A ‘Yankee’ in the ‘Texas Army

Dennis Joe Connole was an ordinary soldier. He spent four years, three months, and seventeen days in the U.S. Army during World War II. From March 1942, until December 1943, he was a member of the 26th Yankee Division on Coast Patrol duty in Maine. In early 1944, Joe Connole shipped out to the European Theater of Operations (ETO), where he joined the 36th Texas Division as a replacement: thus, a Yankee in the Texas Army. In June 1944, he received a Purple Heart for shrapnel wounds inflicted in Italy. On August 25, 1944, in France, Joe Connole became a battle-fatigue casualty. After several weeks in a hospital, he recovered and returned to his unit to finish out the war. Unbeknownst to family members, he suffered from Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) for many years after the war. This book details how men who experience the brutal horrors of combat are forever changed. Memories of traumatic experiences in battle left deep psychological scars, resulting in years of emotional pain and suffering. The healing process for many veterans was a gradual one.Through in-depth historical research of several years, Dennis A. Connole recaptures his father’s military experiences in order to understand his dad as a father and as a person, and how he became the man he was after the war.