CANTON—Art Chamberlin, a member of the Maine Woodcarver’s Association and the Streaked Mountain Woodcarvers, presented Bernard Adams with the Eagle Cane he crafted to honor Adams for his service in World War II.
Also presenting the award to Adams were his daughter, Joan Kneeland and her husband, Richard.
Adams served 25 months overseas in the European Theater of Operations: in Normandy in northern France on June 7, 1944, and later on in Rhineland, Germany.
This is the second cane that Adams has been honored with. Six months ago on August 18, he received the Boston Post cane, honoring him as Canton’s oldest resident at 98 years old.
Chamberlin points out the decals on the cane, explaining how he prints them out from the computer and varnishes them onto the wood. He jokingly says to Adams, “There was more stuff, all those battles and stuff, but I didn’t have room to add anymore!”
One of the decals on the cane is the Purple Heart medal, which is awarded to veterans who are wounded in combat. Adams was awarded the medal because he was wounded twice, once in Normandy and again in Germany. While in Germany he fought in a battle in Rhineland and another in Ardennes.
Another decal on the cane is the Oak Leaf Cluster, which represents a ribbon device that denotes other decorations and awards.
Adams says that when he got wounded in Normandy he remembers “Crawling around on the roadside, and the first thing I know it felt like someone hit me with a stick.” This was when he was wounded in his shoulder by mortar blast.
“Then I went back to England and was in the hospital in London, and went to Germany and got into a tangle again,” he says, referring to when he was wounded for the second time.
Adams shares “I’ve been thinking about it (WWII) compared to now, and my thought is that it was easier then because now they don’t know who the enemy is and we did know.” Kneeland, Adams’ son-in-law, adds that perhaps “That’s because it was all (fought) on their territory, today it’s more difficult.”
He also says he enjoyed participating in the Honor Flight to Washington, DC, last summer. Nan, his physical therapist at the Victorian Villa where he lives now, got him involved in the flight and was with him on the trip. He says he was impressed with the Arlington burial grounds and the monuments.
When asked about how he felt about receiving all of these honors he humbly said “Sometimes I wonder why,” but Chamberlin’s wife Anne says the honors are “Well earned.”
For more about Adams’ history see the Sun Journal archives story “A little bit of luck” dated Nov. 10, 2014, by Matthew Daigle.
mhutchinson@sunmediagroup.net
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