Joe Beyrle’s Home, Muskegon, Michigan – by John H. McGarry III

In Muskegon, like most American towns and cities, young men rushed off to join the armed forces. Whether it was the Army, Navy or Marine Corps, overnight the United States created a military force of over sixteen million men and women. Joe Beyrle finished high school in June, six months after Pearl Harbor, and like his friends signed up for the Army.  In order to become an effective fighting force, it would take months of training for these young men, but by the fall of 1942 Muskegon men were fighting in faraway places like Guadalcanal and North Africa. More

Joseph Beyrle – My Father – by Ambassador John Beyrle

Joe did not consider himself a hero, or an extraordinary man, although he found himself at the epicenter of a heroic, extraordinary chapter of history of the world:  the deadliest and most destructive war ever fought.   He considered himself a patriot and a soldier, an ordinary man who had a duty to volunteer to join his country’s army – not solely to defend his homeland, but also to help Allied nations thousands of miles from American soil already fighting for their lives and freedom against a common enemy. More

My American Comrade – by Yury Zarakhovich

”This is where we’re staying, John and I.  And this is also where I was held under arrest in February 1945.”   The tall, strong man gave me a wry smile – at 55, he hadn’t lost his athletic figure, or soldier’s posture.  “All the same, staying at the Metropol was a little nicer than sitting in a German POW camp.” More

The History of Joseph R. Beryle’s Wartime Service – by Joseph Beyrle

The United States entered World War II on December 8, 1941 after Japan's attack on Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, on December 7, 1941. I was in my last year of high school in Muskegon, Michigan. I graduated on June 7, 1942 from St. Joseph High School in Muskegon and had a scholarship to attend Notre Dame University, which I did not accept. Instead, I enlisted in the United States Army and volunteered for the Parachute Infantry. More