51本色

In part 1 of this series, we told you about Carl and how he ended up in the Philippines. Today, we鈥檙e excited to share with you Carl鈥檚 experience in the war and a wonderful story about his wife.

Incident in Manila

When Carl arrived in the Philippines (joining the 38th Division, 11st Infantry Regiment, F Company), he and his fellow soldiers had the objective of taking a valley just north of Manila.

During one of their operations, he followed a scout from Kentucky into a cave where the Scout proceeded to shoot a woman and baby covered with a blanket.

Carl was horrified, but the Scout lifted the blanket to reveal a hand grenade in the woman鈥檚 hand. She was just waiting for them to get closer. 鈥淭he Lord moves in mysterious ways.鈥�

Prisoner of War Artist

During his time in Manila, Carl鈥檚 troop captured a Japanese prisoner of war.

Through translation, Carl discovered that this man enjoyed drawing. The man drew a portrait of Dolores, Carl鈥檚 then-girlfriend, from a picture of her that Carl carried with him. The picture still hangs in Carl鈥檚 office to this day.

West Point Offer

Things got bad for Carl and his fellow soldiers throughout their time in the Philippines.

Another unit finally made it to them, and Carl was told to report to Headquarters. He received the Bronze Star and a battlefield appointment to West Point, with the order to go back to the US.

The appointment required Carl to sign on for a total of four additional years in the army after finishing at West Point. He鈥檇 had enough of the war and was ready to get back to Texas, so Carl turned down the appointment. In a matter of a month, his platoon accepted the surrender of the Japanese in the Philippines.

Playing Ball in Manila

When the war was over, the soldiers played baseball in Manila, and Carl had the opportunity to play with Bobby Shantz of the New York Yankees and Kent Peterson of the Cincinnati Reds.

Through this experience, Carl was offered a baseball contract with the Boston Red Sox. But on his way home to Texas, he contracted malaria and was unable to play.

The malaria left Carl disabled for a full year. Thankfully, God restored Carl to health, and he married Dolores on September 28, 1947. 鈥淭he Lord moves in mysterious ways.鈥�

Check out the last part of this series on Carl's life after the war!