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Patton's men returning to place they've tried
to forget
By Bill Whitaker
At long last, veterans of the Army's 34th Evacuation Hospital,
which followed General Patton through war-torn Europe more than
50 years ago, have found somebody to host them back in Abilene.
While aging veterans from the 34th have mounted reunions each
and every year for 17 years now, they have never gathered before
in Abilene -- something of an irony, considering most were trained
at Camp Barkeley, the massive World War II facility just southwest
of Abilene.
Alas, no veterans in this war-weary hospital unit lived in
Abilene to formally host such a reunion.
Enter into the picture Kelly Gibson and his faithful wife Sammie,
who live in Abilene. For reasons that might seem strange to anyone
else but are perfectly normal to them, the Gibsons have attended
several 34th Evacuation Hospital reunions, even though neither
was ever associated with the 34th.
Turns out Sammie's brother-in-law, 80-year-old Philip Fox of
Dallas, was in the 34th.
"Over the years, we've gotten into the habit of going
to wherever they're having their reunion," Sammie told me
on the eve of the 34th's reunion here in Abilene. "We've
been to Minneapolis, Minn., Kansas City, Oakland, Calif., and
so on.
"We usually rent a car and travel the area and see everything,"
she said. "I think everyone in the 34th just feels like we're
part of the unit."
Which is why veterans from the 34th readily agreed when Sammie
proposed the reunion be held in Abilene this year.
At least, most of them did.
DUST AND DILLOS
"I've been working on this a full year," Sammie said.
"I began working on it last October, after returning from
the last one. I think they're just so excited about coming back.
They haven't seen it since their days at Camp Barkeley. I thought
they were going to eat me up when I said I'd set it up here!"
Phil Fox says his sister-in-law's offer to plan the reunion
in Abilene was, indeed, snapped up during last year's reunion
in Minneapolis, though, to be honest, a few of the veterans admitted
they once hoped never to see Abilene again.
"We got some who thought Abilene was no fun, but that's
understandable," Phil said. "When you're doing basic
training and have to do 20-mile hikes and all that, it ain't no
fun. Bring up Abilene and they'd say, 'Don't ever want to see
Abilene again! Don't even want to talk about it!' "
Some of this has possibly dwindled with the great passage of
time. Likely, Abilene didn't seem so bad during the final phase
of World War II, either, when the 34th Evacuation Hospital followed
General George S. Patton -- nicknamed "Old Blood and Guts"
-- and his famous, Nazi-bashing 3rd Army.
Phil, who specialized in eye, ear, nose and throat matters
in the hospital unit (and who brags in all sincerity he "put
more glasses on more soldiers than anyone else in the European
Theater of Operations"), says General Patton himself was
pretty tough to forget.
"He was a very hard-nosed soldier," Phil said. "He
was a man who believed in the art of command. I mean, he was a
superb commander.
"It was hard on the troops, but it was great when you
won the war."
LAYING BATTLE PLANS
Grim memories of World War II aside, Elmer Rensi, 76, president
of the 34th reunion group, jokingly says he didn't imagine he'd
ever want to see Abilene again. He remembers "all the dust
and tumbleweeds and armadillos and, of course, all that heat."
I'm told Herb Gold of Dallas, another 34th veteran, also hated
Abilene back in the 1940s.
Asked why Herb was even bothering to come to this year's reunion,
Elmer said: "Because he at least doesn't have to drive very
far!"
For her part, Sammie Gibson intends to alter any anti-Abilene
sentiments on the part of graying veterans of the 34th. She's
mapped out various activities for the reunion -- everything from
touring Dyess AFB to dining on Joe Allen's barbecue Saturday night.
A curious trip to Nolan County is also planned.
The trip is to view an oil well overseen by Sammie's daughter
and son-in-law, Lunette and Bob Jones of Win-Tex Drilling. However,
only the men are going to see the oil well. "I've got it
all figured," Sammie confided. "We're going to go out
and spend all their money shopping while the men are looking at
that well!"
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Copyright ©1996 or
1997, Abilene Reporter-News / Texnews / E.W. Scripps. Publications
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