Bradford Holmes, who fought in the Battle of the Bulge and survived being a prisoner of war, was honored on Wednesday with a Bronze Star for his “exemplary performance in acts of combat” on December 16, 1944.

Holmes was also named the Legionnaire of the Century by Ted Hatch of the Wareham American Legion Post #220.

Born in Onset in 1925, Holmes was drafted into the army at the age of 18, and was deployed to fight in World War II.
Holmes described being trapped in a freight train for 10 days as a prisoner as the train was bombed by allied forces who had no idea it was full of American troops, and of being held in a prison camp for six months. The prisoners had no way to bathe, and wore the same clothes the whole time they were imprisoned. The only time they ate was during air raids, when the Germans would flee to safety and the prisoners would steal their lunches.

When they were finally freed, they had to walk to freedom. Holmes described the civilians walking alongside them, dragging whatever belongings they could carry in a cart and discarding things along the roadway to reduce the weight.

When he saw a mother struggling to pull herself, her baby, and a cart up a hill, he offered to pull the cart for her. 

When they reached the top, she offered him some of the baby’s milk: the only thanks she had to offer.

“I said, I’m definitely not going to take that baby’s milk,” Holmes recalled.

He recalled with delight being able to burn the clothes (and bugs) he had been wearing for all those months, and the barrels of eggnog given to the emaciated prisoners to put some meat back on their bones.

“One thing I think is important is that we continue to remind our young people of the service that these brave men and women gave to our country, because most young people have no clue,” said Rep. Susan Gifford, adding that many young people have never heard of the “Greatest Generation” who fought in WWII. Remembering that generation’s sacrifice is vital, Gifford said, because those people secured the freedoms citizens have today.

U.S. Representative Bill Keating said that he was struck by Holmes’ generosity after he was freed. 

“Think about it: You’ve been a captive, been through the war, you’ve been through so much, and he’s going through the countryside. Anyone else would be thinking singularly, just, I want to get home, I want to get home. And he’s there asking civilian women and people who don’t have the strength to pull their belongings any more if there’s any way he can help them,” Keating said. “And that’s what our country’s about. That’s what Brad Holmes is about.”

To hear more of Holmes’ stories, check out his interview with WCTV here.