Isadore Bronstein was born in Philadelphia [Annotator's Note: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania] in June 1916. His father was a tailor and owned a shop for his whole career. His mother died very young, shortly after giving birth to Bronstein's younger brother. His brother was in the service but was released due to a sight deficiency. Bronstein also had an older sister. He has no memory of World War 1 because he was just a toddler. Bronstein spent almost nine months in the hospital after contracting multiple diseases after his brother was born. It wore his mother down and may have contributed to her early death at 39 years of age. His father never remarried until the children had all grown and left home. The years were lonely years for the family members during those times. Bronstein's brother had to be taken care of by his mother's sister after her death. Bronstein's father did most of the work around the house in addition to his trade. His father wanted Bronstein to learn a trade but he never did. He did not want his son to become a tailor. Bronstein held multiple odd jobs and always had change in his pocket from tips. He was reluctant to spent much of it but he did enjoy going to the movie theater every week. He graduated from high school in January 1934. It was a tough time to get a job but he found work in a furniture store. He did not particularly like the work so he applied for a lesser paying job with the government. He was accepted and left Philadelphia for Washington, D.C. in January 1938. He lived in a boarding house until he was married in February 1939.

Isadore Bronstein met his wife while he was in Philadelphia [Annotator's Note: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania] as a member of the choir at the YMHA [Annotator's Note: Young Men's Hebrew Association]. While the group was planning a picnic during the Spring of 1937, he first encountered his future wife, Sarah. It was the beginning of their relationship that resulted in a 66 year marriage. As a member of the choir, he had to learn Hebrew phonetically because he did not speak the language. Bronstein was a bass and Sarah was a soprano. They both had very good voices. She sang beautifully and was well versed in Hebrew having studied it from an early age. After they married, they sang in a big synagogue in Washington, DC. It was one of the oldest ones in the city. After their first daughter was born, the couple stopped singing in the synagogue. They were married in 1939 [Annotator's Note: February 1939].

Isadore Bronstein started at the lowest government grade when he went to work [Annotator's Note: in Washington, D.C.]. He worked with payroll as well as other tasks. He was promoted in January 1939 which was month before he was married. He worked with various pieces of equipment and continued to be promoted for his efforts. He retired as supervisor of the printing plant after over 36 years of government service. His salary gradually improved over the years. The main improvements came after the war. His career was interrupted in 1943 when he went into the service. After the war, he regained his position and his salary increased as the years progressed. Nixon [Annotator's Note: Richard Milhouse Nixon, 36th President of the United States] held wages down but gains were seen after he left office. Prior to America's entry into the war [Annotator's Note: World War 2], Bronstein was more concerned with supporting his family than with what was happening around the world. Everyone was pro-Roosevelt [Annotator's Note: Franklin Delano Roosevelt, 32nd President of the United States] except for a few "dyed in the wool" Republicans. His attitude, as with most others, changed in December 1941 [Annotator's Note: the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, Hawaii on 7 December 1941]. He was home at his small apartment above a grocery owned by Jews. Sarah, Bronstein's wife, made friends and understood people very well. She had been quite a negotiator in her large family. That helped the Bronsteins through their lifetime. After moving away from the grocery store apartment in 1941, they moved into a home owned by elderly gentiles. The landlords were friendly to the Bronsteins, likely due to Sarah's influence. She was a wonderful person. Two children were born to the Bronstein couple during these years. After moving to an apartment in 1943, another daughter was born. Bronstein heard of the attack on Pearl Harbor, not over the radio, but from neighbors who gathered and discussed the news. The news was flashing all over the place.

Isadore Bronstein received his draft notification in late 1942 or early 1943. He had thought he would not be called up because he was a father or possibly, he would have a deferment due to his government job. His second daughter was born in September 1943. His wife was upset to learn that Bronstein would be called up. Bronstein asked for an extension until his daughter was born. The draft board gave him a tough time but allowed him to stay home until 7 September 1944. He was inducted at Fort Meade, Maryland [Annotator's Note: Fort George G. Meade, Maryland]. His training was at Camp Croft near Spartanburg, South Carolina. The 17 week training was cut short at 13 weeks in December 1944. Bronstein was held back due to his need for glasses. He scored well on the rifle range even without the glasses. He nearly made expert shooter. The rest of his outfit deployed while Bronstein eventually was issued two ill-fitting glasses. He had wanted to be in the Navy but was not listened to. He thought the Navy would be cleaner. He was trained for the infantry with the M1 rifle [Annotator's Note: .30 caliber M1 semi-automatic rifle, also known as the M1 Garand] and bayonet. He did well in training except for his physical capabilities compared to the much younger trainees entering service at the time. He was 28 years of age, the old man, compared to the mainly 18 and 19 year olds he trained with. A couple of friendships developed with men closer to his age. They were Herbert E. Bennett and Angelo Besere [Annotator's Note: unsure of spelling]. Bronstein had trouble topping the tall wall with his ten pound rifle and pack. He was told to keep trying. He was selected as squad leader even though his physical abilities were limited. He was interviewed for Officer Candidate School even though no one was being accepted. Following his basic training, he was allowed a leave [Annotator's Note: an authorized absence for a short period of time] at home. He returned to a camp near New York [Annotator's Note: New York, New York] after the leave and was shipped to Europe in a marine boat that held about 1,000 passengers. He did not bother to bring his electric shaver with him because he knew there would be no place to plug it in. It was about January 1945 after his basic completed in December 1944. He disembarked at Le Havre, France after deploying from New Jersey. He never really knew where he was during his time in Europe. Maps and information were not available to him.

Isadore Bronstein was transported by train to Verviers, Belgium to a replacement depot or repple-depple. It was a big depot with a couple thousand replacements located there. He seemed to stay there a long time. He saw the first 1,000 plane raid flying overhead. He thought the bombers would never stop. The time was after the Battle of the Bulge [Annotator's Note: Battle of the Bulge or German Ardennes Counter Offensive, 16 December 1944 to 25 January 1945] when the Germans were slowly retreating. The Germans were very good soldiers. They were clean shaven, unlike their American counterparts. Bronstein crossed into Germany at Aachen [Annotator's Note: Aachen, Germany] and saw the Maginot Line [Annotator's Note: a series of defensive fortifications roughly paralleling the Franco-German border built by France in the 1930s]. He wound up with the 97th Infantry Division in Wuppertal, Germany. He was a replacement for Company C, 386th Battalion in the 97th Infantry Division [Annotator's Note: Company C, 1st Battalion, 386th Infantry Regiment, 97th Infantry Division]. The weather was improving such that he did not need the overcoat issued to him. He did keep his raincoat or poncho with him. The latter was used as an insulator when he laid in a cot to block the cold temperature from below. He saw only the tapered blocks of the Maginot Line that were knocked out of the way to ease transportation. He passed through Cologne [Annotator's Note: Cologne, Germany]. He remembered Bonn, Germany having stayed at Doctor Richard's [Annotator’s Note: no given name provided; unable to verify identity] four story house at that time. They were able to attend various shows. One performance was with the actor, Sam Levene. When he first arrived at Wuppertal, he had to cut hair for the other troops despite never having done that before. He was rewarded with cognac for his work by the troops having their hair cut. He was going to be selected for a nighttime scouting party but one of the veterans refused to go with him. One of the men was killed on that mission and Bronstein garnered some of the blame for the man's death. He felt the veterans had a right to be mad at him. The enemy retreat was continuous. Bronstein was assistant to the BAR [Annotator's Note: M1918A2 Browning Automatic Rifle; also known as the BAR] Rifleman. He carried extra magazines of the heavy ammunition for the weapon. After walking long distances, Bronstein felt the pain on his hips from carrying the considerable load. There was an incident of friendly fire during that time. Americans were fired upon by Bronstein's outfit. They stopped firing as soon as they recognized their error. Bronstein never fired on anyone he did not identify as the enemy. Information was slim and he never was told where he was or where he was going.

Isadore Bronstein advanced but his company [Annotator's Note: Company C, 1st Battalion, 386th Infantry Regiment, 97th Infantry Division] was never on point so he was not in the thick of the fighting. After days of walking, civilians were seen coming out of the woods. They were ex-soldiers who had given up and were going home. The Americans did not trouble with them. The 97th was shifted to Patton's [Annotator's Note: US Army Lieutenant General George S. Patton, Jr.] Third Army to fool the Germans. Bronstein was skeptical of the ploy. When he was out in the combat zone, he slept by the door of the house because he was a light sleeper. After hearing noises, he once raised his rifle on a family unknowingly. After much walking, he arrived at a prisoner of war camp. They were not allowed to enter the camp but could see the inside from the guard towers. Medics went in to treat the liberated inmates. The dead would be brought to an oven inside a sizeable one story house. The corpses would be crisscrossed in piles until they could be put into the oven. It was 30 April and the snow started the next day on 1 May 1945. A dead horse was butchered in preparation for feeding the inmates. After a few days, the men moved on tanks to the east. They arrived outside Pilsen, Czechoslovakia [Annotator's Note: now Plzeň, Czech Republic] on 7 May. The war officially ended the next day. There was no way to celebrate the occasion. Patton insisted his men wear a necktie and shave every day. The troops could not sleep in houses but had to use tents. It was a mess.

Isadore Bronstein and the 97th Infantry Division [Annotator's Note: Bronstein was an assistant BAR man in Company C, 1st Battalion, 386th Infantry Regiment, 97th Infantry Division] was shipped back to the United States in preparation for the invasion of Japan. It was a disappointment for him that he had to face more training and combat. He reached the States in June [Annotator's Note: June 1945] and was given leave [Annotator's Note: an authorized absence for a short period of time] during the month of July. His family reunion was a pleasure. His children were very young. His youngest did not recognize him. His oldest missed him so much she had grown some gray hair. He wrote home frequently but censors kept information very limited. His wife saved all his letters. He only wrote one long letter during his deployment in Europe. He was stationed in Fort Bragg, North Carolina after the leave. He was then taken to Fort Lewis, close to Seattle, Washington. The war ended before he arrived there. The two bombs [Annotator's Note: nuclear weapons dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Japan, 6 and 9 August 1945] had been dropped to end the war. He thought he would return home but went to Leyte Bay instead. He was on a big ship that held 5,000. After Leyte Bay, he went to Yokohama [Annotator's Note: Yokohama, Japan]. His basic training cooks were bad but his 97th Division cooks were very good. Bronstein had to inform them on a manner to clean their dirty pots. He gathered ashes from campfires and used that with sand and water to show a crew how to clean the pots. In training, he had KP [Annotator's Note: kitchen patrol or kitchen police] every other day. Arriving in Tokyo [Annotator's Note: Tokyo, Japan] in late August or early September, he was shipped to an arsenal in Fukaya until January [Annotator's Note: January 1946]. The Americans supervised the Japanese in dismantling their warfare logistics and equipment. He found the rural Japanese to be more friendly than the city dwellers, as he did in France. Bronstein aided a local Japanese citizen who was hurt performing his work. The man was saved due to Bronstein's efforts. The individual later showed his gratitude to Bronstein with gifts of apples. Bronstein was struck during his visits to Tokyo how the populace showed respect to the Emperor's palace as they crossed in front of it. Destruction in the cities of Japan was extreme. Everything was flattened except stone buildings. Nevertheless, businesses were trying to reopen. At the end of January, he had enough points [Annotator's Note: a point system was devised based on a number of factors that determined when American servicemen serving overseas could return home] to return home. He voyaged back to the United States arriving in Los Angeles [Annotator's Note: Los Angeles, California]. He journeyed via train through Canada to Indiantown, Pennsylvania where he was discharged on 18 February 1946. He returned to Philadelphia [Annotator's Note: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania] and his work.

Isadore Bronstein returned to civilian work on 18 March [Annotator's Note: 18 March 1946]. His family had spent time with his wife's family while he was deployed. He had adjustment issues with his wife after his return. He was very nervous which disrupted his sleep at night. In the Army, he had to wake up with any noise. He was angry and short tempered. It took a long time for him to settle down. He did not realize why or understand it. He blamed everyone but himself. The feeling gradually wore off as he got used to civilian life. Years later, it dawned on him that nothing would be as bad as being shot at. His wife understood more of what was going on with her husband. She was a very understanding person. After 50 wonderful years together, his wife began to show signs of Alzheimer's. She did the best she could. He kept her at home for eight years but had to commit her to a nursing home for the last eight years. She forgot who he was but knew his voice. He had no issues with his return to the work environment. The man who had taken his place while Bronstein was deployed was given another position. Bronstein stayed in the same civil service commission position until his retirement. He always remembers his friends from basic training named Herbert E. Bennett and Melvin Nelson Burgess of Richmond, Virginia and Angelo Besere [Annotator's Note: unsure of spelling]. He also remembers Frankie Gesantic [Annotator’s Note: unsure of spelling] from Connecticut. Bronstein lived conservatively on his civil service wages. His oldest daughter died at 48 years of age of complications from diabetes. His son did well in the civil service commission and subsequently had responsible positions with the Navy and Energy Departments. Bronstein retired in 1974 after Mr. Nixon [Annotator's Note: Richard Milhouse Nixon, 36th President of the United States] was thrown out. Wages were increased afterward.