April 6, 2018 at 1:53 p.m.
IT'S A BOOK!
Former editor's antique-store find evolved into book on WWII soldier
"For every front-line soldier, I'm told there were 14 people supporting him," said author James Breig of Holy Spirit parish in East Greenbush.
Mr. Breig, retired editor of The Evangelist and a freelance writer, noted that books and movies often chronicle the exploits of "Greatest Generation" heroes.
They are remembered for risking their lives in raids over Germany and Japan or parachuting into enemy territory in Pacific jungles; but the support troops, quartermasters, medics and mechanics helped win the war, Mr. Breig said.
His new book, "Searching for Sgt. Bailey: Saluting an Ordinary Soldier of World War II," centers on the life of one serviceman - a "nobody" - from a neighborhood in Prince George County, Va.
The book also introduces others who served their country between 1939 and 1945 and returned to anonymity. Mr. Breig uses hundreds of letters from soldiers and interviews with veterans and experts.
Random discovery
The project started in December 2008, eight months after Mr. Breig retired from his position as editor of The Evangelist. While browsing an antique store en route to a vacation in Colonial Williamsburg with his wife, he stumbled upon a series of World War II "V-mails" - letters home from soldiers, reduced on microfilm for transport and then re-enlarged to be delivered to loved ones.
Mr. Breig bought the letters. After forgetting about his loot for a few weeks, he started reading and grew curious about the writer, Army Sgt. James Boisseau Bailey, who called himself "Boisseau."
"It was just a fluke," Mr. Breig said of finding the V-mails. "I went down that aisle instead of another aisle."
Sgt. Bailey died at the age of 69 in 1985; he had no descendants. The author began interviewing historical society volunteers in Sgt. Bailey's hometown and developed a network of locals who knew the man. Mr. Breig has written hundreds of articles on historical topics, so he planned to write one for History magazine.
Delving deeper
But the more he learned about the fair-skinned, freckled, red-headed sergeant, who served for four years in New Guinea and the Philippines, the more he wanted to know.
Plus, "I've always wanted to have a 'real' book to hold in my hands and say, 'I did this,'" Mr. Breig said.
So he visited Sgt. Bailey's house and hometown and amassed Army records and more V-mails from Sgt. Bailey's peers. He contacted the pastor who celebrated Sgt. Bailey's sister's funeral, tracking down a child informally adopted by the sister's family. Other relatives and friends came forward with childhood photos and photos of the Bailey family.
Mr. Breig even hunted down Sgt. Bailey's Army "graduation book" photo - another stroke of luck, he said, since the Army ceased taking individual photos after Pearl Harbor.
Portions of the book educate the reader about topics like V-mail, life in an Army training camp and New Guinea's significance in battles to reclaim the Pacific.
Mr. Breig also highlights the "Cupid Train" from Richmond, Va., to Washington, D.C., which began as a fundraiser for an orphanage and morphed into a popular transportation option for couples en route to wed. Sgt. Bailey's parents eloped on the train.
One chapter of the book features a psychological analysis of Sgt. Bailey's letters, though "men of that time didn't speak of their emotions," Mr. Breig said.
Mr. Breig said his Catholic faith gave him even more reason to tell the stories of people who didn't tell their own.
"What is the life of Christ about except the dignity of the forgotten?" he said. "You are to treat everybody - from the most evil person to the best person - with the same respect and dignity."[[In-content Ad]]
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