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Fred Scheer

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Fred Scheer was a go-getter in high school, running his own dairy operation. He volunteered for the Army in 1943 and, after infantry training, made the Atlantic crossing. The forces were amassing for the upcoming invasion. (5:18)

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When Fred Scheer arrived in England, his infantry unit was sent to Northern Ireland for nine months. There was training, but there was also food from local farmers and one particular pretty girl. (4:46)

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The fighting had moved inland to Saint-Lo when Fred Scheer went down the cargo net to a landing craft. While waiting to go to the front, some of the men amused themselves by looking for French brandy. Finally, the day came and the unit was put on the line. (4:23)

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His unit had just got to the front when Fred Scheer's squad was sent back on ammo detail. When they returned, everyone was gone, and as they searched through the hedgerows, they began to take German mortar fire. Then they heard, "Hands up, my boys!" (8:07)

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Fred Scheer had a big problem. He was captured by the Germans as soon as he arrived at the front and he was Jewish. He was determined to conceal this as he was moved deeper behind their lines. Both he and his captors were very young, and some of them were almost friendly. At Reims, he was put on a train headed to Germany. (7:12)

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The prisoners were loaded into boxcars and sent from Reims into Germany. Fred Scheer recalls the two transit camps through which he passed, each divided with a Russian side to the camp. The Russians were treated very badly and Scheer knew that if they discovered he was Jewish, an even worse fate awaited him. (7:10)

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The POW camp where Fred Scheer ended up was near the Czech border. He was part of a group sent to work on the railroad and the camp was attached to a large rail yard. (5:13)

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The guards at the POW camp were mostly old men, too old for the front. Fred Scheer details the daily life and struggles at the small camp where he was interred. Food was a big concern. Red Cross parcels were a Godsend, but you could also utilize some outside sources, if you were willing to take the risk. (9:46)

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There were two things uppermost in the mind of any POW, the supply of food and the freezing cold of winter. Fred Scheer remembers how the food supplied at the camp dwindled away to almost nothing as the war wore on. (3:19)

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Fred Scheer, who was a POW in Germany, collected and published the stories of other POW's and this is one from Lester Schrenk, who was held in a Luftwaffe camp. One day, the men were given two Red Cross parcels each. This was unheard of, but there was a catch. (2:34)