Ole's medals
Pub Date: 9/1/2005
The Montana Tavern Times first interviewed and profiled Ole Ehli back in 1999. And earlier this year we profiled one of the businesses he founded, Big B Bingo in Billings.
Ole gave a good interview when it came to his roots, his business experiences and his family. He was open and his memory was sharp'; his quotes were colorful and reflected a love for life.
But there was one subject he wouldn't talk about much: that was his experiences in the South Pacific during World War II.
The spring 1999 story in the Tavern Times quoted one of Ole's philosophies:
Treat people well and you, in turn, will be treated well.
In the summer of 2005, a man who treated his country well during the bloody fighting from 1941-45, was in turn treated well by his country, although 50 years belatedly.
In July, Ole was presented with an American flag and eight mounted medals, among them, badges for weapons qualifications, bronze stars and a Presidential Unit Citation for extraordinary heroism.
Ole's sons Nick and Mark had looked into their father s military history and found he was owed the medals. With the help of U.S. Sen. Max Baucus, the medals were, at last, properly delivered.
The 1999 Tavern Times story said:
In October, 1942, Ole received greetings from the Army and soon completed basic training at Camp Beal, Calif. He was assigned to the XIII Division but was transferred to an amphibious corps in Hawaii where he learned to drive amphibious tractors designed to make beachheads.
Things didn t look good for us in 1942, Ole said. The United States had been decisively beaten until that time but was about to go on the offensive.
Ole took part in the invasion of Saipan where he served the Army, was attached to the Marines and was commanded by Admiral Nimitz of the U.S. Navy, he said with some irony.
After Saipan, he participated in a long series of ferocious and tragic battles including the landings at Leyte and Luzon in the Philippines and on Okinawa.
Were there any particular combat experiences Ole wanted to share? He paused awhile, then quietly replied, No, I don t think so.
He was then shipped back to the Philippines where his unit began training for the invasion of Japan itself.
When I heard the news that we had dropped the (atomic) bomb, I could have kissed President Truman, Ole says. That decision was courageous and correct, he says, and marks Truman as a great President.
It was their war. They started it. But we knew how to end it, he says with conviction and finality.
This writer recalls a gaming industry discussion during the 1997 legislative session when a law was being considered to increase the legal gambling age to 21. Ole spoke up with no equivocation: When I was 19 years old I was in a foxhole getting shot at. If 19 is old enough for that, it s old enough to gamble!
Recently, according to the Billings Gazette, friends and family held an emotional backyard ceremony to honor Ehli and presented him with the eight long-overdue medals for his service. The event along Poly Drive included an American Legion color guard, live music and about 40 of Ehli s family, friends and employees.
This was something we wanted to do, said his son Nick Ehli to the Gazette.
Source: The Montana Tavern Times, Sept., 2005, published monthly by Continental Communications, 125 W. Granite St., Suite 102, Butte, MT 59701.