Jelsema, Harry, “Jelsema, Harry (Interview outline and video), 2008,” Digital Collections, accessed February 16, 2025, https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/document/29066.
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Jelsema, Harry (Interview outline and video), 2008
Harry Jelsema was born to a farmer in Allegan, Michigan and served in the Army during World War II. He was drafted in 1944, and sent to basic training and after that to Europe, where he was a bazooka man. He fought in Northern France, Belgium, and Northern Germany, eventually meeting the Soviets. He was then shipped back to the US and was supposed to go to Japan, but the war ended before this could happen. He worked a desk job at Fort Carson, Colorado until he was discharged in 1946.