28th Division Band Memorial- “Bazooka Boogie”
Details:
A roadside memorial located between two German artillery pieces.
A brass inscribed plaque attached to a large stone (about 5 ft x 5 ft).
The 28th Division fought in this area during the “Battle of the Bulge”; its HQ was in Wiltz. The 28th Division was severely depleted after fighting in the Hürtgen Forest in November 1944, so all soldiers were needed to counter the German Offensive in the Ardennes.
More about this battle for the US Army Band website:
Battle history
The members of the band weren't supposed to fight that December day in 1944 in Wiltz, Luxembourg. In fact, the musicians, although they were soldiers, weren't supposed to fight at all.
The fighting men of the 28th Division had left their headquarters at Wiltz, leaving the band members behind, as they traveled north to set up a defensive against the Germans during the Battle of the Bulge. The Germans weren't supposed to come to Wiltz, but they advanced on the picturesque little town, outnumbering what was left of the 28th Division by hundreds.
"They were not prepared in a combat sense to defend that town," 28th Division Chief Warrant Officer Jeffrey Jaworowski, current commander of the band, said.
But the band, made up of about 60 members mostly from Pennsylvania, put down their instruments and picked up rifles. They tried their hardest to defend the town, but there was no fairy tale ending. Three men died. Thirty-five others were either severely wounded or taken as prisoners of war.
"There were about 20 who remained at the conclusion," Jaworowski said.
Some of the members tried to save the music and instruments, but the Germans machine-gunned the vehicle and nothing was left.
Despite the tragedy, the town was saved.
"Because they held their defensive, they forced the Germans to flank in a different direction," Baranik said. "The 28th Division was able to backtrack and kill enough of the Germans that they surrendered."
A grateful town
Because of the efforts of the 28th Division Band to defend Wiltz, the townspeople erected a monument, the "Bazooka Boogie Monument," in honor of the band in 2004, the 60th anniversary of the battle.
"The slang of the people in the '40s was, 'Let's boogie, let's get out of here.' That's why the actual monument reads Bazooka Boogie," Jaworowski said.
The 5-foot-by-5-foot bluestone monument holds a brass plaque that reads "In memory of the brave musicians of the 28th Division Band who helped defending Wiltz."
Monument Text:
The text is written in English and reads:
<< Bazooka Boogie >>
In memory of
the brave musicians
of the 28th Division Band
who helped defending Wiltz
December 18th 1944
