KELLY FARRELL / Staff

Bedford Biles, now 87, holds a display of several decorations and citations, the last remaining objects that he saved from his service in the U.S. Army during WWII. Biles was in the 101st Airborne, 501st Parchute Regiment. He was awarded three Purple Hearts, an EAMET Campaign Medal with four bronze service stars with one bronze service arrow head, the American Defense Service Medal, Good Conduct Medal, Bronze Star Medal, the French Legion of Honor Medal and others.

Submitted photo

The young Bedford Biles, pictured here at age 19, was at Duke University on a football scholarship. Biles later joined the Army during WWII before graduating from the University of Akron Law in 1958. Biles will be delivering the commencement address May 18 for the 50th anniversary of his graduation and the school's merge with the University.

STORY TOOLS

• E-mail story
• Comments
• iPod friendly
• Printer friendly

More Local News

• Alternative revenue sources may be answer to Marco's property tax shortfall
• Vacation for procreation returns to Marco Island
• Marco's Code Board gives stiff fines for repeat offenders

Share and Enjoy [?]

Sure a lot has changed in the 50 years since Marco Island resident Bedford Biles, 87, was last in college, but Biles plans to share how some things always remain the same. Biles will deliver the commencement address to the newest round of graduates at the University of Akron School of Law in Ohio May 18.

According to Bedford, at least two things stay the same: the importance of freedom and the rule of law which creates the basis for that freedom.

Biles plans to share this perspective, some of his experiences in the U.S. Army during WWII and his years of experience practicing law with about 150 law school graduates.

“Mr. Biles’ service to his country, both as a World War II veteran and as a lawyer, exemplifies the very best of our graduates,” said Dean Martin Belsky.

Biles began college at Duke University on a football scholarship. His team played in and lost the Rose Bowl in 1942. It was the only Rose Bowl in history not played in Pasadena due to fears the Japanese would bomb the area. Only six months earlier, Japan made a sneak attack on the Pacific fleet at Pearl Harbor.

Biles completed that sophomore year of college and signed up for the U.S. Army becoming part of the 101st Airborne Division, 501st Parachute Regiment. He jumped behind enemy lines on June 6, 1944 in Normandy France. The day would become known as D-Day.

“I’d never even been out of the state of North Carolina,” Biles said of the weeks just proceeding his decision to join the Army.

Biles said in some sense, the U.S. was a different country at that time.

“It was the greatest time to live that I’ve ever seen. People helped each other and wanted to help each other. They did everything for each other ... When there was food rationing, nobody screamed ... The feeling throughout the country, I’d like to see us get in that position again,” he said.

The feeling in Normandy, France 64 years ago was a bit different Biles said. Normandy was in need of their freedom. As Biles prepared to jump from a plane, Germans were firing at them as they flew toward a foggy French coastline in the middle of the night.

“Sure I was thinking about what I was going to find down there as I jumped, but mostly I just knew I wanted out of the plane,” Biles recalled.

Unlike thousands of U.S. Army pilots and parachuters, Biles had a successful landing through the fog that day. However, he soon discovered it wouldn’t remain much safer on the ground.

Biles was hit by a shell on the side of the head, an injury that led to the first of three Purple Hearts earned after fighting four battles: Normandy, Rhineland, Ardennes and Central Europe. D-Day, the Battle of the Bulge and the Bridge Too Far were the famous names for three of these battles.

“I dug the shrapnel out, cleaned it with sulfur and shot the (morphine) they gave us, in our packs for pain,” Biles said.

After 30 days of combat in France, 12,658 men out of the 18,000 paratroopers dropped on that day were killed, lost or severely wounded.

Biles has since returned to Normandy, after receiving the French Legion of Honor Award in Naples.

“I wouldn’t talk about the war until a couple years ago. Then I realized young people in this country don’t understand freedom. The only way for them to know about it is for us to tell them about it,” Biles said.

Biles says that the appreciation in Normandy is similar to the way it was just after the war. The French hugged, kissed and thanked Biles for helping give back the freedom taken from them by Hitler and the Germans for over four years in the 1940s.

“ ... It’s not that the French don’t like Americans. They don’t like Bush. They are very appreciative of Americans and we have a lot to be appreciative for with them. Without the French we would not have the freedom from England we have today,” said Fay Biles, Bedford’s wife of nearly 60 years.

Bedford said that “every good war was fought over freedom. The Revolutionary War was for freedom from England, freedom of religion, freedom of speech, freedom of the press, the Bill of Rights,” he explained, adding that these rights, these rules of law, are the foundation for freedom.

He plans to share with the newly graduated class an example of why the Rules of Law are so important.

“I plan to talk to them about the case of the Duke University Lacrosse players accused of rape. The University acted as judge and jury firing the coach, suspending three student athletes and cancelling the Lacrosse season. The boys were then left proving they were innocent,” he said.

The rule of law was ignored by the prosecutor who was later disbarred for unethical conduct in the case and the students were found to be innocent.

“The rule of law, it’s a simple thing, but it’s important to understand. These graduates will soon be taking the bar exam. They will need to prepare, understand the rule of law to protect our Bill of Rights and our Constitution, to protect our freedom ... It’s patriotism. You have to have patriotism, something to hold on to,” Biles said.