Goodbye Jumpin’ Joe
A World War II soldier who parachuted into Normandy wound up fighting for both the Americans and the Soviets. At age 81, he died a hero for two nations.

Joseph “Jumpin’ Joe” Beyrle, thought to be the only World War II soldier to fight for both the Americans and the Soviets, has died at the age of 81. After parachuting with the 101st Airborne into Normandy on D-Day, he was captured by the Germans. His dog tags were found on another body on Utah Beach, and he was registered as killed in action. He was held in a Nazi prison camp and, with the help of the Red Cross, managed to get a note to his family, who already had held a memorial service for him.

Beyrle later escaped and found Soviet troops advancing toward Berlin. He fought with them until he was injured and taken to Moscow. After a set of his fingerprints convinced the U.S. Embassy there that he was indeed Beyrle, he made his way home to Muskegon, Mich. He later traveled widely, recounting his remarkable story.

Bracelet Returned

For almost 20 years, Master Sgt. Sheila Couzins, USAF, wore the bracelet of a fallen airman, determined to keep his memory alive. Now that the remains of Chief Master Sgt. Harold Mullins finally have been buried, Couzins has returned his POW/MIA bracelet to his family.

Couzins, an intelligence analyst in the 445th Operations Support Squadron, purchased a red aluminum bracelet in 1985 at Sheppard AFB, Texas, while attending school there. She chose the bracelet because Mullins was from Denver and her father had retired from the Air Force at Lowry AFB, Colo.

Mullins, a flight engineer assigned to the 4th Air Commando Squadron at Ubon Air Base, Thailand, was aboard an AC-47 Spooky gunship when it disappeared on an armed reconnaissance mission over Laos in June 1966. The wreckage of Mullins’ aircraft was discovered in 1994, and the remains of all six crewmembers eventually were identified. They were buried at Arlington National Cemetery Nov. 5, 2004, with full military honors.

“Wearing the bracelet started so many conversations,” Couzins said. “It represented that eventually everyone would be brought home again.”

Though the original bracelet broke nearly 10 years after Couzins started wearing it, she continued to carry it in her flight gear. In 1994, her husband presented her with a silver replica. Couzins sent the bracelet to Mullins’ family after learning his remains had been found.