Matthew Reid
“I am still reading The Longest Winter by Alex Kershaw, and Dad, well, he has gone to a place where war and suffering do not exist. One of my favorite memories of my father was our last sporting event together, watching our respective alma maters, URI and UNC Charlotte, play ball.
I never experienced war, but in the brief moments that my father would speak of it, I learned what I needed to know. War is horrible. Many young men on both sides die. But you have a duty to country, and sometimes you set aside your life, hopefully for only a moment, to serve a cause greater than the cost.”
– Marc Reid ’87
Matthew Reid, remembered by his son, Marc Reid
Captured after the Battle of the Bulge, Matthew Reid endured hardships as a POW helping others to escape.
Lt. Matt Reid, well, “Dad” to me, hardly spoke of the war. Like many, it was a duty, and a memory resigned to the past. But 75 years after he enlisted, I am reunited with my late father as I read the book The Longest Winter by Alex Kershaw. It details the Battle of the Bulge and the fight for survival by POWs. The book’s main character and my father shared a hearty meal at my grandparent’s home in Rhode Island days before they shipped out to separate units in France. Little did they know that in three months they would be sharing a few crumbs of bread as they fought to keep each other alive.
My father was in the 394th Infantry Regiment. Many died in the Battle of the Bulge. The few survivors were rounded up and put in small boxcars and taken deep into the frozen heart of Germany. It was late in the campaign, and the Germans could hardly feed their own troops. POWs often had only pumpernickel and hot broth for a daily meal. As an officer, Dad’s job was to organize escapes so the men could get back to the front and continue fighting. Dad recalled once that he was among a group of soldiers to escape only to be quickly recaptured. He mused that the Germans didn’t appreciate them leaving. Saying no more, I was left with my imagination as to their punishment.