Our purpose went well beyond aiding our allies as they faced the German blitz. It was to save our way of life, for our parents and siblings at home, … - Walter D. Ehlers

I had medals, but they were never presented because we were always in combat. So when I got my Medal of Honor, why, they found out that I had gotten the Silver Star in Germany, and then I got Bronze Stars in Africa and Sicily, and then I got a Bronze Star for D-Day for that action I did there, taking out that pillbox. Also the British Military Medal. I got the Silver Star in Germany before getting wounded for the fourth time. I got the Purple Heart three times. I could have had it four.

Today, fifty years later, the beaches are quiet. We come back to mourn our losses, and to celebrate our success. Our presence here commemorates our and our comrades' lives, and it validates the sacrifices we all made on D-Day. What was it like on D-Day? That wave in Southampton, England, was the last time I saw my brother. He died here, on Omaha Beach. That we can be here today proves that it was not in vain.

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.