The Big Red One

The Big Red One
The Big Red One

Our step-father, John Kovak was a sergeant in the US Army when World War II broke out. John was sent to the European theater and was in every major invasion there serving with the First Division.

Our step-father, John Kovak was a sergeant in the US Army when World War II broke out. John was sent to the European theater and was in every major invasion there serving with the First Division. He served with distinction at the invasion of Normandy and was awarded a Bronze Star and Purple Heart for his bravery.
On Christmas Eve, during the invasion of Italy, John was marching north in a miserable driving rain. Wet, cold and tired he passed a column of soldiers marching south when something struck hm as familiar. He stopped to look over his shoulder at the soldiers that had just passed, to see a young soldier looking back at him. He realized he was looking into the face of his brother! They managed to spend some minutes together...a blessed and unexpected Christmas gift. All active news articles