Shirley Guidry was born in Rayne, Louisiana in August 1925. When he was 15 years old, he moved to New Orleans [Annotator's Note: New Orleans, Louisiana] to work. He was back in Rayne when the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor [Annotator's Note: the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, Hawaii on 7 December 1941]. The following year, he took welding training and wound up in Orange, Texas as a certified welder for Consolidated Shipyards [Annotator's Note: Consolidated Steel Corporation]. Living through the Depression [Annotator's Note: the Great Depression was a global economic depression that lasted from 1929 through 1939 in the United States] was tough. His father worked for the WPA [Annotator's Note: the Works Progress Administration was a federally sponsored program that put unemployed Americans to work during the Great Depression] started by Roosevelt [Annotator's Note: Franklin Delano Roosevelt, 32nd President of the United States], digging trenches for a sewer line. His father was also a sharecropper on a farm. Cotton was his main income, but in 1940 a flood destroyed his whole crop and he stopped farming after that. Guidry grew up with two brothers and a sister. His brother, Harry, retired from the Army Air Force. Guidry was able to meet up with his brother while serving in Europe. When he was 17, he moved to Orange working building troop carriers. When he turned 18, he registered for the draft but decided to enlist in the Army. He was inducted in Rayne and was then sent to Camp Shelby, Mississippi for training.

Shirley Guidry was sent to Camp Shelby [Annotator's Note: at Camp Shelby, Mississippi, after enlisting in the Army], where the 244th Combat Engineer Battalion [Annotator's Note: 244th Engineer Combat Battalion] was formed. He completed six weeks of basic training, which was really tough. It was hot and muggy. They learned how to build pontoon and Bailey bridges [Annotator's Note: portable, pre-fabricated bridges] on Pearl River. Guidry's unit built a Bailey bridge downriver from the bridge at Remagen [Annotator's Note: Ludendorff Bridge over the Rhine River in Germany]. As soon as they completed their bridge, the other one collapsed. The Germans were strafing them, so they set up barrage balloons. After basic, Guidry was sent to Camp Kilmer, New Jersey for deployment to Bristol, England. The voyage took 11 days, zig-zagging [Annotator's Note: a naval anti-submarine maneuver] all the way to avoid German u-boats [Annotator's Note: German submarines] and everyone was seasick. In Bristol, they learned to set up anti-tank mine fields. They crossed the Channel [Annotator's Note: the English Channel between England and France] on Thanksgiving Day 1944. They were served seagull for Thanksgiving dinner. They arrived in Le Havre [Annotator's note: Le Havre, France] which was destroyed. It was very cold. Guidry was in Liege [Annotator's Note: Liege, Belgium] during the Battle of the Bulge [Annotator's Note: Battle of the Bulge or German Ardennes Counter Offensive, 16 December 1944 to 25 January 1945]. Patton [Annotator's Note: US Army Lieutenant General George S. Patton, Jr.] rescued a unit and they went to Liege for rest. Guidry and other men gave up their beds for the rescued unit. After three days leave [Annotator's Note: an authorized absence for a short period of time] in Liege, Guidry’s unit went back to duty building bridges and setting up anti-tank minefields. The Maginot Line [Annotator's Note: a series of defensive fortifications roughly paralleling the Franco-German border built by France in the 1930s] served as their sleeping quarters in case the Germans would break through. Guidry had a friend named Berthelot, he does not know his first name, and they were on guard duty together. They heard artillery shells coming and hit the ground. They were very lucky since the shells landed not far from the large stack of anti-tank mines behind them. That is how he knew Jesus and Mary were watching over him. [Annotator’s Note: Guidry laughs.]

Shirley Guidry and his unit [Annotator's Note: the 1143rd Engineer Combat Group serving in Europe] took continuous artillery fire from the Germans while building bridges. Once three or four of the men in his unit were blown to pieces right next to him. Another time, an anti-tank mine was dropped and went off 100 feet from Guidry. He saw body parts flying all around him but he was not wounded. He was 19 years old and too young to realize the danger they were all in. They advanced over the Rhine River into Germany and reached the Elbe River. The Russians used the pontoon bridges they built to cross their light tanks. Guidry did not interact with the Russians. Once, they stole a keg of beer and the officers told them not to dare to open it before the war ended. They carried it with them until that day arrived, and opened it only to find that it was sweet, red wine. Guidry drank so much that he had to be taken to the infirmary. [Annotator's Note: Guidry laughs.] After the war ended, Guidry's unit was put in charge of hundreds of German prisoners, most of whom hated Hitler [Annotator's Note: German dictator Adolf Hitler] with a passion. Guidry did not return to the United States until June 1946. They put the German prisoners to work in the canteen. Guidry got close with one of the prisoners who was a doctor. The doctor made Guidry a ring which he brought home with him. During the war, many Germans buried their valuables in the woods. Troops would dig to see what they could fine, and Guidry found a violin. The doctor also made him a case for the violin. Someone stole the violin.

Shirley Guidry remained in Europe for a year after the war. Germany was devastated. It is amazing that it was rebuilt. Guidry and his friend, Berthelot, did guard duty together. One of the most beautiful sights was just before the war ended, when they saw thousands of German soldiers coming with white flags to surrender. They did not have to worry about them running away, they were done with war. Guidry's unit [Annotator's Note: the 1143rd Engineer Combat Group serving in Europe] finished building a bridge on the Elbe River just before the war ended [Annotator's Note: Victory in Europe Day, 8 May 1945]. Guidry finally got 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 come home. The men were offered a furlough [Annotator's Note: an authorized absence for a short period of time] at home if they would volunteer to go to the Pacific. Ironically, those who did volunteer were already home on leave when the war ended whereas Guidry was still serving in Europe. [Annotator’s Note: Guidry laughs.] He was ready to go home. The voyage home took three days and everyone got seasick. They arrived at Camp Kilmer [Annotator's Note: Camp Kilmer in Piscataway Township, New Jersey and Edison Township, New Jersey] in June 1946. The Red Cross and Salvation Army had fresh, cold milk, donuts and ice cream ready for them. From Kilmer, Guidry returned to Camp Shelby [Annotator's Note: Camp Shelby near Hattiesburg, Mississippi] to be discharged then returned home [Annotator's Note: Rayne, Louisiana]. His mother died a year after he returned, in 1947. Guidry realized later in his life that God was watching over him, and had a lot of work for him to do. He became a community minister in 1976 for 39 years and took care of special needs people. In 1986, Guidry also participated in a 1,275-mile walk carrying a cross from Opelousas [Annotator's Note: Opelousas, Louisiana] to the shrine of Our Lady of Guadalupe in Mexico City [Annotator's Note: Mexico City, Mexico] with five other men. It took them three months.