[suspenseful music] (male narrator) ON APRIL 12, 1945, IN THE WANING DAYS OF WORLD WAR II, "G" COMPANY ENTERED THE TOWN OF BARBY, GERMANY.

THE GERMANS WERE WAITING.

[machine gun fire] [loud firing] [cannon blasts] THEY OPENED UP WITH EVERYTHING THEY HAD.

LIGHTS A CIGARETTE AND IMMEDIATELY DROPS DEAD.

SEE, I WAS HIT IN THE STOMACH.

I WAS KNOCKED OUT.

(Cupina) CUNNINGHAM WAS UP AHEAD.

HE HAD JUST RECENTLY GOT HIT.

HE DIED.

I CAN'T REMEMBER ANY OTHER BATTLE THAT WE WERE IN WHERE OUR UNIT LOST THAT MANY PEOPLE.

(narrator) SOME SURVIVED.

IT'S HARD-- IT'S HARD TO REALLY BELIEVE.

(narrator) OTHERS NEVER MADE IT HOME.

THEY'RE THE ONES THAT HURT ME, NOT THEM.

ANTHONY VITO: WOUNDED IN ACTION.

CLARENCE ZELLMAR: WOUNDED IN ACTION.

EDDIE HART: KILLED IN ACTION.

(narrator) EDDIE HART WAS BURIED IN AN AMERICAN MILITARY CEMETERY IN THE NETHERLANDS ALONGSIDE ALMOST 18,000 COMRADES.

DUTCH CITIZENS ADOPTED EVERY SINGLE GRAVE.

I WAS THANKFUL THAT WE WERE LIBERATED.

AND I WANTED TO DO THAT.

AND I THOUGHT I COULD GO THERE AND PUT FLOWERS THERE.

I COMMITTED MYSELF.

(narrator) THAT'S HOW BETTY VRANCKEN MADE WHAT BECAME A LIFELONG COMMITMENT TO EDDIE HART, A SOLDIER SHE NEVER KNEW.

(Vrancken) I HOPE DEAR MISS HART THAT THIS WILL BE A LITTLE BETTER FOR YOU, TO KNOW THAT YOUR BROTHER'S GRAVE IS NOT LONELY.

(Johan) BEFORE MY SISTER EMIGRATED TO AMERICA, SHE ASKED ME TO KEEP AN EYE ON THE GRAVE OF EDDIE HART.

AFTER SO MANY YEARS, I CAN TELL HER I KEPT MY PROMISE.

(narrator) SACRIFICE, APPRECIATION, AND A FAMILY'S EMOTIONAL JOURNEY TO SAY GOOD-BYE.

(Hattie) I TOLD HIM I LOVED HIM AND THAT I WAS SORRY THAT HE GOT KILLED.

IN SOME WAYS, BECAUSE YOU'VE SEEN IT ALL YOUR LIFE, IT DOESN'T SEEM REAL.

AND THEN YOU KNOW IT IS.

(narrator) THIS IS THAT STORY.

(Vrancken) IT'S BEEN HARD TO TALK ABOUT IT, BUT I WANTED TO DO IT FOR EDDIE, FOR EDDIE HART.

(male announcer) MAJOR FUNDING FOR THANK YOU EDDIE HART PROVIDED IN PART BY: BB&T, WHERE BANKING AND FINANCIAL DECISIONS ARE MADE BY PEOPLE, NOT JUST BY THE NUMBERS.

BB&T BRANCH BANKING AND TRUST COMPANY.

AND BY KILPATRICK STOCKTON, AN INTERNATIONAL LAW FIRM PROVIDING LEGAL SERVICES AND BUSINESS SOLUTIONS WITH LOCAL INSIGHT AND GLOBAL VISION.

[gunfire and explosions] [dramatic music] ♪ ♪ [intense percussive music] [engine droning] [loud explosions] [engines thrumming] [cannon fire] [loud explosions] [fire roars] boom [mellow acoustic guitar music] ♪ ♪ (Hattie) BACK WHEN WE WERE GROWING UP, IT WAS A VERY BUSY LITTLE TOWN.

ON SATURDAY, ALL THE FARMERS CAME IN FROM THE COUNTRY AND DID THEIR SHOPPING.

(narrator) A WORLD AWAY IN LA GRANGE, NORTH CAROLINA, PEOPLE CONTINUED THEIR BUSY LIFE.

FAR REMOVED FROM THE BATTLEFIELDS OF THE WAR, LA GRANGE WAS A FARMING COMMUNITY, AND TOBACCO WAS THE BIG CROP IN THIS SMALL EASTERN NORTH CAROLINA TOWN.

(Hattie) YEARS AGO, WE USED TO FARM THIS LAND RIGHT HERE.

(narrator) SHE WAS HATTIE HART BACK THEN.

HATTIE, HER PARENTS, FOUR BROTHERS, AND A SISTER LIVED OUT IN THE COUNTRY NEAR LA GRANGE.

WE HAD TOBACCO, MOSTLY TOBACCO.

THAT WAS OUR BIG CROP.

AND THEY RAISED CORN TOO.

THE COW PASTURE WAS DOWN THERE, WHERE THE WOODS ARE NOW.

WE HAD COWS DOWN THERE AND HOGS.

BACK THEN, YOU COULDN'T EVEN AFFORD TO BUY A STRAW HAT.

[laughs] IT WAS POOR.

(narrator) THE WORK WAS HARD.

NEIGHBORS HELPED NEIGHBORS.

EVERYBODY PITCHED IN.

THE BOYS USUALLY GOT UP ABOUT 4:00 SOMETIMES AND TOOK THE DRY TOBACCO THAT HAD BEEN CURED OUT OF THE BARNS.

(narrator) HATTIE'S OLDER BROTHER, EDDIE, DROPPED OUT OF SCHOOL BECAUSE THEIR FATHER WAS SICK.

(Hattie) HE WAS THE KIND OF PERSON THAT I DON'T THINK-- I MEAN, HE REALLY WANTED TO GO TO SCHOOL, I'M SURE, BUT HE KNEW THE FAMILY HAD TO BE TAKEN CARE OF.

HE WAS A REAL NICE, QUIET BOY.

HE DIDN'T SMOKE.

HE DIDN'T DRINK.

THE BEST I CAN REMEMBER, I NEVER HEARD HIM CURSE.

HE WAS VERY CLOSE TO ME.

WE WERE 18 MONTHS APART.

AND WE JUST ALWAYS DID SO MANY THINGS TOGETHER, WENT TO SQUARE DANCES AND MOVIES AND JUST DID A LOT OF THINGS, WENT A LOT OF PLACES TOGETHER.

[upbeat banjo music] ♪ ♪ (narrator) IN THE 1930s, MEERSSEN, IN THE SOUTHERN PART OF THE NETHERLANDS, WAS A SMALL, PEACEFUL VILLAGE SURROUNDED BY A BEAUTIFUL COUNTRYSIDE.

IT WAS A WONDERFUL PLACE TO GROW UP.

[lighthearted music] ♪ ♪ CONSTANCE AND HENRIKIS VRANCKEN RAISED THEIR FOUR CHILDREN IN MEERSSEN.

HENRIKIS WORKED FOR THE DUTCH RAILROAD.

JOHAN WAS HIS OLDEST SON.

HE HAD TO SHUT THE GATES WHEN A TRAIN CAME.

[train wheels grating] (narrator) BETTY WAS HIS OLDEST DAUGHTER.

IT WAS A GOOD LIFE, YES.

(narrator) IN MAY 1940, WHEN BETTY WAS JUST 15, EVERYTHING CHANGED.

[ominous music] [cannon blasts] [loud explosion] (Betty) THEY KEPT COMING AND COMING FOR DAYS, SO I DON'T KNOW, ON HORSE AND ON MOTORCYCLES AND ON FOOT.

THEY WERE SINGING ALL THE GERMAN SONGS, ALL THOSE GERMAN WAR SONGS.

WHEN THEY MARCHED, THEY WERE SINGING.

BUT THERE WAS NOT MUCH RESISTANCE.

THEY COULDN'T-- THAT BIG ARMY, THEY COULDN'T FIGHT THAT, YOU KNOW.

(narrator) THE NAZIS INVADED THE NETHERLANDS, RUMBLING INTO MEERSSEN, SHATTERING LIVES.

(Betty) THEY WERE ALL OVER.

THEY WERE ALL OVER, AND THEY CONTROLLED EVERYTHING.

AND THEY STOLE EVERYTHING.

YOU SEE, HOLLAND STILL HAD A LOT.

IT HAD FOOD AND A LOT OF ART.

AND THEY STOLE EVERYTHING.

AND THAT'S WHEN THEY STOLE OUR DOCTOR'S CAR AND WHY THE DOCTOR COULD NOT COME TO MY HOUSE TO LOOK AT MY LITTLE SISTER.

(narrator) BETTY AND JOHAN'S 4 1/2 YEAR OLD SISTER, RHEA, DIED, DEVASTATING THEIR MOTHER, WHO WAS ALREADY STRUGGLING TO FEED THE FAMILY.

ONCE SHE WAS WALKING BEHIND THE HOUSE, AND SHE WAS CRYING, AND I ASKED HER WHY, AND SHE SAID, "I DON'T KNOW WHAT TO FEED THE FAMILY TOMORROW."

THERE WAS NO FOOD.

YEAH, I REMEMBER THAT.

(narrator) THE GERMANS RAN THE TRAINS AT ALL HOURS.

SO HENRIKIS, WHO HAD TO RAISE AND LOWER THE GATES FOR EVERY TRAIN, MOVED THE FAMILY FROM THEIR QUIET, SERENE NEIGHBORHOOD TO A HOUSE NEXT TO THE TRACKS.

(Johan) WE, AS PEOPLE, HAD TO WORK FOR THE GERMANS.

WE HAD TO DO THAT.

(narrator) FOR FOUR YEARS, THEY SCRAMBLED TO SURVIVE IN A COUNTRY NO LONGER THEIR OWN.

THEY SUFFERED MANY LOSSES.

ONE WAS WATCHING AS JEWISH FRIENDS WERE TAKEN AWAY TO WHO KNOWS WHERE.

I WENT TO THE MARKETPLACE, AND I WAS ABLE TO WAVE AT THEM.

AND THEY WERE CRYING.

IN AN OPEN TRUCK, THEY TOOK THEM AWAY.

(narrator) JUNE 1944: WITH THE ALLIED D-DAY INVASION IN FRANCE, THE SHADOWS OF WAR CREPT CLOSER TO LA GRANGE.

LIKE MANY FAMILIES, THE HARTS GATHERED AROUND THEIR RADIO TO HEAR THE LATEST NEWS.

A FEW WEEKS LATER, IT HIT HOME.

EDDIE RECEIVED A DRAFT NOTICE.

(Hattie) HE WAS DEFERRED SEVERAL TIMES BECAUSE HE WAS FARMING, AND MY DAD WAS SICK.

BUT THEN, TIME OF WAR GOT WORSE.

THEY SENT HIM A CARD AND SAID, "YOU HAVE TO GO."

(narrator) LaFAYETTE SMITH, FROM NEARBY KINGSTON, WAS DRAFTED AT THE SAME TIME.

HE WAS 20 YEARS OLD.

YOU KNOW THE SAME PEOPLE, SO THAT'S HOW WE GOT TO KNOW ONE ANOTHER PRETTY GOOD.

AND I HAVE TO SAY, EDDIE WAS A LITTLE-- HE WAS A LITTLE CALM.

AND I CALL HIM ONE OF THE BEST THAT I'VE EVER MET.

HE WAS MORE, YOU KNOW, SERIOUS-MINDED.

AND I WASN'T.

WELL, I GUESS I HATED TO SEE HIM GO WORSE THAN ANYBODY ELSE.

I KNOW ALL OF THEM DID, ALL OF US.

(narrator) IN MEERSSEN, THERE WERE RUMORS THAT THE ALLIES HAD STORMED THE BEACHES OF NORMANDY IN FRANCE.

BY SEPTEMBER OF THAT YEAR, WITH THE CONFLICT CLOSING IN AND GERMAN SOLDIERS DIGGING FOXHOLES ALL AROUND THEM, THE FAMILY MOVED UNDERGROUND.

AT NIGHT, WE WERE LIVING IN A SHELTER OVER THERE.

(narrator) THEN ONE FINE AFTERNOON, THREE SOLDIERS CAME WALKING DOWN THE RAILROAD TRACKS.

THEY CAME UP THE RAILROAD, NEXT TO THE RAILROAD, ONE AFTER ANOTHER WITH THEIR GUN.

BECAUSE THE GERMANS WERE NOT VERY FAR AWAY FROM THAT IN THE TRENCHES.

IT AMAZES MYSELF THAT I RECOGNIZED THEM THAT THEY CAME FROM AMERICA.

(narrator) THEY WERE THE FIRST OF MANY AMERICAN G.I.s.

IN THAT MEADOW, WHAT YOU SEE IN FRONT, THERE WERE THE AMERICAN.

AND THERE, WHERE THE HIGH TREE ARE, WERE THE GERMANS.

I STILL REMEMBER SEEING THE FLASHES FROM THE GUNS OFF AND ON.

THERE CAME THE THUNDERBOLTS THAT WERE AMERICAN DIVE-BOMBERS.

AND THEY CAME ON SUNDAY AND CAME DOWN AND SHOOT ON THE GERMANS.

(narrator) THEIR LIBERATORS HAD ARRIVED.

THEY WERE ONCE AGAIN FREE.

THAT WAS REALLY SOMETHING WHEN THE AMERICANS CAME.

THE MIGHTY OF IT, THE BIGNESS OF IT WAS REALLY SOMETHING.

[mellow music] ♪ ♪ (narrator) 21-YEAR-OLD EDDIE HART LEFT FOR EUROPE THE DAY AFTER CHRISTMAS 1944.

[percussive military music] [rockets firing] (Roosevelt) THIS WAR MUST BE WAGED-- IT IS BEING WAGED-- WITH THE GREATEST AND MOST PERSISTENT INTENSITY.

EVERYTHING WE ARE, EVERYTHING WE HAVE IS AT STAKE.

(narrator) JANUARY 1945: WITH THE BRUTAL BATTLE OF THE BULGE WINDING DOWN, HUNDREDS OF REPLACEMENTS, INCLUDING EDDIE HART AND LaFAYETTE SMITH, ARRIVED IN BELGIUM.

WE HAVE NEVER REALLY BEEN NOWHERE.

IT WAS MAYBE UP THE ROAD OR DOWN THE ROAD OR ACROSS THE ROAD, USUALLY.

YOU KNOW, WE HAD SUFFERED QUITE A FEW CASUALTIES IN THE ARDENNES, AND THE MAJORITY OF IT WAS FROZEN FEET AND TRENCH FOOT AND STUFF LIKE THAT.

WE USUALLY SLEPT IN A HOLE IN THE GROUND.

IT WAS JUST LIVING IN THE SNOW THAT WAS SO TERRIBLE.

(narrator) THEY JOINED THE WEARY, BATTLE-TESTED VETERANS IN THE 83rd DIVISION, 329th BUCKSHOT INFANTRY, WHO HAD ALREADY FOUGHT IN FRANCE, BELGIUM, AND WESTERN GERMANY.

AFTER ABOUT A COUPLE OF WEEKS, YOU JUST GET TIRED OF BEING AFRAID.

YOU NEVER GOT A FULL NIGHT'S SLEEP.

GUYS IN COMBAT HAD A CERTAIN LOOK.

I WON'T SAY IT WAS FEAR OR WHATEVER YOU'D CALL IT.

BUT IT WAS THAT STARE, YOU KNOW.

YOU KNOW, YOUR LIFE IS ON THE LINE, AND YOU'VE GOT THAT LOOK.

(narrator) 19-YEAR-OLD JOHN CUPINA FROM NEW YORK WAS AMONG EDDIE'S NEW SOLDIER BROTHERS IN THE SECOND BATTALION, "G" COMPANY.

ANOTHER WAS A 25-YEAR-OLD NORTH CAROLINIAN, PLATOON SERGEANT PAUL WILLIS.

HE FITTED IN VERY WELL.

HE WAS A QUIET SORT OF BOY AT THE TIME.

(narrator) EDDIE'S SQUAD LEADER WAS 19-YEAR-OLD DICK COYLE FROM PENNSYLVANIA.

WE ALWAYS GAVE THE WORST JOBS TO THE NEW RECRUITS.

SO EDDIE BECAME MY SECOND SCOUT.

WHEN YOU'RE APPROACHING A VILLAGE OR IN THE MIDDLE OF AN ATTACK, YOUR SCOUTS ARE OUT FIRST.

EDDIE NEVER FAILED.

HE NEVER ARGUED.

HE WENT OUT THERE.

EVEN THOUGH I MIGHT NOT HAVE GONE OUT THERE, EDDIE WOULD GO WITHOUT COMPLAINT.

AND THIS MADE HIM VERY VALUABLE TO THE SQUAD.

(narrator) THE REPLACEMENTS FELL RIGHT IN WITH THE VETERANS, UNITED IN THEIR COMMON GOAL.

WE ALL USED TO TALK ABOUT WHAT WE'RE GOING TO DO TO HITLER WHEN WE GET HIM.

HE MADE ME COME OVER HERE, YOU KNOW.

HE WAS THE FALL GUY.

I CAN'T EVER SAY THAT I WAS SCARED OR ANYTHING LIKE THAT TILL I GOT OVER THERE.

I WAS COYLE; HE WAS HART.

AND A LOT OF TIMES YOU WEREN'T EVEN SURE OF A GUY'S FIRST NAME, BECAUSE IT WASN'T USED.

(narrator) IN FEBRUARY 1945, "G" COMPANY TOOK A MUCH NEEDED REST AND MOVED TO A FARM IN THE SOUTHERN PART OF THE NETHERLANDS, NOT FAR FROM MEERSSEN.

IT WAS A LITTLE BIT LIKE THE TRAINING TIME, BECAUSE WE WERE NOT IN COMBAT.

WE HAD TO GO TO THE ORCHARDS, YOU KNOW, AND TRAIN AND FALL.

AND THE TRENCHES WAS ALREADY THERE.

(narrator) EDDIE WROTE HIS FAMILY THAT THE SIGHTS HE WAS SEEING AROUND HIM REMINDED HIM SO MUCH OF HOME.

(Hattie) "DEAR PAT AND ALL, THE LAST FEW DAYS "HAVE BEEN JUST LIKE SPRING AT HOME, "THE KIND OF WEATHER THAT MAKES EVERYTHING TURN GREEN "AND START TO GROW.

"I REALLY WOULDN'T TAKE ANYTHING "FOR BEING WITH THE BOYS THAT I AM WITH NOW.

"JUST ABOUT EVERY ONE OF THEM ARE TOPS, I THINK.

I SAW MICKEY ROONEY IN HIS JEEP SHOW THE OTHER DAY."

(narrator) ONE OF THE MEN ETCHED HIS NAME IN THE BARN WHERE THEY SLEPT.

FEBRUARY 14th, ST. VALENTINE'S DAY, IS WHEN HARRIS SCRATCHED HIS NAME ON THERE.

BUT THEN THEY FOUND OUT THAT A BUNCH OF US HAD WOOL LICE, YOU KNOW, FROM SLEEPING IN BARNS ALL OVER THE--DURING THE BULGE.

YOU KNOW, WE NEVER CHANGED CLOTHES OR ANYTHING.

WHEN I FIRST WENT ON THE FRONT LINE, AND WE MARCHED EVERY DAY.

OF COURSE, YOU SWEATED.

AND I WENT 38 DAYS WITHOUT CHANGING CLOTHES.

NEVER HAD A BATH.

[laughs] (narrator) BY THE END OF FEBRUARY, THE FIRST SERGEANT TOLD THEM TO "SADDLE UP, BOYS."

WE'RE GOING TO START OUR PUSH INTO GERMANY.

AND HE SAYS, "WE'RE GOING TO GO FORWARD.

NOBODY'S GOING TO LAY BACK."

AND HE SAID, "IF THEY DO, I'M GOING TO BE BACK THERE KICKING THEM IN THE ASS."

[laughs] AND THAT'S THE WAY HE PUT IT.

WE KNEW THAT THE RHINE RIVER WOULD BE THE NEXT OBJECTIVE.

(narrator) THE BIG PUSH TO GERMANY'S RHINE RIVER PUT THE REPLACEMENTS ON COMBAT FOOTING FOR THE FIRST TIME.

boom [loud firing] [loud explosion] (narrator) BY EARLY MARCH, THE 83rd REACHED THE RHINE, THE FIRST AMERICAN DIVISION TO DO SO.

THEY CROSSED A FEW WEEKS LATER AND NEVER LOOKED BACK.

ON MARCH 19th, EDDIE WROTE: (Hattie) "DEAR FOLKS, I'VE BEEN GETTING PLENTY OF MAIL LATELY.

"BOY, I AM TELLING YOU, "IT MAKES A LOT OF DIFFERENCE WHEN YOU GET MAIL.

"AND WHEN YOU DON'T-- "I CAN'T TELL YOU THE DIFFERENCE IN A LETTER.

YOU'LL JUST HAVE TO BE A SOLDIER SOMETIME."

WE WERE GIVEN THE JOB OF TAKING 35 TOWNS.

(Willis) THE ELBE RIVER WAS THE NEXT BIG OBJECTIVE, REALLY, REALLY THE LAST THING THAT WOULD SEPARATE US FROM GOING ON INTO BERLIN.

[dark percussive music] ♪ ♪ (narrator) THE BLITZ WAS ON, A MAD DASH OF OVER 200 MILES INTO THE HEART OF GERMANY, THE SOLDIERS OF THE 83rd RACING THE 2nd ARMORED DIVISION TO THE ELBE RIVER TO SEE WHO COULD GET THERE FIRST.

THERE IS WHERE WE BEGAN TO MEET SOME MORE RESISTANCE, LIKE TOWNS LIKE SCHIEDER AND SOME OF THE OTHERS.

[fire crackling] boom I'M SHOCKED THAT ANYBODY GOT OUT OF THAT TOWN ALIVE.

THERE WERE GERMAN TANKS BURNING AS WE WENT INTO THE TOWN.

THERE WERE GERMANS LYING IN THE STREET WITH THEIR LEGS BLOWN OFF, CRYING FOR WATER.

A GERMAN FIRED A PANZERFAUST, A ONE-SHOT BAZOOKA, AND THIS THING FLEW OVER MY HEAD, HIT THE DOORWAY WHERE DAVID WAS STANDING, AND KILLED HIM INSTANTLY.

I'VE SEEN PILES OF BODIES TOO OUT IN COMBAT.

WE HAD SEVERAL.

WE HAD SEVERAL GOOD TOWNS THAT WE HAD TO TAKE.

WE WAS TAKING GERMANY.

WE WAS BEGINNING TO GO INTO THEIR COUNTRY.

WE COULD SMELL THE GERMANS.

AND I'M SURE THEY COULD SMELL US.

BUT IF WE WENT INTO A BUILDING, WE KNEW IMMEDIATELY WHETHER GERMAN SOLDIERS WERE IN THE HOUSE, IN THE CELLAR, OR WHATEVER.

KOMMEN SIE OUT.

NICHTS GESHOOTEN; HAENDE HOCH, WHICH MEANT, YOU KNOW, "COME OUT.

DO NOT SHOOT.

THROW YOUR HANDS UP."

(narrator) SOME GERMAN TOWNS AND VILLAGES BLURRED BY.

THE MEN FOUGHT THEIR WAY THROUGH OTHERS.

IN NEED OF MORE VEHICLES, THEY CONFISCATED ANYTHING WITH WHEELS.

WELL, THE OLD FIRE TRUCKS, THEY'D PICK UP.

EVEN SOME OF THEM RODE ON BICYCLES THAT CAME ALONG BEHIND US.

(narrator) A REPORTER CALLED THEM THE RAG-TAG CIRCUS.

AND THE NAME STUCK.

YOU KNOW, SOMETIMES, YOU KNOW, YOU GET A LOT OF RESISTANCE.

WE HATED A TIGER TANK.

THAT WAS THE MOST FEARSOME THING THAT THE GERMANS HAD.

MOUNTING THIS HUGE 88-MILLIMETER CANNON, WHICH WENT THROUGH OUR M-4 SHERMANS LIKE NOTHING.

WE WERE ALSO INFERIOR IN THE MACHINE GUN.

THE GERMANS HAD A MACHINE GUN, WHEN THEY PULLED THE TRIGGER, IT SOUNDED LIKE A PIECE OF PAPER RIPPING.

IT WAS SO FAST, JUST A LITTLE, "RRUTCH."

(narrator) THEY HAD FEW BRIEFINGS.

THE WAY YOU FOUND THAT OUT WAS READING THE STARS AND STRIPES, WHAT WAS GOING ON IN THE WAR.

YOU KNOW, THEY DIDN'T TELL YOU THAT MUCH.

(narrator) BUT THEIR CONFIDENCE WAS GROWING.

THERE WAS NO TURNING BACK, SO YOU DID WHAT YOU HAD TO DO.

YOU JUST KEPT RIGHT ON GOING WITH THE OUTFIT.

THE SENSE, YOU KNOW, WAS THAT WE WERE GOING TO WIN THE WAR.

VERY UPBEAT BECAUSE EVERYONE FELT THAT IT WOULD SOON BE OVER AT THAT TIME.

[ominous music] ♪ ♪ (Reinhold) I WAS AN OFFICER'S CANDIDATE IN THE GERMAN ARMY AT THE TIME.

AND I WAS 17 YEARS OF AGE.

(narrator) ON APRIL 11, 1945, HORST REINHOLD, A YOUNG SOLDIER OF THE 1st BATTALION, 1064th GRENADIER REGIMENT, RODE ACROSS THE RAILROAD BRIDGE THAT CROSSED THE ELBE RIVER AT BARBY, GERMANY, A SMALL, AGRICULTURAL TOWN ABOUT 60 MILES FROM BERLIN.

(Reinhold) WHEN WE ARRIVED AT BARBY STATION, THE TRAIN STOPPED, AND THE AIR RAID SIRENS WERE HOOTING.

AND WE WERE TOLD THE AMERICANS ARE COMING.

[Ulrich speaking German] (male translator) A GERMAN OFFICER BROUGHT THE NEWS THAT THE CITY WOULD BE BOMBED.

AND THIS WOULD HAPPEN WHEN THE AMERICANS ATTACKED THE CITY.

AND THAT PANICKED THE CITIZENS.

AND MOST OF THEM EVACUATED THE CITY.

(narrator) HEINZ ULRICH, NINE YEARS OLD AT THE TIME, EVACUATED BARBY WITH HIS PARENTS AND MANY OTHER RESIDENTS.

THE EXODUS ALSO INCLUDED FRIDERUN CHOP AND HER MOTHER.

[Chop speaking German] (female translator) WE WALKED TO THE NEXT VILLAGE, MY MAMA AND ME, WITH ONLY THE MOST ESSENTIAL THINGS, WHICH WE WERE WEARING.

THAT IS APPROXIMATELY FIVE TO SIX KILOMETERS.

(narrator) THEIR HOME WAS SITUATED ON THE EDGE OF A FIELD WHERE GERMAN SOLDIERS BEGAN DIGGING FOXHOLES.

THEY TOOK THE DIRT AWAY SO IT LOOKED LIKE THE ORDINARY COUNTRYSIDE, NOT LIKE ANY DUG-IN POSITIONS, YOU KNOW.

(narrator) THE WELL-ARMED SOLDIERS TOOK UP POSITIONS IN THE FIELD AND AROUND THE TOWN.

THE GERMANS, ALL IN ALL, WAS A BATTALION OF ABOUT 500 STRENGTH.

COMPANY NUMBER FOUR WAS WHAT THEY CALLED HEAVY INFANTRY WEAPONS, WHICH INCLUDED HEAVY MACHINE GUNS, MORTARS, TWO OR THREE LIGHT FIELD ARTILLERY PIECES, LIKE 75-MILLIMETER GUNS.

I WAS WITH THE 88-MILLIMETER GUNS, WHICH WAS CONSIDERED ONE OF THE MOST DEADLY GUNS IN THE GERMAN ARMY.

QUITE A NUMBER OF THEM WERE REALLY INDOCTRINATED AND BELIEVED THAT WE WOULD WIN THE FINAL VICTORY HERE ON THESE FIELDS, YOU KNOW.

I, MYSELF, WAS VERY SKEPTICAL.

NOW, THIS AREA WAS AN ORCHARD AT THE TIME, WAS APPLE TREES, PEAR TREES.

(narrator) HORST'S MORTAR PLATOON SET UP ABOUT 1/2 A MILE BEHIND THE GERMAN INFANTRY.

ON THE 12th OF APRIL, IT WAS ANNOUNCED ON THE RADIO NEWS THAT ALL IMPORTANT CITIES WERE DECLARED FORTRESSES, WHICH HAD TO BE DEFENDED TO THE LAST BULLET, TO THE LAST MAN.

[speaking German] THAT CAME AS AN ORDER FROM THE NAZI LEADERSHIP IN BERLIN.

[dramatic music] ♪ ♪ IT WAS JUST A NORMAL DAY TILL, I'D SAY, 5:00.

AND THE SUN WAS PRETTY NEAR DOWN.

WE HAD COVERED 35 OR 40 MILES THAT DAY FROM HALBERSTADT WITHOUT ANY INTERFERENCE AT ALL.

(narrator) APRIL 12, 1945: "G" COMPANY, INCLUDING WILLIS, COYLE, CUPINA, SMITH, AND EDDIE HART WAS ADVANCING TOWARDS BARBY.

THE GERMANS WERE ON THE RUN, THE WAR ALMOST OVER.

WE WERE PROBABLY THINKING ABOUT WHETHER WE WERE GOING TO GET A HOT SHOWER THAT NIGHT.

I THOUGHT IT WAS ALL OVER WITH, BECAUSE THE GERMANS WAS COMING DOWN THE ROAD, MILES AT A TIME, WOULD SURRENDER.

I THINK WE WERE EXPECTING LITTLE RESISTANCE BECAUSE WE HAD THE TRUCKS OUT IN FRONT.

ORDINARILY, YOU KNOW, WE WOULD BE--YOU WOULD WANT TANKS.

ON THIS ROAD, "G" COMPANY CAME MARCHING ALONG TOWARDS THE TOWN OF BARBY.

RIGHT HERE, THEY COULDN'T HAVE MET WITH MORE THAN, LIKE, A PLATOON OR TWO, WHICH IS MAYBE 60, MAYBE 80 MEN.

THEY OPENED UP WITH EVERYTHING THEY HAD.

AND I'M SURE WE DID THE SAME.

[rapid gunfire] THE TRUCK DRIVERS, OF COURSE, WHEELED THE TRUCKS AND HEADED BACK AND LEFT US THERE.

WE BEGAN FIRING TOWARD WHERE THE FIRING WAS COMING FROM AND MOVING TOWARD THE TOWN.

WE BUNCHED UP BEHIND THE TANKS.

THAT'S WHERE 12 MEN GOT BEHIND.

ALL 12 MEN WAS BEHIND THAT TANK.

WE HAD LITTLE PROTECTION, JUST, YOU KNOW, A WITHERING FIRE COMING IN, SMALL ARMS FIRE.

(Smith) I COULD SEE THE BULLETS COMING.

AND I COULD SEE THEM HITTING THE TANK.

I KNEW THEY WAS GOING TO GET ME, 'CAUSE IT'S HITTING THE TANK.

AND IT'S COMING FOOT BY FOOT.

I COULD SEE THEM JUST COMING.

JIM CUNNINGHAM, WHO HAD BEEN MY BEST FRIEND ALL THE WAY FROM CROFT, LIGHTS A CIGARETTE AND IMMEDIATELY DROPS DEAD.

AND THE SAME MOMENT, MY HELMET FLIES OFF MY HEAD.

SEE, I WAS HIT IN THE STOMACH.

I WAS KNOCKED OUT.

YOU KNOW, AND AS I MOVED UP, I PASSED SMITTY.

HE WAS HUGGED, LIKE, UP AGAINST THAT BANK, LIKE THAT.

AND I REMEMBER TAPPING HIM.

YOU KNOW, YOU COULD SEE HE WAS STILL ALIVE.

AND IT SHOT THROUGH THE ARM, AND BOTH BONES WAS SPLIT.

I SAID, "TAKE IT EASY."

I WENT BY HIM.

CUNNINGHAM WAS UP AHEAD.

HE HAD JUST RECENTLY GOT HIT, AND HE WAS DYING, I GUESS, THERE.

IT'S AMAZING THAT WE WEREN'T ALL KILLED THERE.

YOU'RE TRYING TO GET LOWER AND LOWER.

I WAS SCARED, YEAH.

THE NEXT GERMAN DEFENSE POSITIONS WERE IN THAT DIRECTION, SOMEWHERE WHERE THE HOUSES NOW ARE LOCATED.

THE REASON WHY THEY SWANG TO THE LEFT: TO GAIN THE COVER OF THAT BUILDING THERE.

(narrator) THE AMERICANS RAN TOWARD FRIDERUN CHOP'S HOME.

(Willis) THEY WERE ALL COMING TOWARD THE HOUSE, MANY OF, YOU KNOW, OUR UNIT, AS MANY AS COULD MAKE IT.

I NEVER FELT SO NAKED IN MY LIFE AS RUNNING ACROSS THAT FIELD BAREHEADED.

(Willis) BECAUSE WE WERE STRUNG OUT, RACING TOWARD THE BUILDING AND FIRING AS WE WENT.

MY ARM WAS UP HERE, AND I PULLED IT DOWN, AND I SAW THE BLOOD RUNNING DOWN.

AND WE SET UP OUR DEFENSE THERE IN THE HOUSE.

I GOT SHOT IN AND OUT HERE AND IN AND OUT HERE.

THE LAST SQUAD LEADER, EDDIE HART'S SQUAD LEADER, I SAID, "WHERE'S YOUR SQUAD?"

HE SAID, "THIS IS IT."

YOU KNOW, THERE WAS HIM AND A COUPLE OTHER GUYS.

PRETTY SOON, I KNEW THAT HE WAS NOT THERE, RIGHT AWAY, YOU KNOW, AS WELL AS CUNNINGHAM.

THEN HE STARTED TELLING ME WHO GOT KILLED.

HE SAID, "EDDIE HART, HOOPS, AND PETROCELLI."

(narrator) "F" COMPANY JOINED "G" COMPANY IN THE HOUSE.

NORTH CAROLINIAN MARSHALL KEITH WAS "F" COMPANY'S MEDIC.

WE WERE JUST GETTING SETTLED IN, IN THE HOUSE.

WE KNEW THAT "G" COMPANY WAS UPSTAIRS.

IT WAS WAY IN THE NIGHT, AND WE, OF COURSE, WERE NOT SLEEPING AT ALL.

NO ONE COULD SLEEP.

AND I HEARD THE PLANE COMING.

I HEARD IT.

AND IT FLEW VERY LOW OVER.

AND THEN ALL OF A SUDDEN, I HEARD THE EXPLOSION.

[loud explosion] BINGO.

ONE BOMB, ONE HOUSE, AND THEN HE WAS ON HIS WAY.

AND, OF COURSE, I HAD TO GO TO WORK IMMEDIATELY.

AND THE BOYS UPSTAIRS, I THINK, IF ANYTHING, THEY SUFFERED MORE THAN WE DID DOWNSTAIRS BECAUSE THE BOMB GOT TO THEM FIRST.

WE HEARD THE SCREAMING, THE NOISES.

AND SO THEY SCREAMED.

THEY YELLED.

THEY HOLLERED.

THEY WHATEVER.

AND PRETTY SOON, THEY QUIT.

I CAN'T REMEMBER ANY OTHER BATTLE THAT WE WERE IN WHERE OUR UNIT LOST THAT MANY PEOPLE.

I JUST KEPT IT IN MY POCKET ALL THE TIME.

AND WHENEVER SOMETHING HAPPENED, I HAD THE LIST OF NAMES.

ANTHONY VITO: WOUNDED IN ACTION.

CLARENCE ZELLMAR: WOUNDED IN ACTION.

EDDIE HART: KILLED IN ACTION.

[mellow acoustic guitar music] ♪ ♪ WE WERE PUTTING OUT PLANTS, TOBACCO PLANTS, THAT WE KNEW WOULD BE OUR SUPPORT FOR THAT YEAR.

BUT THEN ABOUT 3:00 IN THE AFTERNOON, MY BROTHER CAME DOWN TO THE TOBACCO BED AND TOLD US THAT WE'D GOTTEN A TELEGRAM THAT ED WAS KILLED.

THE LADY THAT BROUGHT THE TELEGRAM HAD A WHITE FORD.

AND EVERYBODY EVERYWHERE SAID WHEN THEY SAW THAT WHITE FORD COMING, THAT THEY KNEW SOMEBODY WAS GETTING SOME BAD NEWS.

AND THAT WAS A TERRIBLE DAY FROM THEN ON.

IT WAS--WE RODE BACK TO THE HOUSE WITH HIM.

AND MY WHOLE BODY, FOR THE REST OF THE DAY AND THAT NIGHT, JUST FELT LIKE PINS STICKING IN IT ALL OVER.

(narrator) PRESIDENT FRANKLIN D. ROOSEVELT DIED THE SAME DAY AS EDDIE HART.

GERMANY SURRENDERED JUST 25 DAYS LATER.

[trumpet music] ♪ ♪ (narrator) THE U.S. ARMY DIDN'T WANT TO BURY ITS SOLDIERS ON ENEMY LAND.

SO EDDIE HART WAS LAID TO REST IN THE NETHERLANDS, AT THE NETHERLANDS AMERICAN CEMETERY IN MARGRATAN, ALONGSIDE ALMOST 18,000 OTHER FALLEN AMERICAN HEROES.

THE DUTCH PEOPLE WERE SO GRATEFUL FOR THEIR FREEDOM, SO APPRECIATIVE OF THE SACRIFICES MADE THAT THOUSANDS ATTENDED MEMORIAL DAY CEREMONIES TO HONOR THOSE WHO HAD FOUGHT AND DIED FOR FREEDOM.

MANY WANTED TO DO MORE.

(Betty) A NOTE IN THE NEWSPAPER ASKED PEOPLE TO ADOPT GRAVES.

IT WAS A DOLLAR OR SOMETHING; IT WAS A VERY SMALL FEE.

YOU HAD TO PAY, BUT YOU HAD TO PROMISE ALWAYS TO PUT FLOWERS ON THERE AND TO GO AND VISIT.

AND I DID.

(narrator) DUTCH CITIZENS LIKE BETTY VRANCKEN ADOPTED EVERY SINGLE GRAVE.

I WAS THANKFUL THAT WE WERE LIBERATED.

AND I WANTED TO DO THAT.

AND I THOUGHT I COULD GO THERE AND PUT FLOWERS THERE.

I COMMITTED MYSELF.

AND THEN I GOT THE LETTER THAT I SHOWED YOU WHERE EDDIE HART'S NAME WAS ON.

(narrator) WHEN BETTY, THEN 22, ADOPTED EDDIE HART'S GRAVE, SHE PROMISED TO VISIT SEVERAL TIMES A YEAR.

(Betty) QUITE A TRIP, 45 OR AN HOUR, PEDALLING UPHILL.

IT WAS NOT EASY.

(narrator) SHE ALSO WROTE TO HATTIE IN LA GRANGE.

(Betty) "DEAR MISS HART, "I AM A DUTCH GIRL, AND I LIVE IN THE SOUTH PART OF HOLLAND.

"I GUESS YOU KNOW "THAT THERE ALSO IS BURIED YOUR BROTHER, EDDIE.

"AND I HAVE ADOPTED HIS GRAVE.

"I HOPE, DEAR MISS HART, "THAT THIS WILL BE A LITTLE BETTER FOR YOU "TO KNOW THAT YOUR BROTHER'S GRAVE IS NOT LONELY AND FORGOTTEN."

(narrator) FOR THE NEXT 11 YEARS, BETTY VISITED EDDIE'S GRAVE, ALWAYS TAKING FRESH FLOWERS.

EVEN WHEN SHE MARRIED AND HAD CHILDREN, HER COMMITMENT TO EDDIE HART NEVER WAVERED.

WITH EDDIE HART'S GRAVE IN HOLLAND, THAT BECAME ALMOST PART OF OUR FAMILY.

(narrator) IN 1957, WHEN BETTY AND HER FAMILY IMMIGRATED TO THE U.S. AND SETTLED IN NEW YORK, SHE ASKED HER BROTHER, JOHAN, TO CONTINUE HONORING HER PROMISE.

HE DID, AND, IN 1999, OFFICIALLY ADOPTED EDDIE'S GRAVE.

HOW ARE YOU?

GOOD.

AFTER 25 YEARS.

YES.

(narrator) IN MARCH 2002, HATTIE AND BETTY, NOW BOTH 77 YEARS OLD, MET FOR THE THIRD TIME IN THEIR LONG FRIENDSHIP.

(Betty) I'VE BEEN WRITING WITH HER FOR 56 YEARS.

IT SEEMS LIKE THE FIRST LETTER THAT I GOT FROM HER JUST FELT LIKE WE WERE FRIENDS FOREVER.

AND THAT'S JOHAN, THE ONE YOU'RE GOING TO MEET.

AND THAT'S HARRY.

(narrator) THERE WAS SO MUCH TO SHARE WITH HATTIE'S CHILDREN, DEBBIE AND BEN, AND BETTY'S DAUGHTER-IN-LAW, MARYANN.

THERE WAS ALSO A TRIP TO TALK ABOUT.

HATTIE AND DEBBIE AND DEBBIE'S FAMILY WERE ABOUT TO VISIT EDDIE'S GRAVE FOR THE FIRST TIME, A TRIP THAT INSPIRED DEBBIE TO LEARN MORE ABOUT HER UNCLE AND HIS LIFE ON THE FRONT LINES OF HISTORY.

(Debbie) I THINK THE MOST REWARDING THING IS TALKING TO PEOPLE WHO KNEW MY UNCLE AND WHO SERVED WITH HIM AND WHO REMEMBER HIM.

WHAT THEY WENT THROUGH IN SEEING THEIR FRIENDS KILLED ON A DAILY BASIS, TO ME, IS JUST INCREDIBLE.

(narrator) FOR HATTIE, IT MEANT A CHANCE TO FINALLY SAY GOOD-BYE TO THE BROTHER SHE LOST.

(Betty) THIS IS GOING TO BE VERY HARD FOR HER WHEN SHE GETS THERE.

SO GOOD TO SEE YOU.

I HOPE YOU HAVE A GOOD TRIP TO HOLLAND.

OH, WE WILL.

YES, I HOPE SO.

WE WILL, I'M SURE.

I JUST WISH YOU WERE GOING TO BE WITH US.

IT WILL PROBABLY BE EMOTIONAL SOME, BUT I THINK IT WILL, ONCE I'M THERE AND HAVE SEEN IT, IT WILL SORT OF BE A CLOSURE TO ALL THIS.

(choir) ♪ LORD, WHEN YOUR GLORY ♪ ♪ I SHALL SEE.

♪ ♪ I SHALL SEE.

♪ ♪ I SHALL SEE.

♪ ♪ (narrator) BETTY'S BROTHER, JOHAN, MET THEM AT THE MARGRATAN CEMETERY.

I AM GLAD TO SEE YOU.

AND I HOPE YOU FEEL HOME.

I FEEL LIKE YOUR FAMILY IS MY FAMILY NOW, SINCE I'VE BEEN INVOLVED WITH BETTY SO LONG.

AND I HOPE THAT IT'S NOT TOO EMOTIONAL WHEN YOU CAME AND THE GRAVE OF YOUR BROTHER.

I DON'T THINK IT WILL BE.

CAN YOU--CAN YOU-- CAN YOU HANDLE THAT?

OH, YES.

YES?

I COULDN'T.

(man) GREAT LADY.

[sniffling] I CAN'T BELIEVE IT THAT YOU CAN BE SO STRONG.

(narrator) BEFORE GOING TO THE GRAVE, DEBBIE, BOB, AND THEIR CHILDREN AND HATTIE SPENT TIME GETTING TO KNOW THEIR NEW DUTCH FRIEND.

WE CAN GO NOW.

IT'S ALL RIGHT?

MM-HMM.

GOING TOO FAST?

NO.

[laughs] NOT THAT OLD MAN.

[ethereal music] ♪ ♪ DEBBIE, YOU GO WITH YOUR MOM.

JUST SEEING HIS NAME ON THAT CROSS...

I THINK WAS MORE EMOTIONAL THAN ANYTHING ELSE.

IN SOME WAYS, BECAUSE YOU'VE SEEN IT ALL YOUR LIFE, IT DOESN'T SEEM REAL.

AND THEN YOU KNOW IT IS.

(narrator) THE CEMETERY SUPERINTENDENT, DAN NEESE, WAS WITH THEM.

(Neese) WITH YOUR PERMISSION, I'D LIKE TO PUT SAND IN THE ENGRAVING.

THAT WAY, WHEN I TAKE A PHOTOGRAPH, IT WILL STAND OUT.

OTHERWISE, YOU WON'T SEE THE ENGRAVING.

(Hattie) OKAY.

CAN I HAVE A KLEENEX?

YES, MA'AM.

THIS SAND, BY THE WAY, COMES FROM OMAHA BEACH, OUT IN NORMANDY.

SO THAT SAND CAME FROM THE BEACH, WHERE WE WERE, AT OMAHA BEACH.

(Johan) YOU-- (Hattie) THANK YOU.

STAY HERE WITH US, HERE WITH US.

[sniffling] (Hattie) I TOLD HIM I LOVED HIM... AND THAT I WAS SORRY THAT HE GOT KILLED.

JUST A FEW DAYS, FEW WEEKS FROM THE VICTORY, AND HE LOST HIS LIFE.

AND I FEEL SORRY FOR HIM.

AND I MEAN THAT-- I MEAN IT OUT THE BOTTOM OF MY HEART.

JOHAN, BETTY, I MEAN, THEY'RE THE ONES THAT HAVE TAKEN CARE OF THIS GRAVE.

THEY ADOPTED MY UNCLE INTO THEIR HEARTS.

MRS. HOLLOMAN.

YES.

WILL WE SAY A PRAYER TOGETHER IN THAT CHAPEL?

YES.

YES?

YES.

[bittersweet music] ♪ ♪ (Debbie) YOU KNOW, I THINK THIS IS REALLY WHERE HE SHOULD BE.

THE COUNTRYSIDE IS BEAUTIFUL, AND IT'S COUNTRY.

AND IT'S WARM AND LOVING.

YOU CAN FEEL THAT ALL AROUND YOU.

(narrator) PAUL WILLIS WROTE A POEM ABOUT THE CEMETERY, SAYING, "A PASSING BREEZE MOVES ACROSS THIS SACRED GROUND "AND GENTLY TOUCHES EACH GRASS-SNOWED MOUND.

"I THINK GOD FEELS HIMSELF THE OWNER HERE, AS FRIEND OF THOSE WHO WANT HIM NEAR."

(Hattie) BE WITH ALL THE MEN OUT IN THIS CEMETERY.

BE WITH JOHAN AND HIS FAMILY.

BLESS THEM FOR TAKING CARE OF MY BROTHER'S GRAVE ALL THESE YEARS.

AMEN.

(choir) ♪ I BELIEVE.

♪ ♪ I BELIEVE.

♪ ♪ I BELIEVE IN THE SUN.

♪ ♪ I BELIEVE IN THE SUN, ♪ ♪ EVEN WHEN IT IS NOT SHINING.

♪ ♪ I BELIEVE.

♪ ♪ I BELIEVE.

♪ ♪ I BELIEVE IN GOD.

♪ ♪ I BELIEVE.

♪ ♪ I BELIEVE IN LOVE.

♪ ♪ [drum cadence] ♪ ♪ (narrator) ON APRIL 13, 1945, THE DAY AFTER EDDIE WAS KILLED, HIS 83rd DIVISION ESTABLISHED THE FIRST PERMANENT BRIDGEHEAD OVER THE ELBE RIVER IN BARBY.

THEY CALLED IT THE TRUMAN BRIDGE, AFTER THE NEW PRESIDENT.

EVEN THOUGH THAT DAY MADE HISTORY, MANY MEN HAVE A STRONGER AND PERSONAL MEMORY OF EVENTS OF THE DAY BEFORE.

AS FAR AS A BATTLE, I WOULD RATE IT AS ONE OF THE HARDEST BATTLES THAT WE FACED.

WHY DID SO MANY GUYS LOSE THEIR LIVES THAT DAY IN THAT PLACE?

(narrator) THAT APRIL, "G" COMPANY LOST 13 MEN, 5 MISSING IN ACTION, AND 52 WOUNDED, MANY IN THE FIELDS OF BARBY OR IN THE HOME THAT WAS BOMBED WHERE FRIDERUN CHOP STILL LIVES.

OF COURSE YOU FORGET AFTER SO MANY YEARS, ALTHOUGH I DID EXPERIENCE IT AS AN EIGHT-YEAR-OLD.

BUT WHEN YOU SEE THAT AGAIN, THE MEMORIES RETURN, DON'T THEY?

(narrator) FRIDERUN STILL HAS MANY REMINDERS OF THE WAR: AN ALBUM PIERCED BY A BULLET, A BLANKET AMERICAN SOLDIERS GAVE HER.

THIS ONE WAS DAMAGED BY MACHINE GUNS IN THE SECOND WORLD WAR.

IT WAS THEIR AND OUR MISFORTUNE THAT WE SHOULD MEET HERE.

[speaking German] PERSONALLY, AT THAT TIME, I FELT THAT, WHEN THE AMERICANS ENTERED THE CITY ON THE 13th, THAT THE WAR ENDED FOR THE INHABITANTS OF THE CITY AND THAT THEY WERE HAPPY ABOUT THE AMERICAN OCCUPATION, SINCE IT MEANT THE CITY WOULD NOT BE A TARGET FOR BOMBING.

(narrator) "G" COMPANY NEVER MADE IT TO BERLIN.

THE SOLDIERS EVENTUALLY CAME HOME, PICKED UP THEIR LIVES, FOREVER CHANGED.

YOU HAVE A DIFFERENT, I GUESS, A BROADER OUTLOOK ON THINGS.

AND SO YOU SEE LIFE IN A DIFFERENT WAY THAN WHAT YOU HAD BEFORE.

I USED TO ALWAYS SAY I WAS PUT ON THIS EARTH FOR A PURPOSE, AND I THOUGHT THAT'S WHAT IT WAS.

I MISSED IT.

BELIEVE IT OR NOT, YOU MISS BEING IN THERE WITH THE BOYS.

BECAUSE WHEN YOU GET OUT, YOU'RE BACK ON THE FARM.

MY WIFE ASKED ME THIS: "WHAT ABOUT THE ONES THAT WERE DEAD?"

I SAYS, "I DON'T KNOW HOW TO BRING THEM BACK."

THEY'RE THE ONES THAT HURT ME, NOT THEM.

(narrator) SOME FEEL MARVELED THEY MADE IT HOME.

IT'S HARD.

IT'S HARD TO REALLY BELIEVE THAT YOU COULD.

THE YOUNGER GENERATION IS BEGINNING TO FORGET.

(narrator) JOHAN SAYS THE VRANCKENS WILL NOT FORGET.

AND WHEN HE CAN NO LONGER VISIT EDDIE HART'S GRAVE, OTHER FAMILY MEMBERS WILL.

FAMILY VRANCKEN TAKE CARE FOR THE GRAVE OF EDDIE HART.

THAT HE HAD TO GIVE HIS LIFE SO YOUNG OVER THERE, YOU KNOW, AND MANY TIMES I THINK ABOUT THAT.

AND ESPECIALLY, WHEN I'M IN NORTH CAROLINA, IT'S A BEAUTIFUL STATE.

AND THEN I THINK ABOUT THAT, THAT HE COULD HAVE LIVED HERE.

AND HE WASN'T ABLE TO.

IT'S JUST WONDERFUL THAT THEY APPRECIATE WHAT OUR BOYS DID OVER THERE.

(narrator) HATTIE HART HOLLOMAN ALSO HAS MEMORIES.

I WANT TO SHOW YOU ALL THE LETTERS THAT I GOT FROM MY BROTHER, ED, WHILE HE WAS IN SERVICE.

I KEPT EVERY ONE OF THEM.

(narrator) SHE CALLS THEM HER TREASURES, REMINDERS OF EDDIE, WHOSE PICTURE STILL HANGS ON HER BEDROOM WALL.

WHEN HE WAS HOME CHRISTMAS AND GOT A HAIRCUT HERE IN LA GRANGE, AND HE TOLD THE BARBER THAT THAT WAS THE LAST HAIRCUT HE WOULD EVER GET IN LA GRANGE.

SO HE JUST-- SOMETHING TOLD HIM THAT HE WASN'T COMING BACK.

(narrator) BEFORE THEY SAID GOOD-BYE, JOHAN GAVE HATTIE A MESSAGE ABOUT THE BROTHER SHE LOST.

(Johan) MY NAME IS JOHAN, AND I'M THE OLDEST BROTHER FROM BETTY HABETS-VRANCKEN.

BEFORE MY SISTER IMMIGRATED TO AMERICA, SHE ASKED ME TO KEEP AN EYE ON THE GRAVE OF EDDIE HART, WHICH SHE ADOPTED ON 4 APRIL, 1946.

AFTER SO MANY YEARS, I CAN TELL HER I KEPT MY PROMISE.

[melancholy music] ♪ ♪ [tender piano strains] ♪ ♪ [military drumbeat] ♪ ♪ (announcer) MAJOR FUNDING FOR THANK YOU EDDIE HART PROVIDED IN PART BY: BB&T, WHERE BANKING AND FINANCIAL DECISIONS ARE MADE BY PEOPLE, NOT JUST BY THE NUMBERS.

BB&T: BRANCH BANKING AND TRUST COMPANY.

AND BY KILPATRICK STOCKTON, AN INTERNATIONAL LAW FIRM PROVIDING LEGAL SERVICES AND BUSINESS SOLUTIONS WITH LOCAL INSIGHT AND GLOBAL VISION.

Captioning by CaptionMax www.captionmax.com (choir) ♪ I SHALL SEE.

♪ ♪ I SHALL SEE.

♪ ♪ I SHALL SEE.

♪ ♪ LORD, WHEN YOUR GLORY ♪ ♪ I SHALL SEE, ♪ ♪ AND TASTE YOUR KINGDOM'S PLEASURE, ♪ ♪ YOUR BLOOD MY ROYAL ROBE ♪ ♪ SHALL BE, ♪ ♪ MY JOY BEYOND ALL MEASURE.

♪ ♪ [dramatic music] ♪ ♪ THEY OPENED UP WITH EVERYTHING THEY HAD.

WE HAD LITTLE PROTECTION.

(man) I NEVER FELT SO NAKED RUNNING ACROSS THAT FIELD.

(woman) A NOTE IN THE NEWSPAPER ASKED PEOPLE TO ADOPT GRAVES.

AND I WANTED TO DO THAT.

I COMMITTED MYSELF.

(woman) IT'S JUST WONDERFUL THAT THEY APPRECIATE WHAT OUR BOYS DID OVER THERE.