My father, John E. Monsulick, was born 25 July 1918 in St. Clair, PA. He was inducted into the Army Air corps on 30 March 1942. He received radio operator/gunner training at San Antonio TX and was assigned to the 446th Bomb Group, stationed in England.

While on a bombing run to Ludwigshaven, Germany on 31 July 1944, his B-24 was seriously damaged by anti-aircraft fire and the order to bail out was given. The pilot and co-pilot were both last seen fighting the controls as then T/Sgt. Monsulick bailed out. When he reached the ground, he heard shouts and a few gunshots and then nothing.

Dad spent the next three days evading capture, but he was finally brought in by the local civilian police. He spent most of his time in captivity at Stalag Luft IV. It was there that he learned the fate of some of his crew, shot by the German S.S.

Somewhere between Jan andFeb 1945 my dad became involved in the forced march that came to be known as the "black march." After suffering through a lack of warm clothing, insufficient food and sometimes-cruel treatment at the hands of the guards, my father was finally liberated in May 1945. His B-24 was located near Remereville, France some years after the war.