Richard Yates, 83, couldn't believe the warmth of the French people after he and several of his fellow comrades returned there two months ago — 65 years after World War II.

"They pulled out all the stops. They closed all the schools and had the kids on the routes holding American flags," said the Eldersburg resident and WWII army veteran. "It really made you feel good that these people remembered that so many years ago."

Yates, a former Carroll County commissioner who served from 1994 to 1998, flew to France in September with his wife, Mary, to participate in ceremonies honoring American efforts to liberate France.

The ceremony was part of a larger commemoration of the exploits of the 79th Infantry Division, of which Yates was a member.

Americans landed on the beaches of France on June 6, 1944 — D-Day. Yates' division landed on Utah Beach, June 12-14. During fierce battles, the forces inched into German-held French territories and reached Luneville by September.

Yates said that people throughout France gave members of the 79th Infantry a grand welcome, recognizing the first Allied crossing of the River Seine.

As with so many young men, Yates was drafted during World War II — but he said it was what he wanted at the time. Now, looking back, he wonders why, as a Baltimore teenager, he wanted to join up so badly.

"I was a dumb 18-year-old kid who should have stayed in school," he said.

"All my friends were gone (to serve). I told my mom that I don't really want to go, but I'm lonely because my friends are all gone," he said. "I did everything I could to make myself look good for the draft board."

Yates said he could have received an exemption, but left — and didn't finish high school.

"Who knows what's at the other end of the road?" he said.

Yates and his unit landed a little more than a week after the initial D-Day invasion, taking the position of the 90th Infantry, and had a critical victory in France.

On June 26, 1944, the division took the town of Fort du Roule, then captured Cherbourg — and about 6,000 German soldiers.

Yates said he wonders if people still realize how bad the French people were treated during that time.

"They were slaves," he said. "They had to do whatever the Germans wanted them to do. People should realize how important this was, to us and this country."

Yates also fought at La Haye-du-Puits near Normandy. His division cleared out the area to gain control after several American forces launched attacks in that community in early July 1944.

The town of Epone gave Yates and other veterans a medal recognizing their efforts and another medal recognizing their efforts at Utah Beach.

During the recent visit, Yates saw the marker commemorating the efforts of the 79th Division.

A battle memorial at Luneville also recognizes the 79th's efforts, as well as those made by the 749th Tank Destroyer Battalion while crossing the River Meurthe in September 1944.

The September ceremonies at Luneville focused on those battles that happened months after the initial invasion.

Yates himself didn't make it to Luneville during the war.

"I was not part of that, because I'd been hit back at La Haye-du-Puits and almost lost my left leg," said Yates, who was awarded a Purple Heart.

The injury was the end of the war for Yates. His tibia had to be removed and his leg was held together with pins, he said.

But he recalls the importance of Luneville, and also recalls the men who went on to that battle.

"We had to try and take that town because it was a big supply depot for the Germans, where they got most of their ammunition," he said. "I guess the thinking was if we would get that depot in our hands, it would shorten the war — if not win it.

"I was both relieved and also sorry that I wasn't with the fellas I trained with and fought side-by-side with," he said.

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