TINA L. SCOTT Ralph Wehlitz, Master Model Railroader, turned 100 years old on June 4, 2024, and his railroad-loving friends and family members threw him a party on June 6 at one of his favorite places to gather and talk about trains and railroading: the Polka-Dotted Pie on E. Main St. in Merrill.
EDITOR
It was the honor of the many friends, former students, family members, and fellow railroad and model railroad buffs to come to honor Wehlitz at the celebration in honor of his 100th birthday, and some traveled from as far as Milwaukee to do him those honors.
One of those attendees also shared that earlier this past spring, on May 16 in Milwaukee, the Milwaukee Armed Services Committee (MASC) awarded Wehlitz with the 2024 Lance P. Sijan Award, for his service in the U.S. Army with the 34th Division during World War II, in the battle for Monte Cassino in Italy. Wehlitz was one of four heroes so honored during Milwaukee Armed Forces Week; however, he was actually presented the award in Merrill on May 23. The namesake for the Sijan Award was born in Milwaukee and ultimately died in Hoa Lo Prison in 1968 as a Prisoner of War. [Read more about Sijan’s heroic story in a separate story on our website.]
“The Milwaukee Armed Services Committee was established more than four decades ago to celebrate the annual Armed Forces Day which is always on the third Saturday in May each year,” said Thomas M. Buck, PhD and Chairman of the MASC. “Our activities fill up the entire week prior to the actual day.”
“It is our understanding that we have the largest celebration of Armed Forces Week in the U.S. - at least that claim has never been challenged,” he said. “There are 10 events over the week including three on Armed Forces Day.”
“The Lance Sijan Luncheon recognizes veterans who have served with honor while in one of our armed forces,” said Buck. “We make an effort to recognize WWII veterans in particular at this event, as there are fewer and fewer of them each year. Although Ralph lives in Merrill, he was born in Milwaukee and went to Wauwatosa High School.”
Buck nominated Wehlitz for the award, and Wehlitz “was enthusiastically approved,” he said. However, Wehlitz is very humble about his time in the service and would not have drawn our attention to the award himself. It took a chance meeting with Buck at the birthday party to learn about the honor bestowed upon Wehlitz.
“Ralph was one of my teachers when I was in Merrill High School,” Buck said. After interviewing Wehlitz in April in connection with the award process, he shared that Wehlitz entered the U.S. Army in 1943 and was trained in Texas where he qualified as a rifleman and on the Browning Automatic Rifle. He was initially sent to Bizerte in North Africa, traveling by ship from Newport News, Va., from Oct. 31, 1943 until after Thanksgiving of that year [Nov. 25, 1943] to get there. “From Bizerte they took a Landing Craft Infantry (LCI) to Naples, Italy, and were assigned as replacements in the 34th Division. Very quickly they moved toward Monte Cassino in January 1944,” Buck said.
“It was during the march toward Monte Cassino that German artillery began firing on the unit of which Wehlitz was a member,” he learned in an April interview with Wehlitz. “Near the Rapido River as they approached Monte Cassino, the German artillery struck near Wehlitz and inflicted a number of serious wounds on him. The most serious wound was to his left arm, but there were also shell fragments in his back, right hand, and face.”
“Had it not been for the quick action of one of his buddies who found Ralph’s pocket knife and used it to cut the sleeve from his jacket, permitting him to apply a tourniquet, Ralph would have died from loss of blood. Shortly after that, Ralph was carried to a field hospital and 12 hours later his left arm was amputated. Following the surgery, the surgeon visited him for about 10 seconds to let him know what was done before he moved on to other patients in the field hospital. Ralph said that another soldier came by with a cart full of purple hearts which, without ceremony, were then given to each of the wounded,” Buck said.
“When he was able to be moved, Ralph was transported to Naples and a hospital previously used by the Germans who had left behind some excellent medical equipment. After a period of time, Ralph was transported on a Hospital Ship back to North Africa where secondary closure was made to his wound.”
In the spring of 1944, Wehlitz returned to the U.S. to continue healing, but he still has shell fragment in this back, right index finger, and one in his cheek that was discovered by a dentist many years later, Buck learned.
Following discharge from the Army, Wehlitz enrolled at Marquette University, transferring after one year to the University of Wisconsin-Madison to get his teaching degree. He would later earn a master’s degree from the University of Minnesota. “Given that it was his left forearm that was lost, and he was left-handed, he had to teach himself to write with his right hand,” Buck said. Wehlitz married and the couple had one daughter.
Generations of Merrill area students will remember Wehlitz from his teaching career in Merrill, as he spent many years teaching at what was then Merrill Junior High School [in the location that is now Merrill High School].
“Ralph was known for having students to his home to listen to classical music, engage in philosophical discussions, learn to play chess, and to see his model railroads for which he became well known,” Buck said.
“Ralph always downplayed his contributions to the defense of our country in WWII, citing that his wounds never allowed him to remain in service for very long,” he said. “Perhaps for those reasons, he did not join either the Veterans of Foreign Wars or the American Legion. Neither did he participate in one of the Honor Flights that would have been available to him.”
Nonetheless, it was the honor of Buck and the MASC to honor Wehlitz. “We were very honored to present this award to Ralph and to acknowledge his role in defending our country,” Buck said.
Thank you for your service, Ralph. And happy birthday!
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