Video

Video by Justin Connaher

The Machine Gun Kid: A WWII veteran reflects on the siege of Bastogne

Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson

Nov. 6, 2013 | 4:22

Vincent Speranza, 88, from Auburn Ill., a World War II veteran of H Company,
501st Parachute Infantry Regiment, then part of the 101st Airborne Division, reads a poem he wrote about his experiences as a machine gunner during the Battle of the Bulge.
Speranza visited Soldiers of the 1st Battalion (Airborne) 501st Infantry Regiment, now part of the 4th Infantry Brigade Combat Team (Airborne), 25th Infantry Division, U.S. Army Alaska, at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, Alaska, Nov. 6, 2013. Speranza fought at the siege of Bastogne, Belgium, was wounded in combat shortly after the Battle of the Bulge, and when the 101st Airborne inactivated after the war was transferred to the 82nd Airborne for a brief period. Available in High Definition.