Officers and men of the 50the [50th] Armored Infantry Battalion, I salute you! From the Normandy Bridgehead to the campaign across the Brittany Peninsula, through the Battle for Hill 105 and the Daoulas Peninsula, through France to the Saar, through Luxembourg, the bloody winter hell of Bastogne, and through the Siegfried Line; across Germany to the woodded [wooded] hills of Saxony, you have played your part in making this a better world in which to live. Many of our friends have fallen in combat. To those brave men we owe an undying debt of gratitude. Each company, group and section within this Battalion has contributed a large share in the winning of this war. Through team work between these companies, groups and sections, this victory was made possible. Without that teamwork nothing could have been accomplished. Some of us are inclined to think only in terms of rifles, machine guns, assault guns, mortars and the people who man those weapons when remembering the battles. For this reason I should like personally to commend those officers and men who were responsible for the supply of food, water and ammunition. For those who by their almost super-human efforts in maintenance made it possible for our vehicles to keep up with the fast progress made by this Battalion. For those officers and men in administrative positions who, even though frequently under fire, kept our administrative records up to date and handled the terrific burden of casualty reports. To the officers and men of our Medical Detachment who so heroically rendered aid to those of us who had been wounded in battle. Through the efforts of all these officers and men the combat troops have been supplied, fed, healed and controlled.
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For the officers and men of our combat troops, no commendation is necessary. Their acts, the result of their work, will be printed indelibly in the minds of all Americans. The blood that they shed on the battlefields of France, Belgium, Luxembourg and Germany has painted a flaming portrait that, once seen, the world can never forget. I am proud to have been your commander. It is impossible for me to express to you in words the mixed emotions which I have experienced as your commander. I can only say to each and every one of the members of this command, I thank you. I know that whatever your lot in life may be in the future, whether it be a military career or a civilian career, that the bonds of friendship which were welded together by the steel and fire of war, can never be broken. That whatever your task may be, you will enter into it with the same spirit, selfsacrifice and devotion that you have shown as members of this Battalion. My earnest wish to each and every one is that you may have the best of luck in your new life. Good bye, good luck, and God bless you!
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