Layout 1

Kenosha County Eye

Search
Close this search box.
Search
Close this search box.

World War II Veteran Celebrates 100th Birthday

Share
Tweet
World War II veteran Harold “Jim” Eils shares a laugh with Kenosha County Board Chairman Gabe Nudo, County Executive Samantha Kerkman and county Veterans Services Director Ali Nelson on Wednesday, after receiving a proclamation in honor of his recent 100th birthday.

A local World War II veteran was the toast of the town Wednesday, at a belated celebration of his 100th birthday.

Paid Advertisement

Harold “Jim” Eils was the guest of honor at the weekly gathering of the American Heroes Café at Festival Foods in Somers.

His birthday was Dec. 26, but the extreme cold weather in the days before Christmas and an elevator failure last week delayed the celebration by nearly two weeks.

Paid Advertisement

None of that mattered, however, on Wednesday morning, when Eils arrived at a warm reception in his honor, complete with a mass singing of “Happy Birthday” and a proclamation presented by Kenosha County Executive Samantha Kerkman.

“Third time is the charm!” Kerkman said, kicking off the festivities and reading a rundown of Eils’ service to his country and the Kenosha community in the proclamation that she signed along with Sheriff David Zoerner and County Board Chairman Gabe Nudo.

Paid Advertisement
World War II veteran Harold “Jim” Eils poses for a photo with, from left, Kenosha County Veterans Services Director Ali Nelson, American Heroes Café coordinator Anne Wasilevich, Kenosha County Executive Samantha Kerkman and County Board Chairman Gabe Nudo. All were on hand to celebrate Eils’ recent 100th birthday during Wednesday’s gathering of the American Heroes Café at Festival Foods in Somers.

Born in Kenosha on Dec. 26, 1922, Eils married the former Mary Ann Soule on June 28, 1947, at St. James Catholic Church. The couple marked their 75th anniversary last year.

The wedding came after Eils had returned from his World War II service, which began when he was drafted into the U.S. Army on March 25, 1943.

Paid Advertisement

Eils served in Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium and France in Battery B of the 62nd Anti-Aircraft Artillery Gun Battalion. For his service, he was awarded a Good Conduct Medal, an American Campaign Medal, a European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal, a World War II Victory Medal and a Sharpshooter Medal.

Following his honorable discharge on April 29, 1946, he returned to Kenosha where he and his wife would raise four children. Eils owned gas stations in town and later worked as an equipment manager at the University of Wisconsin-Parkside, retiring in 1990 and earning a spot as an honorary member of the UW-Parkside Athletic Hall of Fame.

Paid Advertisement

Today, Eils is a member of a World War II veteran population that continues to shrink locally and nationally. Ali Nelson, Kenosha County Veterans Services Director, estimates there are roughly 40 to 50 World War II veterans living in the county.

“It’s not every day a person lives to be 100 years old, and it’s not every day that we get to celebrate a World War II veteran reaching that remarkable milestone,” Nelson said. “Bless Mr. Eils and all of our World War II veterans, because they have done a tremendous amount of heavy lifting for the United States of America.”

Asked if he had any words to share with his fellow veterans at Wednesday’s celebration, Eils had just three: “War is hell.”

And, with that, the understanding crowd applauded, and the celebration went on.

World War II veteran Harold “Jim” Eils shares a laugh with Kenosha County Executive Samantha Kerkman and County Board Chairman Gabe Nudo on Wednesday, after receiving a proclamation in honor of his recent 100th birthday.
World War II veteran Harold “Jim” Eils talks with Kenosha County Executive Samantha Kerkman during a Wednesday celebration of his recent 100th birthday. Eils was the guest of honor at the weekly American Heroes Café gathering at Festival Foods in Somers.
World War II veteran Harold “Jim” Eils poses for a photo with Kenosha County Executive Samantha Kerkman and County Board Chairman Gabe Nudo during a Wednesday celebration of Eils’ recent 100th birthday. Kerkman presented Eils with an honorary proclamation that she signed along with Nudo and Sheriff David Zoerner.

Author

Share
Tweet
LATEST NEWS

Grooming Teacher’s Cell Phone Seized Before Court Last Week, Sexual Contact Is Now Suspected: Unsealed Warrant

***Editor’s Note – Explicit Content*** During Christian Enwright’s initial court appearance where bail is set, he encountered a big surprise – two detectives armed with a search warrant. It was signed by Kenosha County Circuit Court Judge Chad Kerkman. It commanded law enforcement officers to seize Enwright’s phone. Enright is a fired teacher from KUSD’s KTEC West school that was charged last week with 22 counts of disorderly conduct for the grooming of a 12 through

Read More »

KCE Takes Andy “Sgt. Hard” Berg Back To Court For Contempt – Berg Hasn’t Provided Records Or Paid Fees As Ordered

Last month, a Kenosha Judge ordered a former Kenosha County Board Member Andy Berg (D) to make available for inspection a large amount of county park maps and business cards that he was illegally distributing during his Spring 2024 election. Judge Frank Gagliardi also ordered Berg to pay Mathewson’s legal fees, in the amount of $309.50 – neither have happened. Berg’s deadline was May 11, 2024. Mathewson contacted Berg via his attorney. Berg still wouldn’t provide

Read More »
MORE TOP STORIES

Salem Lakes To Appoint New Board Member – Pete Poli Is The Obvious Choice: Opinion

The Village of Salem Lakes has the opportunity for any legal resident of Salem Lakes that meets the age requirement, as well as other legal statutory requirements, to serve out the remainder of the term of beloved Trustee Kelly Sweeting. Sweeting abruptly resigned due to health reasons. The Village of Salem Lakes has seen major fundamental changes since the upset of the Spring 2023 election. These changes have been led by President Rita Bucur, trustees, new Salem

Read More »

Former Indian Trail High School Employee Charged With Very Serious Sex Crimes Against Students

Jamill E. Sanders, 36, of Racine, was allowed to resign from the Kenosha Unified School District on May 13, 2022 as an “Educational Support Professional.” He then went on to work for 21st Century Preparatory School in Racine. That is where police and prosecutors say he sexually assaulted two juvenile students. Sanders was charged this past Tuesday, May 14, 2024 with “Second Degree Sexual Assault Of A Child Under 16 Years Of Age” and “Repeated Sexual

Read More »

Fired Groomer Teacher Makes First Court Appearance, Family Of Victim Speaks Out

Christian Enwright, the teacher fired last week for the long-term grooming of a pre-teen student, made his first court appearance today. Enwright was charged last week with 22 counts of disorderly conduct – facing more than five years in jail. Enwright appeared in court today with his two attorneys, Jason Luczak and Nicole Masnica. Both are good, experienced, and expensive. Luczak is also an adjunct professor at Marquette Law School. Although Enwright walked into the courtroom

Read More »

“Latte With The Law” Big Hit Monday Evening

Summer Moon GM Ashley Busser, a former police dispatcher and EMT, has spent the last two-and-one-half years running her family business. The franchise, is owned by her parents, Jim and Cathi Leibforth. They were quick to volunteer to host The Kenosha Police’s “Latte With The Law” Monday evening. On hand to interact with the public, answer questions, and show off tactical equipment were members of the Kenosha Police Department – from patrol officers, to SWAT members,

Read More »

Kenosha Police Recommend Felony Charges Against Ousted County Board Supervisor Andy Berg

After reviewing dozens of pages of bank records, Kenosha Police believe that the embattled former County Board Member Andy Berg committed one or more felonies. According to a Kenosha Police spokesperson, many of the charges from Berg’s bank account for his non-profit “Garden of Eatin,” didn’t appear to benefit the non-profit at all, but instead, benefitted Berg, himself. Berg had served as a county board supervisor from 2016 to April of this year, being defeated by

Read More »

Kenosha Police Cold Case Vault: The Murder Of Deyonn J. Williams

On September 27, 2020, at about 1:40 a.m., a 25-year-old Illinois man named Deyonn J. Williams was gunned down at near the corner of 49th St and 8th Ave, just one block from the now-demolished RedZone. Police were called and found dozens of people in the parking lot of Red Zone and chaos. Police found WIlliams lying on the ground and bleeding to death. He was taken to the hospital but efforts to revive Williams were

Read More »

Kenosha Unified Teacher Recently Fired For Grooming Charged With 22 Counts of Disorderly Conduct

Christian Enwright, a teacher who was fired Tuesday for grooming a 12-year-old student, was charged today with 22 counts of disorderly conduct. He faces a maximum sentence of five-and-one-half years behind bars minus “good time.” According to the 29-page criminal complaint: On February 5, 2024, Kenosha Police Department Detective “Schillwater” was assigned to investigate an anonymous report made to the Kenosha County Department of Family Services (DCFS) on February 2, 2024. The information provided to DCFS

Read More »

Breaking: Chrystul Kizer Pleads Guilty For 2018 Murder Of Pedophile

After nearly six years since being charged with murder, arson, bail-jumping, and car theft, Chrystul Kizer has plead guilty for the June 5, 2018 murder Randall P. Volar III. On this date, she shot him in the back of the head, burned his house down, and stole his car. Kizer admitted as much to detectives with the Kenosha Police Department. In the plea deal that was accepted today by Judge David Wilk, Kizer plead guilty to

Read More »

Kenosha Unified Administrators’ Salaries

Many in the community have asked KCE to publish salaries for the administrators at KUSD. You asked – we delivered. Here is the text of our request to the district: “Any documents or combination of documents in the possession of the Kenosha Unified School District that contains the name, title, and salaries of all administrative employees of the district. I define administrative employees as all employees that are not solely classroom teachers, janitors, or lunchroom workers.

Read More »

Area Leaders Honor Fallen Law Enforcement Officers: Photos

At 12:00 p.m., with perfect weather and sunny, blue skies, area leaders and residents gathered near the Kenosha Public Museum to honor the fallen Kenosha County Law Enforcement Officers. Andrea Squires, the great granddaughter of fallen Kenosha Police Officer Antonio Pingitore sung the National Anthem. Kenosha Police Chief Patrick Patton offered some words today: “Good afternoon. First, I want to thank everyone that’s here in attendance today. I look over this crowd and there’s a lot

Read More »
Categories
Archives
Authors

4 Responses

Add a Comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

LATEST NEWS
Categories
Archives
Authors

Subscribe to updates

Get notified of new articles. We'll never share your email address.