Here is the Mail Call that I sent that Boom Boom got the illegal message and his computer shut down.

Hello,
All has been quiet on the mail front since last Mail Call June 18. However, I have just received an interesting mail from a Belgian friend, Eddy Monfort. He gave me a copy of his book "Offensive des Ardennes" in 1994 and I have I place in a previous Mail Call a poem from the book. MANHAY "Hold at all Costs" I would like to have all members who were in the Manhay area Dec. 1944 to give Eddy their personnel experience. Among online members that I know that were there are Howard Hensleigh, Lud Gibbons ,Bob Barnes, Cecil Doty, Andrew Lubic, and of course Mike Spano and Fred Beyer. Eddy already has testimony from 40 veterans of other units. The Third Battalion took Manhay period and so it is important for him to get your stories . It reminds me of a controversy we had some time back about some other unit claiming credit for what Col. Boyle and the Ist Battalion did at La Roumiere around Dec. 25, 1944.

I have included a couple hyperlinks in this mail. Someone let me know if you can receive them

Ben

Run to Cadence with the Army Airborne

MP3
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Subj: New Book on Manhay "The Witness relate us..."
Date: 6/20/2002 6:22:54 AM Eastern Daylight Time
From: em11@freegates.be

Dear Mr Barrett,

They are severals months that I have not given you some news about me. All is fine. I pursue the work in my new home and soon, I will become father. Marie my wife and I will have to October first, a boy ! It's fantastic.

So, yesterday, I looking on your website during one hour. Your site is very interesting. You have a lot of informations. I was very glad to see the story of Michael A. Spano, Frederick T. Beyer and the nephew of Lt. Raymond D. Gearon (Comp.I/517) during the events of Manhay, and more particularly about the P-38 attack. In my book, I talk about this attack to 11.30 am on 27 December 1944 with three P-38... (page 116).

My question is following :

Can I have your authorization for including in a new book, the testimony of Mike Spano and Fred Beyer ?

When I published my first book "L'Offensive des Ardennes - The fight at Baraque de Fraiture and Manhay Crossroads", in 1994, the next year, it was sold out. I just published 1000 books.

Since, a lot of people ask me to reprint it. But I know that they are some errors in the book and I have a lot of new information and photos to add. But I looking to add more and more testimony of veterans...

Actually, I write a new book on Baraque de Fraiture and Manhay sector. The title will be "Witness relate us... - The strategic crossroads of Braque de Fraiture - Manhay and Grandmenil".
I would like to have this book contain all possible that I can discover from those who fought there.

Actually, I have approximately 40 testimony of veterans but from others units, except the story of Floyd Ziolkowski from Hq/517th. I will print also the notes on a conference of several officers from XVIIIth Corps, 7th Armored Division with Colonel Paxton about the preparation of the attack on Manhay. This conference took place on December 26th afternoon.

The new book will be print again in French. So, if you desire, we will can translated it (About the 26 - 27 December with 517th) and why not, if you want put it on your web site in English, I will be honored !

I hope print the book for the spring 2004. I have already write 40% of the book. It's not the same of my first work. I print more testimony of veterans - The title is "Witness relate us ..."

Of course, next to each testimony, I will included with detail, the source of the information...

Can you help me in this researches ?

Do you know some veterans that were in Manhay during the events and that will can write us their personnel experience ?

Can you contact them or can you give me their address or email address ?

Can you contact Michael A.Spano, Frederick T.Beyer and Lt.Raymond D.Gearon about my researches ?

I will be very happy to have for my book several testimony of men from 517th to put in the new book...

I thanking you in advance.

I hope that all is fine for you and your family.

Sincerely,

Your friend, Eddy Monfort
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Subj: Howard W. Ruppel
Date: 6/22/2002 12:18:15 PM Eastern Daylight Time
From: PRCT517
To: Ben517

Dad:

I just ran across these stories from Howard W. Ruppel, F Co. These are some 82nd Airborne records in Wisconsin, posted on a library web site. There is a lot of detail here, and letters and stories from WWII. 57 pages!

I added a link to them onto the web site, under Soldier's Stories.

http://www.scls.lib.wi.us/mcm/history/82nd/82_11a.pdf

http://www.scls.lib.wi.us/mcm/history/82nd/82_11b.pdf

There is also a story there from Ed Moehrke, who was very briefly with the 517:

http://www.scls.lib.wi.us/mcm/history/82nd/82_23.pdf

There might be more mentions of the 517 in other articles. You might recognize some of the names in the index:

http://www.scls.lib.wi.us/mcm/history/82nd/index.html

Bob