Mr. Charlie White, one of Forney’s veterans, is looking forward to celebrating his 98th birthday this month. As he looks back over the preceding almostcentury, he has quite a few stories to recount but perhaps the most interesting of stories is that of his early 20s. Barely an adult at the time, Mr. White became a soldier for the United States Army to fight in World War II.
A self-described “old country boy”, White grew up in nearby Royse City, the youngest of five boys. Though a proper school education was not readily available for him during his younger years, little Charlie was taught the value of hard work through observing the members of his family. Even now, he recalls how hard his mother and father worked in those days to provide for the family. “Nobody worked as hard as my mother,” he says, proudly telling of her long days cooking, cleaning, and caring for her husband and sons.
Not too long after the U.S. entered the War, Charlie and three of his brothers enlisted to serve the United States in the Armed Forces. Though almost eight decades ago, he still recalls in vivid detail his time in basic training in Alabama before he deployed from New England on a ship with around 10,000 other young men bound for the War. When young White arrived in North Africa, it wasn’t long before he was marching along with so many others on the front lines. He spent time there in North Africa as well as in Italy before eventually being declared Missing in Action and then a Prisoner of War.
Detailing stories of his - Continued from page 1-A - time in World War II, he tells of how he went from one of the nearly ten thousand with whom he arrived to being the sole survivor in his area at one point. As his division navigated through the mountains in Italy by way of a canyon, they came upon enemy “machine guns”, German soldiers who were standing watch on the passage. The ensuing battle claimed the lives of most of White’s fellow soldiers, leaving only 77 who survived. Shortly after that battle, though, the men found themselves moving through raining artillery which killed and wounded many of those remaining. White was hit with shrapnel but was able to bandage himself up, only to watch Germans round up sixteen of his men – the ones who were not injured. After lying in the field for three days, White was the only survivor left. Though he was picked up and taken to a hospital in Rome, the first of many stops for White, he was declared Missing in Action and remained listed as such for eight months.
White’s wartime experience was by no means an easy one and comes with plenteous difficult memories. However, not all of his stories are so heavy and some of them still get a laugh out of Mr. White – like the time he hopped on a camel to ride next to his division as they marched through the desert, or when he tells about the men he came across when first arriving in North Africa that were wearing refashioned barracks bags as pants! One special encounter during the War happened when Charlie happened to make contact with another of the White boys and was able to spend a few days with his brother. Those glimmers of hope during that dark period were such an encouragement.
Most of all, though, Mr. White says that his ultimate hope came through his faith. Though he admits that he and his brothers had no real spiritual education at home, White remembers the first defining moment in his faith when he called out to God during battle and declared, “God, I’m no good to you dead! Let me live and I’ll do whatever you want me to do!” Keeping good on his promise after his life was spared during the War, White began to grow in his newfound faith when he returned to the States. Upon returning, he went to work but soon found out that he had contracted tuberculosis and needed treatment. Of the time in the hospital, Mr. White says, “When I got there, I wanted the Bible more than I wanted any thing else.” Once he had one in his hands, he didn’t put it down much, studying sometimes as much as six hours a day and sharing his faith with anyone who would listen. It seems as though his hunger for the Bible has not changed much throughout the years, traveling with Billy Graham and studying under First Baptist Dallas’s W.A. Criswell. Even now, he is currently memorizing the entire book of Revelation and is more than ready to recite it to all who will listen.
Nowadays, Charlie and his wife Faye spend much of their time with their large family, many of whom live in or near Forney. Between the two of them, they have five children, twenty grandchildren, six greatgrandchildren, and numerous nieces, nephews, and extended family.
An amazing soldier who knows what it is to undeniably love our Country, Mr. White says what the United States really needs more than anything else is Jesus. “Our Country is in a mess,” he concedes. “But if they’d look at that Ole Book, that Ole Book would tell them everything about it.” Though he might tell you otherwise, Mr. Charlie White is the complete picture of the Greatest Generation: humble, brave, hardworking, and full of faith.
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