Sam Krieger, of rural Rome, Iowa, scoffs at being called a war hero. “My Uncle Hes,” he says. “Now, he was a war hero.”

At the age of 77, and breathing hard with COPD, Sam digs around in his artifacts and paraphernalia. He finds a framed newspaper article, “Black Devils of World War II Honored in DC, Earn Congressional Medal of Honor.”

“That’s Francis Heston,” says Sam. “My Uncle Hes. He was in the brig because he was late in returning from leave. He was given the choice of joining the Black Devils or finishing his sentence. He joined the Devils. He didn’t know it was a suicide mission. They were trained in survival, parachuting, tanks, even airplanes and helicopters. Anything to escape. They would be dropped behind German lines, and have to find their own way out. They were called the Black Devils by the Germans because they smeared black shoe polish on their faces for camouflage. The Black Devils would leave notes on Germans’ bodies: ‘The worst is yet to come!’ If the Germans killed or captured a Black Devil, they were rewarded with a two week furlough. The Black Devils were the start of the Special Forces in the military. Senator Marco Rubio presented the Medals of Honor on March 24, 2021, fifty years after the war.”

A live turtle as big as a tub crawls across the floor and grins at Sam. “That’s Myrtle, Myrtle the Turtle. He’s 25 years old, a Desert Turtle. They can live to 150. I trap turtles on the Skunk River, although Myrtle was given to me. He’s my buddy. I feed him fruit and vegetables. I make purses out of turtle shells and give them to my grandkids.”

“My father was in World War II, also,” Sam goes on. “He was a war hero, too. I was drafted when I was 19 and went straight to the jungles of Vietnam. I was going around a curve and there was a Vietcong standing in front of me. We looked at each other and opened fire. I don’t know if I hit him or not, and he doesn’t know if he hit me either. When things calmed down, the medics had to cut the ring off my finger. A bullet had hit it. I spent three months in Topeka, Kansas with PTSD. I finally found out where my anger was coming from. It’s caused from having to make split-second decisions. Three months is a long time out of your life, but it was worth it.”

Sam shows me around his home. He has huge collections of artifacts, war mementos, odds-and-ends of everything, from bull-nose hornets’ nests, to an immaculate ’56 Harley Davidson Motor Cycle (Peoples Choice Award at a car show), an inversion table for hanging-upside-down (that he’s afraid to use), stuffed coyotes, classic cars, things he’s built, a camper-shell tree house (because he didn’t have a tree house when he was a kid). You name it, he’s got it. There are three ponds on his farm. He will often catch a mess for supper. He’s also growing 100 chestnut trees, helping to restore them.

He also collects herbs and plants: nettle, mullen, wild peppermint, hops and horseradish. The nettle helps with his urinary and respiratory tracts. Peppermint is to flavor the nettle and mullen.

But his shining feature might be his philosophy. “It’s all mind over matter. If you don’t use your mind, it doesn’t matter.”

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Have a good story? Call or text Curt Swarm in Mt. Pleasant at 319-217-0526 or email him at curtswarm@yahoo.com. Curt is available for public speaking.