WWII veteran travels to Normandy to commemorate 80th anniversary of D-Day

BLOOMINGTON, Minn. – A Bloomington World War II veteran joined other veterans and President Joe Biden at the official ceremony recognizing the 80th anniversary of D-Day in Normandy, France.

Les Schrenk attended the event at the Normandy American Cemetery as part of an experience sponsored by Old Glory Honor Flight and American Airlines. For Schrenk, who is also a native of Long Prairie, Minnesota, the trip represents a moving opportunity to honor veterans of this landmark battle and the war in general.

“Well, that’s where the beginning of the end began,” Schrenk reflected two weeks ago at his current home in Bloomington’s Friendship Village, where he alternates between water aerobics and chatting over coffee.

He added: “Each of us did a small part to win the war.”

In fact, Schrenk, who says he is now “one hundred years and six months old,” has more than played his part since the day he joined the army on his 19th birthday in November 1942.

‘I had a good idea that a lot of people wouldn’t come home’

Schrenk’s decision to join the army in the midst of a raging war was not well received on his family’s Long Prairie dairy farm. His older brother was already serving in the U.S. Air Force as a waist gunner on a B-24 in the Pacific.

“My mother and father tried to dissuade me. But they were unsuccessful,” Schrenk recalled of that fateful decision.

“I had a good idea that a lot of people weren’t going to come home,” Schrenk said, adding, “But I promised my mom I would.”

Schrenk was delighted when he too was “assigned” to the US Air Force. And he was also delighted when a B-17 pilot chose Schrenk to be part of his 10-man crew. He later discovered that “the only position left open was that of the ball turret” – a position that required him to sit in a small, separate space with two “massive machine guns” that would help fend off enemy planes.

Schrenk explained what was “by far the most dangerous position” inside the plane: “It’s very, very crowded – your head [is] almost between your knees,” he said, adding, “You’re off the plane and [if] you are shot down, you first need to get on the plane before you can jump. And not only that, it’s so crowded in that tower that you can’t use your parachute. You had to leave your parachute on the plane.”

On February 22, 1944, Schrenk’s plane – the Pot O’ Gold – was returning from a mission with other B-17 planes when enemy planes attacked the squadron.

“I saw the plane to our right get hit and fall into the ocean. And about two minutes later, there was a very loud explosion,” Schrenk said of the moment a German pilot hit the plane.

Schrenk recalled seeing and hearing: “flames about 20 or 30 feet long, and there’s one explosion after another.”

Miraculously, the German plane did not continue firing, which allowed the Pot O’ Gold to land. Schrenk remembers how the crew “all left” the plane.

“Those 20 minutes when we were on fire really saved my life. Because during that time we were descending – and there was no point in being in the tower – so I got permission to leave the tower and had enough time to put on my parachute,” said Schrenk, adding: “If it weren’t for that, I wouldn’t be here today. .

Of the four planes shot down that day – with a total of 40 men on board – only nine survived. And these nine were from the Schrenk crew. The only person who did not survive that day was his dear friend, pilot William R. Lavies of Birmingham, Alabama.

“[Lavies] had the misfortune of landing on a frozen lake. He broke through the ice. He was asking for help. There were some Danes who wanted to rescue him, but the Germans wouldn’t allow it,” Schrenk said of the fate of a friend, who “was like a brother to me… In fact, I say a prayer for him every night.”

The other nine crew members were soon arrested by the Germans, said Schrenk, who officially began their experience as American prisoners of war.

‘Interrogation was horrible’

Over the next 15 months, the crew would endure starvation, beatings and disease as they were transferred from one prison camp to another, all in Eastern Europe.

Schrenk remembers hearing the suffering of other soldiers before experiencing the interrogation.

“In the background, you were screaming. You heard swearing, you heard begging for mercy. You heard every horrible sound you could hear and even the occasional gunshot,” he said.

But Schrenk persisted – despite beatings, disease and starvation – in part, he says, because of the courage of his fellow POWs.

“They knew we hadn’t had water for four or five days and they were throwing water at us and just teasing us,” Schrenk said of his arrival at one of the camps, before adding, “And all of a sudden, a prisoner started singing ‘God Bless America,’ and we all agreed and, oh, it totally infuriated the Germans.

Schrenk also persisted in writing poetry as a prisoner: he took the opportunity to document his feelings with a pencil stub and in dim light.

But perhaps most of all, Schrenk believes he persisted because he was determined to keep his promise.

“Pure will. Remember, I promised my mother I would come back,” Schrenk said of how he survived those long months in prison.

In May 1945 – and after enduring months of the Death March – a unit of English soldiers approached Schrenk and his fellow prisoners to inform them that they had been freed. But Schrenk still had to wait until July 30, 1945 to return home and finally fulfill his promise.

“Oh, she was just elated. She was in the middle of a time of struggle,” Schrenk said of her mother.

He then added, “That’s the key to everything: don’t give up.”

Upon returning to Minnesota, Schrenk remained determined to live, work and even build a family of his own. He married Bernice, his wife of 75 years, on May 17, 1948. Bernice and Les had one daughter, Virginia. And while the family was busy with careers and traveling – living primarily in Edina, Minnesota – Schrenk was also able to research more about his own military history and that of other members of The Greatest Generation.

In 2008, a documentary crew followed Schrenk as he visited the site of his plane crash in Denmark and found the actual “Pot O’ Gold” data plate. Schrenk calls this discovery “the equivalent of finding a needle in a haystack.”

And Schrenk also managed to meet the same German pilot – Hans Hermann Müller – who shot at the American plane, but chose not to continue firing, giving Schrenk’s crew a chance to survive.

“We moved away from the formation. We were no longer much of a threat to him. He could have continued to shoot us and left us to die in the ocean. He didn’t do it,” Schrenk recalled before recounting Müller’s own words about his fateful decision that day: “He said, ‘I knew you were already out of the war, so I stopped shooting.’ Why should I?'”

And Schrenk’s passion for learning more about other battles and those who fought them has not diminished. Which brings us back to the opportunity to travel to Normandy, France.

‘It’s a wonderful feeling’

Schrenk himself was not involved in the D-Day invasion. Instead, he was still being held as a prisoner of war in other parts of Europe. But Schrenk welcomed the opportunity to honor the anniversary of the war’s turning point. And he also enjoyed the opportunity to connect with other World War II veterans.

“It’s a wonderful feeling. Everyone has their own story. Everyone has done it, it’s wonderful,” Schrenk said.

Schrenk’s wife, Bernice, passed away last year. His daughter, Virginia, died of cancer in 2018. But luckily for Schrenk, he found a new sister in the military family: Mary Jo Rohrbacher — herself a 20-year veteran and retired sergeant — joined Schrenk as his companion. trip on the trip. to Normandy.

Rohrbacher shared photos of Schrenk’s historic visit and experience at the D-Day ceremony, including when he met U.S. Rep. Dean Phillips (D-MN, 3rd District) and one of the last living Tuskegee Airmen.

Rohrbacher said the day was “indescribable,” as Schrenk also maintained his humor, charm and energy.

As for Schrenk, he predicted weeks ago that the day — and the opportunity to honor a pivotal moment in our collective past — would be profound.

“I like reliving the past,” Schrenk said of how he believes in reflecting, researching and remembering.

He added: “It’s part of history and I think trying to keep history alive is very important.”

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