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Walter K. Tuzeneu

(Sgt. Tuzzie's Bio)

Walter K. Tuzeneu (Sgt. Tuzzie) was born at home in Asbury Park, NJ on October 9, 1920. He began his military service at Fort Bragg on June 25, 1942. He served with the 320th Glider Field Artillery Battalion of the 82nd Airborne Glider Division. He fought in the European Theater of Operations: in the D-Day and Battle of the Bulge Campaigns, ‘The Bridge Too Far’ in Holland, and the liberation of a concentration camp in northern Germany. He earned five Bronze arrows for service in participating in five of seven campaigns that the 82nd Airborne Division was a part of: Sicily, Italy, Normandy Invasion, the Battle of the Bulge, the campaign in Holland. His service included time in England, Ireland, Holland, The Netherlands, France, Italy, Africa, and Germany. Because of their involvement in such dangerous combat missions, losing 900 of 1500 men from their battalion, they were amongst the first troops to return home. His service concluded on August 15, 1945.

He resumed civilian life, attended Rutgers University studying Meteorology which laid the foundation of his career with the Federal Government, first in Meteorological Research and later in electronic warfare. He was involved in the testing of nuclear weapons in Nevada. This included his participation in the field study of the effects of an atomic blast where he was among those at an unprotected location 1.5 miles from the detonation site. This is where he was a witness to the first atomic test explosion at the ‘Ground Zero’ site named ‘Priscilla’.

He retired in 1981 and resided at the home which he designed and built, and where he and his wife, Marguerite, raised their five children until his death at the age of 95. He is the author of two books, the second of which is his memoir of his service in WWII entitled, ‘The Knot Will Hold’.

Walter K. Tuzeneu (Sgt. Tuzzie) began writing the story of the 82nd Airborne Gliders Division in the early 1980’s after he retired. He was encouraged to complete his saga of the 320th Glider Field Artillery Battalion (GFABN), which was put on the back burner until January 2000 due to work, trials and tribulations, recitals, graduations, sickness, and vacations, by his youngest son, Paul Leon Tuzeneu and by two granddaughters, who while in high school, had assignments in their respective US history classes.

Walter K. Tuzeneu (Sgt. Tuzzie) was an honorable, independent, and proud man who was honorably discharged in August 1945 as a WWII veteran. He always kept his word and earned the twinkle in his eye from being a concerned Christian conservative dedicated to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. He believed in the free spirit of man and the ability to decide for oneself. He sees the United States democratic way of governing as the best if not only way to achieve that. He sees the current trend in ‘big government’ as well as the current decline in moral standards as contrary to this principle. He calls this the ‘scourge of socialism’ or in his words the modern day ‘SS’. Undoubtedly, the atrocities he fought and saw as he participated in WWII to defeat Hitler’s evil Nazi regime that persecuted nearly six million Jews greatly influenced his beliefs.

As Walter K. Tuzeneu (Sgt. Tuzzie) was interviewed by these high-school students for their assignment to their US history classes, he was struck by the naivety of the young for their lack of understanding of the evils that brought on WWII. He realized that he had to finish writing his saga of the 320th Glider Field Artillery Battalion (GFABN) in hopes that he could enlighten these minds that the current trend toward ‘big government’ and the decline in moral values is taking away the freedom of individual rights in a similar way that Hitler’s Nazi Germany and the ‘SS’ did during WWII. He wanted them to understand and realize that no country, form of government, or civilization has ever survived that denies God or defies God. Many religions have had multiple gods and deities. The truth is there is only ONE God. The Romans had more than one and the Greeks had multiple gods. The curse on the United States of America is not how many gods, but how many deny and defy God. In Walter K. Tuzeneu’s (Sgt. Tuzzie) words they are the socialists and secularists, the modern day ‘SS’, who must be stopped.