World War II veteran William 'Willie' Kellerman is finally getting medals he earned during WWII.
They nearly 75 years late but one veteran finally has his medals that were never awarded him due to a oversight by the military."[It’s] like I’ve been in the shadows all my life, and someone turned a light on," Kellerman said at a special ceremony Tuesday held at Fort Hamilton in Brooklyn.
But just a few weeks later—on July 4th-- he was captured by Nazi soldiers. He escaped from his captors by ducking under a hedge. He somehow found a bike then rode it for 600 miles until he got a flat tire. That’s when he found what a bike shop in France. Now 77 years later he’s being recognized. The U.S. Army’s Chief of Staff, Gen. James McConville, presented Kellerman with the Prisoner of War Medal and the Purple Heart.
"I can’t thank you all right now for the attention I’m getting," Kellerman said after the event. "It makes up for all the years I didn’t get it."
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