Charles H. Alm
3 LOWELL BOYS ARE WOUNDED
PVT. JOHN CHILDERS, PFC. CHARLES ALM, SGT. BEN BUCKLEY ARE CASUALTIES
- Three more Lowell boys, Pvt. John A. Childers, son of the Andrew Childers, Pfc. Charles Alm, son of the George Alms, northeast of Lowell, and Sgt. Ben A. Buckley, son of the Gene Buckleys, were reported recently by the War Department to have been wounded in action on the German front.
- Pvt. Childers and Pfc. Alm were both listed as "slightly wounded" on December 9th, and although no further word has been received on either, it is presumed that they are making saticfactory recovery. Both boys attended Lowell high school, Alm graduating with the class of 1941, but Childres enlisted in February, 1943, in his senior year.
- Sgt. Buckley, 26, was wounded in action on Dec. 6th according to the telegram his parents received Dec. 28th. The same day the telegram arrived, the Buckleys received a letter from one of their son's buddies who had driven his tank all through the Anzio Beachhead battle in Italy as well as in France, stating that he knew Ben had suffered only a broken arm and was getting along well. No further word of his condition has been received.
- Sgt. Buckley has now been wounded three times in the 29 months he has been stationed in the European theatre. On one occasion, according to a letter Ben wrote his parents recently, his tank was blown from under him, killing three of crew, and wounding one, but he escaped without a scratch. Among his medals are a purple heart which he received for a previous wound, and a bronze star with citation, and an oak cluster. Ben has been in the service five years, enlisting a year and a half before the United States entered the present conflict.
This February 8, 1945, Lowell Tribune article was found on page 4, column 1:
- With the 26th (Yankee) Infantry Division in Luxenbourg -- Sgt. Charles H. Alm has been awarded the Bronze Star for heroic action against the enemy in France.
- He was part of the advance element in Company A, 328th infantry Regiment against a town in Lorraine. Enemy artillery and sniper fire had temporarily halted his party. A vital order from the company commander to his platoon leaders to change the company's direction of movement could not be transmitted because communication between the command post and the front had been disrupted. Sgt. Alm volunteered to carry the message on foot, despite the fact that Jerry guns were blasting a path along the route. He delivered the message to all three rifle platoon leaders and returned to his post of duty.
- Sgt. Alm is the son of Mr. and Mrs. Fred Alm, rural route 2, Lowell.
This March 15, 1945, Lowell Tribune article was found on page 1, column 4:
LOWELL SOLDIER WOUNDED AGAIN
SGT. CHARLES ALM SUFFERS BROKEN LEG WHEN AN ENEMY SHELL HIT NEARBY
- Sgt. Charles Alm, son of the Fred Alms, north of town, is again back in an English hospital recovering from a broken leg he received in fighting on the German front, when an enemy bazooka shell exploded near his position. He was wounded February 25th and his parents received the telegram from the war department last Friday.
- Sgt. Alm was first wounded last December 7th, when a piece of shrapnel struck him in the hip, but he soon recovered and went back into action. His parents now have the shrapnel as a souvenir.
- In addition to the Purple Heart which he received the first time he was wounded in action, Alm also holds the Bronze Star for bravery. During a drive on the Germans last month, he volunteered to carry messages to platoon leaders whose communication with other elements had been cut, and completed the mission despite intense enemy artillery fire in the entire area.
- Alm, 22, was graduated from Lowell high school with the class of 1941 and entered the service Dec. 28, 1942. He has been overseas several months with his infantry outfit.
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