Joe Hornaday
Gilbert Fortner, 88, was honored in Nashville, Tenn. on July 12, at the annual reunion of the 236th Engineers, who served during World War II.
SGM Charles Szostecki, with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Nashville District, presented a Freedom Team Salute letter of commendation, a certificate of appreciation and a US. Army lapel pen for the years of service to the country in World War II.
Fortner’s daughter and her family, Nancy, Gary, Will and Josh Hermesch and Fortner’s son and his wife, Steve and Wanda Fortner were in attendance at the reunion.
“I had a good time,” Fortner explained. “But there aren’t many World War II veterans left. There were a lot of young people there, though. We had a good time with them.”
What began in 1956 as an Army reunion for Veterans of the 236th Engineers has evolved into an annual reunion for the veterans, their families and friends. The 236th Engineers served overseas in China, Burma and India. The group drove and hauled soldiers, material and gravel and built the Ledo Road across the Himalayan Mountains through Japanese-infested jungles. These guys fought side by side with Chinese troops to halt the Japanese invasion of mainland Asia.
The 236th Engineer Combat Battalion was born during World War II, an offspring of the 44th Engineer Combat Regiment in Camp McCoy, Wis.. They experienced Tennessee maneuvers in 1943, returned to Wisconsin and for a short period were supposed to be the Engineer Battalion for the 2nd Division. Instead, the War Department sent them to the China-Burma-Indiana Theatre and while there, they started work on the Ledo Road.
In May, 1944, General Stillwell sent them into combat at Myitkyina, Burma. After combat, they returned to work on the Ledo Road and remained in that capacity until returning to the U.S.A. and deactivation.
The 236th Association was born in Memphis in 1956. A few 236th Veterans organized a picnic at Memphis City Park and elected to hold an annual reunion every second Sunday in July.
In 1957, the Association moved their gathering to Shelby Park in Nashville, a more central location. An annual family outing, including pot-luck picnic lunches, was held for the next 38 years at the location.
In 1996 and 1997, the event was held at Davidson Academy in Nashville. From 1998 to 2000, they held their meeting at the Nashville Memorial Hospital Banquet Hall and enjoyed a comfortable facility with catered lunches and air conditioning.
From 2001 to today, the reunion is held at the Skyline Medical Center, which is Nashville’s newest hospital facility.
The Veterans are now in their eighties and nineties, and the number in attendance dwindles each year. But for those who make the trip, it is an event they wouldn’t miss. Friendships are renewed and stories are swapped, while hugs and encouragement are passed around in abundance. Wives have swapped recipes, children have played and grown up together and now grandchildren and great-grandchildren have joined the festivities. It’s now a family event.
Several families make reservations at the same hotel each year and make a three day event of the occasion. The men who spent one of the most significant periods of history together completely dependent on each other now sit around the hotel and exchange their war stories, reminisce about Army life and rekindle deep friendships and remember lost comrades. At the same time, families swim, shop, eat and attend Nashville happenings together.
For more than 50 years, the guys have made great effort to attend the annual reunion. Though there are only four of the guys who can still make it out, the event was worthwhile for the veterans that could make it.
“I only ever missed one year,” Fortner said with a smile.
