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Veterans who
helped free France
in WWII eligible
for new honor

Thousands in Hawaii may
receive the award, issued
by the French

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By Gregg K. Kakesako
Star-Bulletin

Numerous islanders, including members of the famed 100th Battalion and 442nd Regimental Combat Team, are being honored for their part in the liberation of France during World War II.

Attorney Pat Lee, the honorary French consul in Hawaii, said the award was proposed by Francoise Bujon de l'Estang, French ambassador to the United States, and "covers all Americans who served in World War II and in France."

American servicemen who fought in French territorial waters or in French airspace between D-Day, June 6, 1944, and May 8, 1945 are eligible.

Merchant Marines, Navy sailors and Army Air Corps crew members also are covered, Lee said.

"So far, the consul general in San Francisco has issued 560 certificates," she said.

On the East Coast, the count has been higher -- upwards of 1,000.

Lee is hoping to get Consul General Gerard Coste to come here from San Francisco to preside over a ceremony to honor local veterans.

Kats Miho, president of the 442nd Club, said all of the nearly 4,500 members of the 100th Battalion and the 442nd RCT -- a highly-decorated segregated Army unit composed mainly of Japanese Americans -- would be eligible.

"We arrived in France in September 1944 and left in March 1945," said Miho, a member of the 522nd Field Artillery Battalion.

The soldiers' major French campaigns involved liberating the villages of Bruyeres on Oct. 18, 1944, and Biffontaine five days later in the Vosges Mountains in the eastern part of France. The soldiers also distinguished themselves by rescuing the Texas "Lost Battalion" that was cut off and trapped by the Germans.

The award will not be issued posthumously.

Bernard Lee, adjutant for the American Legion here, said many of his 3,300 members fought in Europe, but his organization doesn't have records detailing where they served.

The certificate is similar to a medal issued by France to World War I veterans. Three years ago, the French government decided to mark the 80th anniversary of the World War I Armistice by honoring surviving "doughboys" sent overseas between 1914 and 1918 to fight the Germans by awarding them the Legion of Honor.

The only honoree from Hawaii was retired Army Col. William Frank Steer, then 98.

For information, Pat Lee advised writing to: French Consulate, 540 Bush St.; San Francisco, CA 94108

The 10 French consuls in the U.S. will work with veterans groups to identify eligible people. The application form also will be available from veteran service organizations and on a Web site maintained by the French government: http://www.info-france-usa.org/news/statmnts/ww2/index.htm.