After the first greeting we were escorted to the church where the monument stood and introduced to the young Mayor of Sauvagney. There were the usual speeches, a wreath was laid by three members of our group, a prayer was said by Tom Dunne who had accepted the position as our Chaplain. This was a very solemn ceremony for those who died during the battle for Sauvagney and had actually been buried in the church yard before the Graves Registration had come to retrieve their bodies.

For those who haven't read the story of Sauvagney, two men from "E Company, 141st Infantry Regiment were killed while fighting for the liberation of the Village. With the permission of the Commanding Office of the Regiment the residents of the village built coffins for the "T Patchers" and buried them with Christian Ceremony in the Church cemetery. As far as I know these two men were the only bodies recovered by the Graves Registration whose bodies had been buried in coffins. We met some of the people who actually recovered the bodies, built the coffins, the man who dug the graves and Henri's two sisters who at the time of the battle were little girls took flowers to the place where these young soldiers laid and put flowers on their bodies. The two soldiers were Edwin J. Morgan and John Kremer.

When the beautiful and meaningful ceremonies at the monument and the church were completed we were escorted to the town hall, some of us rode in WWII military jeeps, where a reception was waiting for us. Following the usual Champagne and food we presented the city of Sauvagney a plaque in the name of the 36th Infantry Division Association in appreciation for their continued loyalty to the 36th Division. The people who were directly involved in the recovery and burial of the two soldiers bodies, and the building and dedication of the monument were presented with individual certificates. The presentation of the certificates was very emotional especially when the two ladies who as young girls had placed flowers on the bodies of the two men as they laid in the field where they had been killed were presented with certificates. The tears really began to flow not just among our French friends but the tough old ex-soldiers as well.

This small village truly represented the feelings of the French people all along the route of our tour. They thanked us time and time again for the freedom we died and fought for. Following was extracted in part from the After Battle Report of the 141st: "At 1325 hours the Reconnaissance Company of the 636th Tank Destroyer Battalion reported that it had covered the area along the river in the regimental sector. All Bridges were blown except one at CUSSEY SUR L'OGNON where a fire fight was going on. By 1330 hours Companies "E" and "I"' were engaged with enemy forces at SAUVAGNEY. Company "G" moved into MONLEY but the bridge there was blown up."

It was very hard for us to finally say goodbye but the time had come for us to continue with our journey. We left this beautiful little village of Sauvagney knowing that each one of us had the friendship of the entire population.