Groton American Legion’s oldest living member

On Oct. 1 of this year, World War II veteran Phillip (Phil) English will celebrate his 97th birthday. And while he emphatically let me know that he “is not a hero, just a GI,” he is most definitely the oldest living member of the Groton American Legion Carrington-Fuller Post No. 800 (referred to by the locals as “the Legion”) on Main Street.

Having joined the Legion in 1944, English could also boast that he has the most longevity as a member, as well as being the oldest, but he wouldn’t. Despite all that English has accomplished in his life, he is a very humble man.

English was born at his home on Dog Hill in 1924, and his parents, Deforest and Anna English, were delighted to welcome him into their family. Sadly, their firstborn child, daughter Barbara, had succumbed to leukemia at age 5 before Phil came along, but Phil did have a younger brother, Stanley, who passed away two years ago.

Phil and Stanley both attended Groton Central School, but Phil was drafted into the United States Army at age 18 before he had a chance to earn his high school diploma.

“There were 13 or 14 of us from Groton all drafted at the same time,” Phil said. “And we all ended up together in the same unit, the 3rd Cavalry Recon.”

They all headed to Camp Gordon in Georgia for basic training. Because Phil knew how to drive, right after basic, he was assigned to drive the 10-wheeler trucks that transported supplies to military bases in Alabama and the Carolinas.

“I made corporal in three or four months,” Phil said. “And I really loved driving those trucks. I never shot at anyone or killed anyone, but I sure got shot at plenty.”

The times Phil had reason to be shot at were those he spent in France and Germany when his unit was sent there when WWII began. He was still driving the supply trucks, but this time, he was delivering to his comrades who went ahead of the infantrymen to do reconnaissance.

“We missed D-Day by 15 or 20 days,” Phil said. “But when we got to Normandy, the ocean looked like a junkyard — filled with destroyed ships and debris.”

Phil spoke about one of the many supply runs he made with another soldier. He said they were riding along when a series of explosions happened right in front of them. He didn’t remember who the other soldier was, but he said he jumped out of the truck while it was still moving.

“I waited until I stopped the thing before I got out,” Phil said. “But they shot the truck up pretty bad. We had to leave the other guy there until we came back for him the next day. He was pretty banged up, but he survived and ended up with a Purple Heart.”

Among Phil’s best-remembered experiences was seeing General George Patton in the Battle of the Bulge. Phil explained that he’d stopped his truck because he saw Patton coming in a jeep to lead his unit through a swamp when Phil’s captain came around in his truck and promptly got stuck in the swamp.

“I’ll never forget what Patton said,” Phil said with a twinkle in his eye. “He said, ‘If that thing isn’t out of there when my tanks come through, we’ll run right over it,’ and everyone knew if Patton said it, he meant it. They got it out real fast.”

Phil shared quite a few stories, and I wish I had room to tell them all. When he returned from Europe, he was sent to Texas to train for invading Japan, but that war ended before he had to go. He was invited to join the Army Reserves but declined.

Phil met his wife Erma at the roller rink in Cortland. They were married in 1947 and raised three children: Joanne, Arthur and David. David passed away at age 45.

Like his father before him, Phil worked as a machinist at Smith-Corona in Groton for almost 40 years.

Erma passed away 15 years ago after battling Alzheimer’s disease for eight years. Phil has two grandchildren and five great-grandchildren, of whom he is quite proud.

After living on Spring Street for most of his life, Phil moved to Center Village Court about five years ago but says he doesn’t know many of the other tenants because he spends most of his time with his friends at the Legion. He still drives a five-speed manual transmission vehicle and uses it often.

Phil bowled on a league at the Corona Club for years and gave that up just three years ago, but he still golfs weekly and at local tournaments with his best friend, Chuck Peacock, former Marine and Army soldier. Phil met Peacock at the Legion 17 years ago, and they have been the best of friends since.

Thank you for your service, Phil. Now that we’ve met, I hope I am invited to your birthday party!

Groton on the Inside appears weekly. Submit news ideas to Linda Competillo, lmc10@cornell.edu or 607-227-4922. 

In brief: 

Free summer meals 

The Summer Feed Program started July 6 and runs through Aug. 13. It provides free summer meals to any child under 18. Stop by the Groton Elementary School cafeteria from 8 to 9 a.m. Monday through Friday for breakfast and 11 to 12 p.m. for lunch.

Alternatively, the C.R. Pavilion on Main Street will have breakfast and lunch available for pick-up between 9 and 10:30 a.m. Monday through Friday. No applications are needed. Stop by and fuel up for a fun summer! If you have questions, please contact Food Service Director Kelley Neville at (607) 898-4516.

Accolades in French 

Seven French students at Groton Jr./Sr. High School who chose to go above and beyond the classroom to participate in the National French Contest brought home some awards — French 8: Willow Orr and Emily Trejo; French 2: Drew Bush and Jadyn Craig.

Drew received the status of Honorable Mention, earning a chapter rank of 17th place, a national rank of 19th place and placing in the 65th national percentile. French 3: Mathias Brehm and Julia Ramey; French 4: Emma Kennett. Emma will receive a silver medal, having earned a chapter rank of sixth place, a national rank of 13th place and placing in the 85th national percentile.

Congratulations to all!

Grab-n-Go activity kits 

Groton Recreation will be offering free Grab-n-Go arts and crafts activity kits for any town of Groton or Groton Central School District families from 9 to 10:30 a.m. every Monday, Wednesday and Friday from July 7 through Aug. 13 at the C.R. Pavilion on Main Street.

Each kit will contain all necessary supplies and directions for each project. Free breakfast and lunch from Groton Central School are also available to grab and go at this location.