Thoughts From Bob

Doc took the family, Janice, Robbie, Leslie, and David back to Europe to retrace the journey he had in 1944-45. Doc had a very vivid memory of the war and we would come to a hill and he would say, “we lost over 50 men trying to take a machine gun nest at the top of that hill.” It was a very emotional time for Doc and today we would definitely say that Doc had PTSD. You see Doc had lied about his age and enlisted when he was 17. I tried for many years to get Doc to write down his experiences during WW-II but he was not anxious to do so. “You see David I have spent the last 60 years trying to forget what happened and I really don’t want to think about it,” Doc would always say. Finally I was able to get him set up with a computer and he wrote the following passages. It is an incomplete story and I hope to be able to expand on it more when I complete our current missions at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory.

So, here’s a link to the six chapters that Doc wrote about his time during WWII.

Tomorrow is Veteran’s day and we will be flying Doc’s flag in honor of all those who gave so much for this country.

Tags: General, Life, Memorial, The Soldier by David
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Thanks to son, David, Doc Bob is now memorialized.

Tags: General, Life, The Soldier by William
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Dear Bill,

Thanks so much for your call today.  After speaking to you I got out three more flags and a red, white, and blue bunting.  Memorial Day has always been a very special day in the Scott Family.  At the Aichelman farm (Doc’s uncle Frank Aichelman ran that farm before giving it to Doc after the War) we used to get out Doc’s father’s 1923 Model T Ford pickup and put a horse trough in the back.  The trough would be filled with ice, sodas, and beers.  Then we would chug down to the pasture and set up the baseball diamond for the annual baseball game.  It was quite an event and all the farmers from the Platte River Valley would come to participate and set up the tables and grills.  I’ll never forget the sounds of the Model T.  It would go chuga, chuga, chuga, and had the wonderful AooUga horn.  We had so much fun with that vehicle.  It was amazing where that thing would go.

Here are some audio clips for the Model T

Sound of the car running.

The horn.

There is a new book out which includes photos from the Aichelman farm. Here’s a link to Amazon.

Attached is a photo of the time you surprised Doc at the Mission Inn.  That was so much fun.  “Bill Schmidt, what the Sam Hill are you doing here.”  We really got Doc good that time.  Unfortunately the digital image is blurry but I remember it vividly.  It was what Doc always called “A Golden Moment”.  Thanks again so much for all the help you gave Leslie and I with Doc’s transition to the Mission.  That was a challenging time.

Semper Fi,

David

Tags: Memorial, The Soldier by William
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Today the link to Doc’s WW-II Memorial was published in the Universe, the Jet Propulsion Laboratory’s public record of significant events.  The archive of the Universe publications goes back to when JPL was first formed as an Army Lab researching rockets back in the 1940’s.  Doc’s signature will also be written into a silicon chip using the electron beam lithography system.  This chip will be attached to the Mars Exploration Rover scheduled to launch in 2011.

The link to his memorial  is included here so you can view the official version.

http://www.wwiimemorial.com/registry/search/pframe.asp?HonoreeID=1892706&popcount=2&tcount=3

Tags: Memorial, The Soldier by William
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Doc Bob

Born in Denver, Colorado January 16, 1926.

Died in Rosemead, California March 20, 2010.

Amazing teacher, devoted spiritualist, Bronze Star Veteran of WWll, farmer, veterinarian, agricultural consultant, expert witness, alter minister, and happy, inspirational bike rider.  He received the following commendations for his services in the European theater with Patton’s 3^rd Army, Company C, 44^th armored infantry battalion, 6^th armored division during the Battle of the Bulge in the Ardennes Forest during the winter of 1944-1945:

Bronze Star for Heroism

3 Battle Stars

European-African-Middle Eastern Theater Ribbon

Army of Occupation Ribbon

Good Conduct Medal

Honorable Discharge

Doc’s service is memorialized at the WWII Memorial on the Main Mall in Washington, D.C.

http://www.wwiimemorial.com/registry/search/pframe.asp?HonoreeID=1892706&popcount=2&tcount=3

He is survived by 4 children Rob, Leslie, David, April, and 8 grandchildren.

A friend’s quote, February 2010, “There goes that guy that gets on his bike and prays with people.”

A memorial service will be scheduled in May for friends and family in the Brighton area.  Bob’s children are planning to plant trees and install sitting benches in his name.

For those who are interested in contributing to the memorial fund in Bobs name please contact Leslie Scott- Rose  wessieots@aol.com

Tags: General, Life, The Soldier by William
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PFC Robert G. Scott, Jr.  S/N 17092199 has moved to another campaign.  You can visit his Memorial at the main mall in Washington, D.C.    His wish was to continue his service to the medical students at the University of Southern California.  He has moved on to graduate school.

http://www.wwiimemorial.com/

http://www.wwiimemorial.com/registry/

Tags: Life, The Soldier by William
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This entry is taken from an email from David Scott, Bob’s dedicated and loyal son.  As administrator of the blog, I am including it.  Also, here is a link to Bob’s story about his experience in WWII.  Click here!

I spent the past few years trying to get Doc to write a book about World War II.  I was never really able to get him to get excited about doing it because he spent the past 65 years trying to forget the horror of the war he fought in so valiantly.  Doc lied about his age to enlist in 1943 when he was just 17.  During the Battle of the Bulge in the harsh winter of 1944 Doc’s company in Patton’s 6th Armored Division was pinned down by a German artillery barrage.  The Germans were firing 88 mm anti-aircraft, more commonly known as flack, canon shells at the troops on the ground.  This rain of hot explosive shrapnel was devastating to the troops as the shells explode above the ground and the soldiers could not escape the rain of metal in their fox holes.  Doc always told me that you think you cannot dig in frozen ground, until you hear the whistle of the German 88s coming in.  Then he said you can dig real fast using the folding GI issue shovels as a pick.  He said the nut that holds the folding shovel in place would freeze solid and he would have to pee on the nut to loosen in up.  [Read more →]

Tags: Life, The Soldier by William
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Certain dignified and noble traditions help us to guard the precious gift of the power of the great United States.

America is only great because her people are great.

This shining example is a steady reminder that we value the greatness in our prominent citizens. The sum total of the heroes at Arlington and other national cemeteries is a constant reminder that those of us who are among the living are challenged to be great as well.

ONE OF THE FIRST HYMNS I MEMORIZED IN THE FIRST GRADE WAS:

Little drops of water, Little grains of sand,

Make the mighty Ocean,

AND the beauteous Land.

AND the teacher told us each of you is IMPORTANT.

Dr. Bob

Here’s more about the tomb of the unknown. 

ARLINGTON CEMETERY – Jeopardy Question

On Jeopardy the other night, the final question was How many steps does the guard take during his walk across the tomb of the Unknowns —- All three missed it —

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Tags: Life, The Soldier by Bob
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Shortly after the war ended in 1946 there was a big crowd of returning veterans who came home to Brighton, Colorado as victorious heroes.

Brighton was a small town, maybe 3000 people, in a wonderful farm community about 20 miles north of Denver.

It was blessed to have a strong American Legion Chapter composed of WWI vets.

They were the uncles, dads and employers of the returning WWII vets and were actively recruiting all of the returning vets and we of course enjoyed swapping stories of where we had been and what we had done .

The WWI vets has a club called the last squad club. They met on Armistice day every year and hired a caterer for a T-bone steak dinner.  At the dinner they would have a short program but it was a powerful format.

The president would call to order.

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Tags: The Soldier by Bob
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I want to inject someplace what a joy and privilege it has been for me to have a break in my day to day life to do something completely different than I usually do.  I haven’t made a sales call for a week.  I have played with my grandsons and know that my dad was right when he said, You never get any closer to heaven than you are when you are playing with our grandchildren.”  As I was writing this final chapter, some of the zip went out of my enthusiasm and I didn’t keep my usual habit of saving my work as I went.  I had an emergency call to rescue Alex from sort of peril and when I came back I punched some button and it was the wrong button and I simply could not find the chapter I had written.

I was telling Dana that I needed to do the last chapter over because of an error in keeping my records straight and she said it would have upset her to do it.  I told her that it had happened before and that I needed to do it again for some reason.  When I woke up in the middle of the night, I knew what I had left out and why my writing had ceased to be the pleasure it had been. 

This is the great key.  It can be measured by the wisdom of the hundreds of thousands of prisoners we took in the last few weeks of combat.  The word was out.  Russia, thru our democrat’s bungling at Yalta, was to receive the lion’s share of the territory in Eastern Europe.  The lines were drawn and those who were already displaced wanted to wind up in the American Sector.

The people of the World know that America is the great power and the great Nation.  The reason America was great is because her people were great.  Her people were great because of a deep faith in God Almighty.   Sadly, today some of the accusations of Islamic people about the US being the great Satan are true.  Our ACLU, the liberal democrat judges who have made law by interpreting the constitution according to their whims and the power of the Liberals like Jesse Jackson, Al Sharpton, and other black leaders who make a business of stirring up problems about how the black child is disadvantaged have certainly weakened our nation. 

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Tags: The Soldier by Bob
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