAN SHARES HIS STORY

The Decatur Daily honors the surviving veterans in Morgan, Lawrence and Limestone counties with a multimedia series titled “The Vanishing Generation.”  Go to DECATUR DAILY  and read Elkmont veteran Clifford Wilford describe his experience during battles across France and Germany as part of Patton’s 3rd Army. He has now passed away but his story is one to remember.

Clifford Wilford served in the 10th Infantry Division in Patton’s 3rd Army during World War II. He saw action from Normandy, across France and through Germany, including being part of Patton’s famous counterattack during the Battle of the Bulge. Wilford lived in Elkmont.

THE BEGINNING OF ARTICLE:
Memorial Day is more than backyard barbecues, cold drinks and a day off work in World War II veteran Clifford Wilford’s mind. Today he remembers Christmas Day of 1944, when his best friend was killed during the Battle of the Bulge. Time and age have wiped the friend’s name from his mind, but his memory of the event is still stark and painful.

“I cried like a baby,” said Wilford, who lives in Elkmont. “He was a master sergeant, oh my, I can’t think of his name. He was my closest friend. He took a mortar shell right (at) the legs. It blew him apart and killed him. I cried all day on Christmas Day.”

Wilford said he typically observes Memorial Day at the Alabama Veteran’s Museum in Athens. He thinks about his friends from World War II and he thinks about his wife Cathy’s son, who served during the first Gulf War.

“We think it is a wonderful day that should be honored by all the people of the U.S. because if it were not for those soldiers, there would not be a United States,” said Wilford.