292nd Engineer Combat Battalion (New Member)

[Sir Gator]

Hello, all,

I haven't meant to be anti-social! I've been busy or sick for several weeks now. I've been reading the news post digests but didn't get online.

 

First, I am absolutely thrilled that the photo has pleased several of you. It really is a beauty! To be honest, the rest of my husband's family wasn't all that interested in it, but I'm an Army brat and know meaningful photos when I see them. (My dad was a Vietnam vet. He died 10 years ago.) I am so pleased to have found others who wanted a copy because it deserves to be remembered. My husband and I had the original framed with a simple black frame and dark khaki matting, and it just looks Outstanding! -- as my dad would say. Very military.

 

To answer someone's question, I'm afraid I don't have any information about the circumstances where Sterling acquired the panoramic photo of Company A. We found it up under the eaves in the unfinished attic after both Sterling and Hazel died. I'm horrified that we nearly missed it. Sterling was from North Carolina, so Camp Butner wasn't too far from home, so maybe he brought the photo home while other guys didn't manage to. He came home to Chapel Hill on a weekend pass to marry Hazel before shipping out from Butner. Assuming the photo was taken at Butner, which is not necessarily a good assumption, I guess.

 

I'm wondering whether this string should be transferred to a new string titled more accurately, so maybe more people can find it.

 

Anyway, I probably won't post much but will keep following the digests with interest. If anyone else wants a copy of the photo, Hampton House said they would keep the electronic file for three years. I'll get a copy of the file myself before that time is up but haven't gotten around to it yet. I'll post it at that point, but as several of you have found out, the Hampton House prints are a bargain.

 

Thanks, all!

 

Lisa

Lisa,

 

You are correct that this photo is a treasure and definitely a bargain. I can appreciate your being an "Army brat" since my dad served 25 yrs in the Army before an additional 20 years serving the U.S. as a member of Civil Service at his last posting (Fort Campbell, Ky) assisting retirees and widows/widowers of retirees to be sure that they received all of the benefits they deserved for serving their country. He's been gone a year in a half now, but there isn't a day that goes by that his service to his country doesn't inspire me. My Dad's Dad (Randall Gates) was not career military, but just another of the millions of "Normal Joes" who sacrificed for the greater good during WW II. He volunteered in December of 1943 at the age of 34 and with a family of six (including himself). He didn't have to go because of the size of his family, but chose to give of himself for all those who love freedom and democracy. This is yet another inspiration that drives me forward to honor these great men (and women) and is another of the millions of stories of those who gave of themselves. We can't tell every story, but we can do our part when it comes to the 292nd. Let us continue to honor these great men by preserving their memories, their experiences, their photos and their artifacts for posterity and for future generations. That is our charge, my friends!

 

Gary