WWII prisoners of war reunion held in Texas

Jake Underwood and daughter, Susan Karleskint of Kansas City, attended the reunion of WWII POWs in Austin, Texas, the weekend of June 5-8. The event was hosted by Jake's former lieutenant at the Battle of the Bulge, E. L. Creel. He was assisted by his four daughters. In attendance were approximately 25 former POWs, spouses and their families.

After a tour in the state capital building, the POWs were honored by Representative Dan Flynn. Congressman Flynn had presented a proclamation to the Texas House asking that these POWs be honored for their service and bravery during WWII. Each man received a printed copy of that proclamation. In addition, several of the men were interviewed by local TV stations and appeared on the evening news.

Friday evening, the featured speaker was the director of the museum at Camp Mabray, the home of the Texas National Guard. He was also a historian relative to the Battle of the Bulge and gave a very nice presentation about the POWs efforts during that battle. The next morning, the group toured the museum at Camp Mabray. It contained many artifacts from WWII that these men recognized having used as they fought the war.