Francis Lyne is one of those rare humans who have fought in three wars. He defended the United States in WW II, Korea and Vietnam. And,in doing so, was wounded 5 times and received 5 Purple Hearts. He was a “career NCO” who gave all he could for us. Francis volunteered for service in April 1944 and went to Ft. Leavenworth, KS for induction. He then went to Ft. Blanding, FL; was trained in communications; and then went to Ft. Meade, MD., and sent to Europe on the Queen Elizabeth (converted to troop ship with 21,000 troops). They suffered torpedo damage. They received 8 hours of sleep in tiered, fold-down cots. They went to Glasgow and into a tent city after which they were sent in “box cars” to Le Havre, France. Assigned to the “Timber Timberwolves,” they did most of their fighting at night. He encountered the Germans at Aachen, the last battle for the Roer River. That became the flank force for the Battle of the Bulge. In an attempt to take one hill, he was pinned down and he was lying back with a friend. An artillery shot hit a tree and exploded, injuring his friend. Francis was in many more battles in WWII and during those he received:4 Purple Hearts, Bronze Star, Presidential Unit Citation, European Theater Medal w/ 3 Clusters. He was then sent to Korea and later to Vietnam where he was wounded again by shrapnel in his foot from a rocket, making that the 5th Purple Heart.