I was born and raised in the state of Kansas. I was a farm boy, and nowadays I keep hearing people say, 'Well, a lot of farm boys got the Medal of Ho… - Walter D. Ehlers

I was on the train, and another fellow says, 'I'm reading here where your brother got the Medal of Honor.' I said, 'Yes, I'm reading about that, too.' But I didn't tell him it was me he was reading about because I had not got the Medal yet. I got off the train, and I was headed for the CP, the Command Post, when a colonel called me by my last name. I was in fatigue uniform, and I didn't know any colonels. But this colonel knew me. He said, 'Sergeant Ehlers, what are you doing here?' I said, 'Well, sir, I'm reporting back to duty.' He says, 'Well, you're supposed to be back in the States getting the Medal of Honor from President Roosevelt.' And I said, 'Yes, sir, I read about it in Stars and Stripes.
A couple of days later they had me come to a press conference, and I'm just standing there. Then the general told the people that he wanted to introduce me to them and what I did in Normandy and so forth. Me? The Medal of Honor? It was quite a sensation to the press corps there to meet a Medal of Honor guy. I didn't look like anything, a young kid with a helmet, no stripes, never decorated before. Major General Clarence R. Huebner promoted me after he introduced me as having received the Medal of Honor- which I still hadn't received yet. He introduced me as Lieutenant Ehlers. After the press conference, we were coming out of there, he had his arm around my shoulder, and he said, 'Sergeant Ehlers, I'm going to promote you to second lieutenant.' I said, 'Well, sir, I don't think I qualify.' He said, 'You qualify.' I said, 'Yes, sir.'

When I came home, I never used the Medal at any time, except when I went to the inaugurations of the Presidents. They always invite the Medal of Honor recipients. I went to about every inauguration from Truman to now. I went to the one for Bush, but I didn't go to Clinton's because I wasn't a Clinton man. In 1994, on the fiftieth anniversary of the invasion, I went to France and gave the main address at Omaha. There was a French liberation ceremony on the beach that daym, and I come marching in with the troops, and then they marched me up. There was a microphone in the middle of the field, and of course I had a general escorting me.
It was pretty nice. I'm standing out here in the middle of this field and I'm giving the address that day for the First Division; they had another guy, from the 29th Division, I think it was, but I gave the first speech. I got tremendous applause and accolades. Anyway, Clinton was in the audience that day, and I talked to him down on the beach.

It probably changed my life, no doubt about it. But then, like I tell most people, I live life one day at a time, and what happens, happens. And that just happened to be a part of it. I didn't do any great big planning about my career- except I never wanted to be unemployed.