Due to the pandemic, I have spent much of my time either watching TV or catching up on reading. One book I read, When Duty Calls: A Tribute to Niagara’s Veterans of the Armed Forces, was written by Michelle Kratts. I had the privilege of meeting the author, and I told her of my uncle, Pvt. Joseph Risio, who was killed in France during WWII. I felt honored that she included him in the book.

While flipping through the pages, I also came across 1st Lt. Samuel Cale, whose parents lived on the same street as my parents. Lt. Cale was a bombardier on a B-24 and was shot down in Germany. He parachuted out and landed in a farmland; he was captured and sent to a P.O.W. camp in Barth, Germany. During his imprisonment, he was unable to communicate with his family, leaving them to wonder whether he was alive or dead.