Inform your members that if they send me any documents or photos, of their activities on Camp Mackall, these items will be treated with the utmost respect and in no way damaged. I wish to scan the items they send (digitize them) then return them to the owner un-harmed. Any of these photos/documents we opt to include in the history books will reflect credit to the owner of the items. The 517^th PIR was on Camp Mackall for almost 8 months in 1943 and 1944, so it played an important role in the history of the only military installation created exclusively for the Airborne. The 517^th PIR's magnificent wartime history is etched in stone so I am not addressing it. However, one of the main reasons a unit does well in combat is a direct reflection of the training it underwent. With that in mind I would like to inform the world of the 517^th PIR's activities on Camp Mackall.

Thank you, I can be reached at: Lowell W. Stevens, 302 Summer Hill Rd., Fayetteville, NC 28303-2551

Phone: (910) 396-4925 (work)

(910) 864-4252 (home)

E-mail: stevensl@bragg.army.mil

Pat Seitz

Dear Ben & Bob:

Thank you once again for the outstanding gift you give to the rest of us through Mail Call. My thanks also to the 517th members who take the time to share their stories and help those in my generation and those coming behind me to have the facts that flesh out our heroes. One very recent example is Gene Brissey's e-mail about C.B.Jones -- it was an eloquent tribute not only to C.B. Jones but also to Gene. Thank you.

Happy Mother's Day to the wives of all the 517thers who were blessed to be married to you and thus, made it possible for the rest of us to be related to you!

Sincerely, Pat Seitz (Dick Seitz's daughter)

Chris Liddell

   Attn: Gene Brissey

   Hi Mr. Brissey. I don't know if you remember me or not but I have e-mailed you a time or two and I have you on my (rather long) list of veterans that I've met over the years since Mr. Barrett and I have been looking for people from the 517th who knew my grandfather, Bobby M.(F Co.), or information about the Silver Star that he was awarded from "The Bulge".   The reason that I have the list is for sending "virtual greeting cards - e-mail cards" on Veteran's Day and/or Memorial Day in appreciation of the price that you all paid so I can sit here on a beautiful Sunday morning and write this letter, and speak freely, of whatever's on my mind, without going to jail for it's contents. That may seem like a small thing to some people but I value my freedoms (of speech, to bear arms, of religion, etc.) more than most people would ever know. I also realize that I have this freedom is a gift from people like the paratroopers of the 517th, including your buddy from E Company, Clarence Billy Jones, who was killed in combat in The Battle of the Bulge, where my grandfather was also dodging bullets and, I assume, throwing a few back at the Germans. I've had the TRUE HONOR of meeting a lot of your fellow troopers from the 517th and the 82nd, over the years, mostly by e-mail, and, although I've read many stories like Mr. Jone's "ultimate" sacrafice @ the Bulge, although this may be the 94th story that I've read, it still brings a lump to my throat and a tear to my eye just like the first one. Believe me when I say that I feel equally bad for EVERY life that was given by (in most cases, teenagers) brave soldiers like all of you, but it really hurts when I read about a soldier who really goes out and makes a difference and serves through all of the major battles w/ the 517th and then gets hit by that one magic bb or mortar shrapnel in, what turned out to be, the very LAST major battle of the European Theater. He had survived all of the previous heated battles and was nothing short of a "rock throw" from going home to his family and has his life taken at the very end. I'm not saying that his life was more valuable than the other lives that were given, it's just the fact that he was SO close that tugs at my heart. I will add the name of Clarence Billy Jones to the list that I keep of you guys and, since I haven't received word on how to send e-mails to "the land of fallen heroes" in Val Halla (sp), I will send the Veteran's day card to your e-mail address and, if my beliefs are true, he will be able to see it from above. Thanks for your story about your buddy and thanks for being there by his side, defending our freedom.
Your friend,
   Christopher M. Liddell (Chris)
   Grandson of Bobby M. Liddell (F.Co)

John Alicki

"Let every nation know....whether it wishes us well or ill....
that we shall pay any price, bear any burden, meet any hardship,
support any friend, oppose any foe, to assure the survival and
the success of LIBERTY"
~John F. Kennedy ~
January 20, 1961

Gene Brissey

Ben, I feel that I must send some words to Mail Call about two or more young men who were such a great part of my military life. ROGER BENDER memories remain with me very vividly. Roger was the leader of our mortar squad. He became a best "buddy" at Benning, when he and I teamed to pack our chutes for our first five jumps. From those days forward he and I were best buddies. He was a 5"6' stack of "ruggedness." A fine young trooper who left a wife back in Bloomington, Ind. We teamed up again on the ship to Naples to obtain candy, gum etc. from the ship store to sell to troops who preferred to relax on deck. We earned over $100.00 each. We then served in combat in Italy, France, Belgium and Germany. When we jumped in France in total darkness, his mortar bundle was lost. The lights on the bundle did not work. When most of the company was assembled after daylight came, Roger asked permission to look for the mortar bundle. Permission was granted and he, with two of his men went looking and against all odds they found it. He continued to serve with honor. I believe he was awarded the Silver Star and possibly other awards. He and I were with Company E when we helped liberate the last city in the Battle of the Bulge. We then were taken to Stavolet for a few days rest prior to going into Germany. While in Stavolet he requested that "should he not make it would I visit his wife and other family members." I promised. A few days later we approached Bergstein, Germany. After two or three efforts to remove the Germans from their fortifications we were told to dig in on a hill near Bergstein. The Germans shelled us with mortars, artillery and other weapons. Roger was killed in what became the last hour of combat for the 517th Feb. 8, 1945. I was wounded a few minutes later while carrying his mortar which had been dropped beside me. In July I was taken to a hospital in Indiana. I visited his wife and other family members.
Did you know Roger?

Gene Brissey

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