More than 75 years after he fought in World War II, Raymond Chambers still has nightmares.
"It never goes away," said Chambers, 98. "I saw civilians killed. You can see the ground, the trees, the foxholes - and their faces.
"You can see their faces," he said, "and it's like seeing your child's face."
Chambers said he grew up not far from where the Tennessee Aquarium now stands. He said he was a "river rat" as a kid, constantly in or near the water.
He said that experience stood him in good stead when, in 1943, he and his mates in the U.S. Army's 3rd Infantry Division were dispatched to Europe.
Staff Photo by Matt Hamilton / Barbara Painter kisses World War II veteran Raymond Chambers at his home in Collegedale on Friday, Oct. 15, 2021."We did a lot of fighting on the Rhine," he said. "Me being a river rat, walking all the time and swimming in the Tennessee, I was always in good shape. We'd have to make 20-mile walks through the woods, and I'd carry other boys' rifles for them."
According to Barbara Painter, Chambers' companion for the past decade, he saw heavy combat at Anzio, Italy, and in the Battle of the Bulge. After recovering from wounds sustained at Strasbourg, France, she said, he returned to duty with shrapnel still in his body.
Asked why he'd rejoin the fight when he likely could have gone home, Chambers didn't blink.
"I had buddies there," he said. "One, especially. Cruz. He was like a brother to me."
Chambers said his friend struggled with his English and was mocked by some of the guys in the unit. Chambers, who'd been a Golden Gloves boxing champion in Chattanooga, said he put up his hands in his buddy's defense - but only had to do it once.
"I just didn't like the way they picked on him," Chambers said.
But the day came when Chambers couldn't defend Cruz. Their unit had been fighting house to house in Cherbourg, France, Chambers said, and was holed up in what had once been a restaurant. German troops were near, he said.
BIO
Name: Raymond ChambersAge: 98Branch of military: U.S. ArmyYears of service: 1941-1945
Staff Photo by Matt Hamilton / World War II veteran Raymond Chambers is pictured at his home in Collegedale on Friday, Oct. 15, 2021.Chambers said the lieutenant sent Cruz, a husband and father of twin girls, outside.
"He didn't make it to the end of the porch," Chambers recalled. "The lieutenant sent a second guy out, and he got killed right away, too.
"Then he called my name," Chambers said, "and I told him to go to hell."
Painter said Chambers was awarded a Purple Heart, Silver Star, Bronze Star, Combat Badge and Good Conduct Medal, but never actually received any of those. Chambers said that's because he was in too big a hurry to get home to Chattanooga from Daytona Beach, Florida.
"We were getting on the bus to go north," he said. "There was a sergeant there who told me that if I didn't sign some papers right then, I'd never get my medals. The motor was running, and all I wanted to do was get on that bus and go home.
"That was the worst mistake I ever made," he said, "but now I'd give those medals to the boys buried over there. I always felt God was close to me, and God brought me home."
Contact Bob Gary at news@timesfreepress.com.
Veteran Salute will be published daily through Veterans Day on Nov. 11. Read about more Chattanooga-area veterans at timesfreepress.com/veterans/2021.