Lester M. Bornstein was born in Chelsea, Massachusetts in February 1925. As a child he was very athletic and played a lot of sports. His father died when he was 11 or 12 years old. He had three older brothers and one older sister. His mother worked very hard during the Great Depression to make sure they had food on the table. Bornstein was listening to the Green Hornet program on the radio when an announcement came on about the attack on Pearl Harbor. He ran out of the room to tell everyone but hit his head. His brother, who was in medical school, stitched him up. All his brothers joined the Army and Bornstein wanted to go to war as well. He convinced the local physician to draft him. His mother was very upset. He shipped out to Camp Devens, Massachusetts for basic training. Bornstein had to learn to take orders. Training was intense at times. They learned to dig foxholes, keep their head down, and went to the firing range. He left Fort Devens for Fort Carson, Colorado where he was trained to be a combat engineer. Bornstein recalls that many of the soldiers fainted during their initial arrival because they were not used to the high altitude. To be a combat engineer, they learned how to handle dynamite, knock down buildings, blow up quarries and build bridges. After Fort Carson, he was sent to Lebanon, Tennessee to train in maneuvers. The weather was cold, wet, and rainy. It was hard to walk because of all the mud.

Lester M. Bornstein was sent to New York for his deployment. He stayed in some barracks for a few weeks before he was shipped out. He noticed at this camp that there were Italian Prisoners of War serving the troops. One of his bunkmates contracted spiral meningitis and died. His whole bunk had to be quarantined for two weeks. Due to the quarantine, Bornstein's unit [Annotator's Note: 168th Engineer Combat Battalion] did not have to blow up the mines on the beaches of Normandy. The unit that replaced them was wiped out on the beached. After their quarantine, they boarded a liberty ship [Annotator's Note: a class of quickly produced cargo ship] in Manhattan, New York. They sailed for 14 days and he recalled it to be a terrible experience. People were sick and throwing up the whole time. When they debarked, his unit was sent to Wales where they stayed in a pub for two weeks. They finally got to a camp and his commander told him and a fellow soldier to look for mines. When Bornstein and his friend returned to the camp, their unit had left them so they dug a foxhole and waited. Finally, after nightfall, a jeep came by. Bornstein recognized the individual. It was his brother. They sat there for a while and caught up on life.

Lester M. Bornstein remembered the enemy shooting a lot of artillery. He recalled that his friend went out on a patrol and was killed. While they traveled along the French countryside, Bornstein's unit [Annotator's Note: 168th Engineer Combat Battalion] would maintain roads and repair small bridges. They passed a dead German convoy that were killed by a strike. He recalled his unit capturing Germans that looked no older than 15 years old. He remembered seeing a young Jewish girl emerge from the woods, and he gave her all his rations. His unit raced with Patton [Annotator's Notes: US Army Lieutenant General George S. Patton, Jr.] through France. Bornstein loved the sight and experience of liberated Paris, France. The civilians were so happy to see the Americans come through.

Lester M. Bornstein and his unit [Annotator's Note: 168th Engineer Combat Battalion] were set up in a wooded area along the German - Belgium border. Their job was to maintain the road that led to the front. This area was not very heavily fortified, but they were supporting the veteran 2nd Infantry Division. One day, however, the 2nd Infantry Division was replaced by the 106th Infantry Division. These troops were novice to fighting. Bornstein explained that this is where the Battle of the Bulge [Annotator's Note: Battle of the Bulge, or German Adrennes Counter Offensive, 16 December 1944 to 25 January 1945] started. The Germans broke through. He remembered one day he was sitting in a foxhole with a fellow soldier, and they heard the Germans coming through. After two failed attempts at loading a bazooka [Annotator's Note: M1A1 2.36 inch rocket launcher anti-armor weapon], they were able to fire one off and destroy a tank. The Germans could not figure out where the fire came from and decided to retreat. Borstein recalls not receiving a lot of information during the Battle of the Bulge and everything was a disarray. He mentioned a time when a lieutenant and ten men went to an abandoned inn to rest and cook food. The inn was blasted by German artillery killing everyone inside. His unit went through one rubble town after another fighting against German fire. He recalled on Christmas night, while they were sitting in the woods, they had a fire going. One of the soldiers began to sing and it brought back some normalcy that the troops had been missing. Borstein became a corporal during this time, and he was very pleased with his new rank.

Lester M. Bornstein and his unit [Annotator's Note: 168th Engineer Combat Battalion] followed the Germans to the Rhine River. They were given orders to board wooden boats and cross the river at nightfall. At about midnight, they picked up their boats and placed them in the water. As they begin to board, the Germans begin to attack. Bornstein could see tracers flying above his head. He jumped in the boat with men and began to paddle across the river. He got to the other side and let the troops out then paddled across the river again to return the boat. He had to do it again two more times. Many troops were killed by fire or drowned during this crossing. The only wound Bornstein received was from a rock that hit him in his shoulder. He never experienced any serious injury during his service in World War 2. After they crossed the Rhine River, they made their way to Cologne, Germany. All the towns were surrendering and waiving white flags. They were glad to see the Americans. Bornstein remembered coming across a group of prisoners of war. A riot broke out between them because their leaders were not sharing food the Americans gave them.

Lester M. Bornstein could not believe the war was over. He had been in the Army for two years. His unit [Annotator's Note: 168th Engineer Combat Battalion] was sent to Belgium for a few months. While they were there, they took inventory of all the building equipment that was used during the war. His mother and sister were thrilled to have their boys home again. One of his brothers suggested that Bornstein take some prep classes to help him prepare for college, which he did. Bornstein used the G.I. Bill to go to college. While he was in prep school, he had his clothes laundered and when he went to pick up his clothes, the owner of the store did not give back all his clothes and said some anti-Semitic remarks to him. Bornstein took him to court and the man was fined 50 dollars. Bornstein fought in the Korean War as well. He believed that being a soldier taught him to be a man. He believes serving your country and putting your life at stake gives an individual a little perspective. He believes that The National WWII Museum is doing something important. We must be reminded of what war and hatred can do to this world. Bornstein would like to tell future Americans that if it weren't for these men, he could be speaking German, he could be a slave, he wouldn't have had the life he had and we should be grateful for the people that fought for this country.