This will be a brief history of my life for the first nearly eighty years that I have lived. Don't know how the next eighty will be, ha!

First I want to praise our Lord Jesus Christ for his many blessings that he has given my family and me over the years. Without him I would be nothing. I was born in Lafayette County near Oxford MS on December 30th 1919 to John T. Savage and Sudie Lee McDougall Savage. I was the fourth child born out of five children to them. They was living at Union West at that time.

My mother died when I was two years old. When I was about three we moved to the Orwood community. I was living on a farm known as the cook place. We raised cotton, corn, and soy beans. We were living there during the Depression, so life on the farm wasn't all that great at the time, but we made a living and were happy for we didn't know any better. It was some tough times.

In 1939 I joined the CCC and was in it for two years. After I got out, I went to Memphis and got a job at a mop factory starting at $18 per week. That was big money for me. I bought a car after about four months. I was really living high on the hog. Then in November 1942 I was drafted into the army at Ft. Oglethorpe, GA. I was sent to Camp Van Dorn, MS and was assigned to the 99th Infantry division. I took my basic training there and went on maneuvers in LA. Then on to Camp Maxey, TX for advanced training. In August 1944 we left for Europe.

We went to England, then to France and on to Belgium where we got our first combat experience in early November. We were in a defensive position along the Siegfried line on Dec. 6th when the Battle of the Bulge started. Our position was near Krinkelt. Our platoon was attached to K-393, and we were surrounded by the Germans. We had to surrender. We had to carry their wounded and dead back to their bunkers until about nightfall, and then were put on boxcars.

I was on that train for four days without food or water. We traveled to a POW camp at Moosburg. After we were there for about two weeks some of my friends and I went out on a work detail. Then as the Americans began advancing the our guards made us march away from them along the road. But the Americans overtook us on April 29, 1945. About three weeks later I was headed home, in June 1945. I was discharged in November 1945, as a sergeant.

I married Doris Renfrow on Dec.31 1948. We lost our first baby in Sept. '49, and then we had five more. Donna was born in '51, Joe in '53, David in '54, Ricky in 56, Rhonda in '60. We wound up with seventeen grandchildren and one great-granddaughter. I retired in 1982 as a paint and dry wall contractor. I was still in pretty good health, for which I thank God.

Clifford F. Savage, 8/26/99.

To the future generations: I don't feel I'm qualified to give expert advice to anyone, but I will say what I think about our country. Just imagine what this USA would be like now if the young men and women of the 1940s had not answered the call to defend America. We would probably be speaking a different language and wouldn't have any freedom at all, this is by far the greatest country in the world, so I say to the younger generation of America let's keep it that way, have faith in God and be ready at all times to give your life if necessary to keep America as it is today.


P.S. The freedom that we have in America today was not free.