Photo By Staff Sgt. Amber Martin | LEADVILLE, CO - Hugh W. Evans, a 10th Mountain Division veteran who served in WWII,...... read more read more
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Paying tribute to the legacies of WWII veterans, former members of the U.S. Army’s 10th Mountain Division and the Norwegian-manned 99th Infantry Battalion (Separate), families, friends, and descendants along with soldiers of the 10th Special Forces Group (Airborne) from Fort Carson, Colo. skied down Cooper Hill in Leadville, Colo. Feb. 19, 2016.
Marking the 71st anniversary of the famed 10th Mountain Division’s battle for Mt. Belvedere in Italy, the ‘Ski-In’ event was held for service members to remember, connect, and pay respect to those who came and fell before them. The colorful event featured skiers carrying unit colors and the American and Norwegian Flags as they skied down the slopes in formation.
“This is the 41st time we’ve had this ‘Ski-In,’ and it means a lot because we get old comrades back from all across the country,” said Hugh W. Evans, a WWII veteran from the 10th Mountain Division. “They are dropping off the vine pretty fast, but the ones that are here are special, just like the ones that have gone.”
The event’s location in Leadville, which was then known as Camp Hale, is where the 10th Mountain Division and the 99th Infantry Battalion (Separate) trained in preparation for their deployment to the European Theatre. The 99th was a special battalion made up of Norwegian merchant marines, Norwegians, and Norwegian Americans. The 99th was formed under the Office of Strategic Services, a predecessor of today’s Central Intelligence Agency, and a contributing influence to today’s Special Operation Forces.
“They trained right here on this mountain, what they call Cooper Hill. A barracks sat right here as well,” said retired Marine Col. Tom Duhs, whose father was also a WWII veteran. “Battalions would be brought here one at a time. They would be trained by a cadre of instructors, about 200 to 250 instructors, who taught them how to ski and everything thing else.”
Once the training at Camp Hale was complete, the 10th Mountain Division and 99th Infantry Battalion (Separate) deployed to Europe. The units were sent to Italy and England, respectively, and the 10th was the last division to enter the continent of Europe during WWII.
“They were put into the line right away in January of 1945, and by February 18th they got into their first big battle,” Duhs said. “In order to get the road that goes north, toward the Po River, they had to take this key terrain feature which was Mt. Belvedere, which was held by the Germans.”
Duhs explained it took nearly the entire Division to capture the objective.
“All nine battalions were involved in the fight,” said Duhs. “Hugh Evans was a sergeant at the time, and they fought a very tenacious enemy, and they won the battle. And that was 71 years ago today.”
As for the 99th, while their training was done in conjunction with the 10th Mountain Division, their mission was much different.
In 1940, German forces occupied Norway and their merchant marines that were caught outside the country were not able to return home. They made port in the U.S. and Canada and immediately sought out a way for return to their homeland.
“A lot of [Norwegians] landed in Canada and the U.S. and went to various authorities to ask what they could do to help fight the war back home,” said Bruce Bjorgam, whose father was a 1st lieutenant in the 99th. “The U.S. Army caught onto this and thought they might need an invasion force for Norway some day. So, they put two and two together, made these guys U.S. citizens, and threw them in the Army.”
The U.S. Army put out announcements in newsletters that they were now looking for men to serve who spoke Norwegian, were of Norwegian descent, and/or had relatives in Norway. Soon thereafter, a battalion of approximately 1,000 men was formed.
Bjorgam’s father saw these announcements after he was drafted and signed up.
“They trained here in Camp Hale, 1,000 of them and 12,000 10th Mountain soldiers, and they did all the stuff, skiing, working with mules, trying out some of the early equipment, staying out on over night trips in 20 below weather… all that stuff,” said Bjorgam.
While the 10th Mountain deployed to Italy, the 99th was sent to England in preparation for deployment into Norway. Eventually the King of Norway, along with Allied Commanders knew that a group of 1,000 men sent to Norway, by that time occupied by no less than 400,000 German troops, was a losing idea.
“They knew that the Germans would just take retaliation on all the locals,” explained BJorgam. “So they were repurposed to fight in the European Theatre and they entered Normandy on D-Day +16.”
The 99th Infantry Battalion ended up fighting in France, Belgium, and Germany. The battalion liberated the town of Malmedy, Belgium and fought in the Battle of the Bulge. Towards the end of the war, the 99th was placed in the 474th Infantry Regiment. The unit was sent to Norway to help in the disarmament of German forces, after which, they returned to the United States.
Although battle paths of soldiers from the 99th and 10th differed, Bjorgam explained it’s their comradery, their shared experiences, and their love for each other that continues to bring the veterans and Families together every year.
These veterans are whom Duhs talks about when he explains some of their actions and why they are true heroes.
“There are veterans here like Jimmy Nasser [10th Mountain Division], a real gunfighter – all these guys are real gunfighters. They were all there killing Germans,” said Duhs. “Neil Yorker [10th], he killed a German with a pistol from about 10 feet away. Hugh took machine gun nests.”
“The Germans were no slouch outfit,” added Duhs. “They were the best there was, and these guys took them on.”
The veterans from the 10th and 99th paved the way for later generations to continue training in extremely cold, mountainous environments with ever increasing proficiency. These two units hold claim to being among the first U.S. Army units to be placed on skis.
The legacy of these veterans and their rigorous training in the mountains of Colorado remains to this day as soldiers of the 10th SFG (A) carry out training on skis throughout the winter season, focusing on both winter survival skills and advanced skiing techniques. The establishment of this capability can be attributed to the efforts of the 99th Infantry Battalion and 10th Mountain Division all of those years ago.
“Since [Europe] was our area of responsibility we knew that there was a need for the capability to conduct operations in an extreme winter environment,” said Master Sgt. Chad Johnson, a senior ski instructor for the10th SFG (A). “That is when we started taking the former members of the 99th, who were in the OSS as well, and formed the core of 10th SFG (A) in 1952.”
The lessons learned from the 99th Infantry Battalion and 10th Mountain Division are what helped shape the way the 10th SFG (A) currently operates. This connection, the unit’s home in Colorado, ties to the OSS, and honoring U.S. Forces who fought in WWII is why soldiers from the 10th SFG (A) attended the 41st Ski-In event.
Soldiers with the 10th SFG (A) attended to not only spend time with WWII veterans, but also to pay homage to those who had come before them. Though, who stood out among the crowd and silenced others with their speeches were the WWII veterans.
When asked what the young soldiers attending the event should leave knowing, with a smile on his face, Hugh Evans said, “Do your duty and serve the country. It’s wonderful, and we thank you.”
| Date Taken: | 02.19.2016 |
| Date Posted: | 03.30.2016 17:25 |
| Story ID: | 193918 |
| Location: | LEADVILLE, COLORADO, US |
| Web Views: | 149 |
| Downloads: | 1 |
This work, Ski-In: A Camp Hale, WWII remembrance event, by MSG Daniel Carter, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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