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Forrest Johnson, AKA Fari. I used to go to breakfast. several times a week, right over here at the Red Hot Inn. And he was always there. every single day at a certain time, and he sat by himself, And he had a hat on, and it said 95th Infantry on it, and it had a You know, you see veterans wear pins and stuff on their hat, but he had a combat infantryman's badge on his pin.
And I knew he was a World War II veteran. And I observed him for Several weeks or months never talked to him, and And finally, I'm like, I gotta go talk to this guy. We spent a ton of time just. talking, drinking coffee, and Through that, he brought me to the Veterans Group. And this veterans group was very unique when I got there because I was by far the youngest guy there.
Most of them were all World War II veterans. I'm actually seeing guys here at this group. Like you would read about. Just incredible events that you would see on the history channel or or or study about these guys were actually there.
So I met guys who actually landed at Iwo Jimo. who actually parachuted in on Normandy on D-Day. There was a guy who was on the USS Indianapolis. I met guys who unlock the gates at Dachau. Like, these are the kind of guys I got to meet there.
And they talked. Among veterans, I am among friends, among peers, unvarnished. And these guys are really The greatest generation, my heroes, I really looked up to these guys. When people look at Europe, everybody thinks of D-Day.
Well, D-Day was like, that was the very, very beginning of the campaign. When D-Day happened there was About four or five or six divisions that landed on the beach. That day. The Ninety fifth is actually known for the campaign in Metz. leading up to that campaign.
That's where Foring and his unit. you know, they were decimated there really. And so they form in 1942. They trained and lived together. 24-7, 365 for approximately two years.
They're the plank owners, they're the first original organic group of guys that come together. to form this division. And once they deploy into France. And they deploy into the battlefield. Those Outfits good.
Consumed by casualties in the battle.
So he joined. In forty-two. And he deployed. To France, with Patton's Third Army and the ninety fifth Infantry, and left the battlefield on November 10th, 1944. In the assault in Ammon Villers 40, he talked about a guy was shooting at him, a sniper was shooting at him.
And he took a rifle grenade. And a rifle grenade, you put it in the end of the barrel of your rifle. And he shot and it went up in the top of a barn. Yeah. He got the guy that was shooting at him.
They continue the assault. And before he went to cross a road, like a platoon is on one side, the other guys are on the other side. And have you ever heard of a German eighty eight?
So it's designed to shoot planes out of the sky at tens of thousands of feet.
Well, the Germans actually then employed them as anti-tank and then anti-personnel. And the thing that makes this thing so incredible was the velocity of the round.
So Fore. And his guys, they're moving up the street. And Fourier at some point had to had to cross the street and there's a German eighty eight. like two miles away has the street just dialed in. And a German 88 hits Aside?
Four eight.
So it shoots down the road. And blows up and just blows into a cone.
So, had 40 been completely in that impact zone, I mean. He wouldn't have been alive. I would have never been friends with him. But he's just on the fringe of it. And it catches His side.
It blows a bunch of his gear off. His leg and hip is just destroyed, blown apart. He talked about praying at that point. And he said he knew that God had comforted him, and he knew he was going to live to see his son. How he knew that, I don't know, but that was his testimony.
A couple of his guys run across the road, snatch him up. The German eighty eight continues the fire. The German infantry is maneuvering on them in a counterattack.
So They scoop em up. They run him to the back to the basically the other side of a A building or a courtyard. Another guy grabs him, but they throw him on the hood of a Jeep, not strapped down or anything. The Jeep takes off across a potato field. Fulbore.
Well, guess what's happening to the Jeep? The Jeep is being fired upon. And as Before he's trying to hang on, he's blown apart. They go across the potato field up over the hill. The guys never see him again.
That's it. It's like what happened to Forrest Johnson.
So after Forey was wounded and evacuated off the battlefield. On 10 November 1944, from Amonvillers, France. He went into the hospital, recovery. Came home. He tried to pick up his life when he got home.
He had a son. In his son, had lived with his grandparents, which would have been Forri's mom and dad.
So as when Forri came home. He tried to connect with his son.
Well, his son didn't really see him as dad because he'd been gone after the hospital recovery and whatnot. In all the time in service he'd been gone. Uh nearly four years.
So the boy saw Grampa. As the father figure.
So that was a real struggle. Um and then just Struggling the bean. back. But one of the absolute highlights of his life Which he talked about often, like this was like one of his best memories of his life, was the 95th Infantry Division Reunion. nineteen fifty.
So this would have been five years after the war. They had it in Chicago, and somehow Fore found out about it, So they haven't talked since 10 november nineteen forty four. Right, here comes the reunion in 1950. Forehe shows up. In the afternoon, maybe a day late.
I don't know. But he walks into the hotel in Chicago and he sees a whole bunch of his friends. And what a story we're hearing, folks. And when we come back. We're gonna find out what happens.
We're in the 50th reunion celebration with the 95th Infantry.
Well, when all those guys Meet the guy they hadn't seen since November 10th, 1944. The story of Fari Johnson continues here. on our American story. Folks, if you love the great American stories we tell and love America like we do, We're asking you to become a part of the Our American Stories family. If you agree that America is a good and great country, please.
Make a donation. A monthly gift of $17.76 is fast becoming a favorite option for supporters. Go to ouramericanstories.com now and go to the donate button and help us keep the great American stories coming. That's our American Stories. Dot com.
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We've done your homework. And we return to Our American Stories and Jason Porter, telling us the story of his friend and hero, World War II veteran Fari Johnson. Jason picks up the story in 1950 as Fari walks into a reunion full of his old buddies, men who thought that Fari was killed in action. Fighting Nazis. back in 1944.
Foray walks up behind him. and says What kind of clown outfit is you guys around here? You give some disparaging remarks, and those guys turn around like they are just gonna. Belt somebody. and they turned around to see Forey Johnson.
the guy that they'd seen get blown up. Yeah. He described how they just hugged him, and just it was just an incredible, incredible reunion.
So they were there four days, and they went on a bender. talked about you know things that happened on the battlefield after four a was here. Who survived? Who didn't survive?
So One of the things that they did is they had a gigantic Nazi flag. If you've seen the giant red flag with a big s White Background with a swastika in the middle of it. They had a huge one of them that they pulled off of Gestapo headquarters in Ham, Germany.
Somebody brought this flag out, and over the course of the reunion that was held at this hotel. all the surviving members of his company Signed. that flag.
So when I met Forry, sixty years later, as members of his company, began to dwindle. over the time, that flag, each guy would have it for a while, and they'd maybe get a give a talk at a VFW post, a elementary school, stuff like that.
So when I met Forey, he had the flag. It was his turn to have the flag. And every now and then he'd bust it out and we'd We'd look at it. We'd look at the names on it. One time we try to call a couple of the guys on the On the flag, you know, this is kind of pre.
Facebook and stuff like it was a little harder to find guys, so Every year. Forehe would invite me to go to the division reunion.
Well, then the division reunion I got to, there was just nobody there. 2012 I talked to Forey. I said Forey. That flag really needs to be in the museum. He's like, well, it's not my flag.
I can't give it away.
Okay.
Well, I'm not pushing them or anything, but I'm like, I don't really wanted to see it stuffed under a bed or something, like When you're gone, it should go somewhere as it means something.
So he agreed to bring it to the National World War II Museum in New Orleans. And At this time there was three guys from his company that were still alive. I set up a meeting with the curator at the museum. I'm like, hey, these veterans are coming in, they have this flag. I told him the background of the flag.
You know, they want to pass it off to you.
So I pack up for A. Johnson. Bring him on flight. He's in a wheelchair. I'm pushing him all through security.
You know, it it's quite a chore to get him down there. Once we get down there, Hal Smith and his wife they roll in, I think, on a motorhome. And the other guy, who I can't remember, he comes in And they're just hanging out and talking and they have the flag. Yeah. The next day at noon or one o'clock, we're going to turn the flag over to the museum, right?
So I sit back. And I just basically serve these guys, bring them sandwiches, bring them drinks, and they're just they're talking about the war, their life. You know, they're old men, but they're talking like they're twenty two. And they are Although 65 some years had passed. They are still brothers.
They're bonded by their time and service and what they did together.
So The time is approaching. I'm like, all right, guys. You know, hey, it's 11 o'clock. At one o'clock, we got to be at the museum. Right guys?
They're like, oh yeah, yeah, good, good. Get us another beer. I'm like, all right. And It gets down to one hour. And I'm like, all right, guys, in a in an hour, you know, we we need to start packing up and and go.
And the museum's ready to to receive us. And and I'm like, all right, guys, half hour, you know, let's let's wrap it up. And uh, I don't remember which one. I want to say it was for. He turned around, he's like.
Tell them we're not coming. We'll decide next year. The guys didn't want to break up the meeting. They didn't want to give up the flag. Because that gave him a reason.
to see each other again. Because if they gave up the flag They didn't have an excuse to meet up. the next year. There was no next year. Because by that time next year they were all gone.
and Forey was the last man to have the flag. and he was the last one from that unit. I don't know what happened to the flag now. He wanted something meaningful to happen with it, so maybe it is in the museum. I don't know.
I was sitting right next to him. The last time that I spoke with him, he kept it in a briefcase right next to his chair. And I visited with um seven or eight days before he before he died and it was sitting there. Fordy Johnson lived Several blocks from church where my wife and I attended church. And I would go down the road and visit for him, have coffee, have breakfast.
And One day I walked up to his house, the screen door was open, He had his breakfast in front of him and He was in the middle of praying and he was praying out loud.
So I just kind of paused. I didn't want to barge in on him or interrupt him. And I couldn't help but overhearing him a little bit. And it was It was amazing to hear him, just simple prayers of an elderly man. Talking to God.
And he thanked God. For saving his life. In World War Two? His little boy that was four or five years old and came back he later died when he was very, very young. And he talked about wanting to see his son.
He talked about his surviving children and wanting them to know God and know Christ. And the line I always remember easily. Help me do good stuff. and not bad stuff. Amen.
And I paused for a minute and I walked. He says, Hey, Jason, how are you doing? Get the coffee, this and that.
So after the New Orleans handing off the flag incident, where we didn't actually hand off the flag. I believe it was the following summer. I get a random phone call. It's a voicemail from Forey. It said hey Why don't you and Valerie come over?
Bring the kids. Bring your swim trunks. We're gonna have a party and uh It's on Tuesday afternoon at Four. You know, who has a party at four in the afternoon on a Tuesday?
Well, Foury did. And. He's like, I want to see you guys. I'm getting down to the end, you know. and uh wanna see ya and then he just abruptly hung up the phone.
And I wrote he lived he lived at a T intersection. I rolled up there. On Tuesday afternoon if Or And I'm not kidding you. There was Cars lining the street. Both sides of the street.
all three directions for two blocks. at this guy's house, ninety some year old man. It was his kids, his grandkids, his great-grandkids, all of his friends that he worked with at GM, all of his guys that were still alive from. The the veterans group. It was absolutely packed.
You almost needed traffic control there. I couldn't believe it, and I was I was so happy. And he was very happy. And one of the things he said, he was we were sitting around. Talking, he's like, Hey, why does everybody Wait for the funeral to do this.
And I think he kinda knew. That was in August and then he died January first. It was just so, so wonderful to see. all those people turn out for him. It was just a real privilege to know to know him.
It's like don't Him and all of his peer group were my heroes. And getting to spend that time was valuable because You know, when I met all those guys in the early 2000s, you know, 10 years later, they're not around. We don't get to hear their voices anymore. We get to read it off a page. You know, he certainly wasn't a perfect guy or anything, but he was very, very genuine.
And uh He was my best friend. You know, although we were fifty some years separated. He was my best friend for a long time. And um I miss him. And you've been listening to Jason Porter.
talking about his friend Foray Johnson. and Jason made an important decision. that one day when he decided not to just say hello and move on, to that old guy sitting there with the hat. That indicated he fought in World War II. He got to know him.
We should all do that, by the way, with.
soldiers and just strangers. Because that person would end up being your best friend and you can end up learning a whole lot about life from them. And I keep thinking about those simple prayers of an elderly man. God help me do good stuff. And not bad stuff.
And a special thanks to Sharla Coroza who Is a Hillsdale graduate and does special work for us, bringing us stories like these, just beautiful stories. Forey Johnson's story, in a way Jason Porter's too. Here. on our American stories. Time for a sofa upgrade?
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Welcome to the W, where elite athletes are redefining the game of basketball. From buzzer beating shots, jaw-dropping defense, and logo threes, the WNBA delivers non-stop action and world-class talent every game. These athletes don't just play the game, they elevate it. The biggest stars, the brightest age. ATT WNBA All-Star 2025 comes to Indianapolis July 18th through 19th.
Tune into the game July 19th at 8:30 p.m. Eastern Time on ABC. At homes.com. We do whatever it takes to get you the in-depth info on local schools you won't find anywhere else. Things like student-teacher ratio, test scores, and school programs.
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