V-MAIL
Mrs. Philip R. Cohen

Feb. 1, 1945
Dear Mom, Have just reviewed your letter dated the 13th of Jan and am very happy to learn that all of you are well. I am fine and back doing my old job.

As far as your telling someone else to take my packages that is impossible So I expect that I will be getting them for the next three months.

Things here in Luxembourg are nice and great. We aren’t doing very much and I hope that it continues that way.

We have had a lot of rain and it has washed a lot the snow away.

The way the war looks things are much brighter and it shouldn’t be to long before we see the end of it over here.

That’s about all for now. Regards to the rest of the family. I’ll write them as soon as I can Take care of yourself Love Louie

V-MAIL
Feb 13, 1945
Dear Helen:

The overtone to this letter that you hear is made by a large number of bombers going over to do a job on the Krauts. We hope it continues as every nice day means more planes and just so much nearer to the end.

It is surprising that we have such nice weather as the way the folks talked, winter in the old country were usually long and hard. Maybe I am rushing things. Passes are being given to go to Paris and if I have luck I might get to have one. I really would throw a big one. Wine, song and ?

Not much else to write except hope that your gang continues in good health. Regards to Henry and the children. Yours Louie.

Mrs. Philip R. Cohen

Feb. 14
Feb 16 1945 (post-marked)
Dear Mom,

Just a few lines to let you know that I am well and that all is O.K.: I have been getting your late mail very good.

I am enclosing several photos that were taken quite a while back. I have a few more but will send them a few at a time.

Also am enclosing a money order for $50 and you do with it as you want to.

I am way back on my writing to the rest of the family but that is because I haven’t to much time. We are really busy and until we slow up my writing will have to wait.

Not much else to say except I hope to get the old mail and find out what the Christmas season was like.

My best regards to the whole gang. Take care of yourself. Love Louie

Feb. 14, 1945 (in the same envelope with previous letter?)
Feb 16 1945 (post-marked)
Dear Mom + Ellie,

I have a few minutes to spare am going to try to get you up to date with my mail.

As you know it took me three weeks to get from England to Luxembourg where my outfit was stationed. After my return we stayed there for four days and then we pushed of into Germany. We traveled throu the same places we went throu in September. As a matter of fact, all that break throu territory that the Germans took back was taken by my outfit last September. We returned and that picture of the pullbox I sent you was taken last Sept. The coincidences that we came back to the same place and I slept in the same pull box for four nights where I had stayed in Sept for about two weeks.

Now we are in France and I am writing this in a farm house about 2 miles from town.

Today the sun was out and hundred of bombers were out and even now overhead the night bombers can be heard going over. We all look up and thank the Lord that they are ours.

With good weather we would go a long way to making a fast ending to this war.

How did C + R and the baby shop do this year? I am anxiously awaiting all my old mail with all the news about the stores.

Otherwise I haven’t much else to say except that I hope I can write more often than I have.

Regards to all the folks and neighbors. Take care of yourself. Love Louie

Mrs. Philip R. Cohen

Feb. 14, 1945
Feb 17 1945 (post-marked)
Somewhere in France
Dear Mrs Cohen,

Just rec’d your package and I want to thank you a lot as I sure appreciated the strudel and cookies and also the candy the pair of stockings was just what I needed as I had got my feet frost bitten in that Basterge (?) deal and socks especially heavy ones were just what I needed.

How is Louie getting along I wrote him a letter sometime in Dec but so far I have not rec’d an ans from him although I heard that he was in the hospital in England, his outfit sure got a big name for itself in around Luxembourg during the break there in late Dec.

Sunday Feb 11th I read the news about my mother throu the Red Cross. Whoever sent the wine sent it to the wrong APO address as a result it was delayed in getting to me.

Everyone in the company I am in were swell to me, the Colonel called me into his office and gave me a two day pass so that I could got to a shoal a Catholic Chaplain furnished me with his jeep and driver so that I could get to a town of about 200 thousand population (before the war) where I was sure I could find a rabbi but I was out of luck the town was too close to Germany and while before the war there were plenty of Jews living there, when the Germans came in they destroyed the Synagogue and drove all the Jews out. None had returned so far as the Allies had just taken the town so I was out of luck. I am hoping to run into a Jewish chaplain that I am sure can get me taken care of.

I don’t know what is the matter with the folks as the last letter I got from them was one from Belle dated Dec. 28. If you get a chance please write to me as I am worried almost sick about Pa. Also try to find out what happened to the mail from the family. I don’t need anything , anything but news.

You know how I like wurst, well I found a town that almost every other store is a wurst shop and I sure have a field day trading off choc bars for sticks of salami.

I went up to see Mayo Cohen as his outfit was pretty close to mine but he was away on detached service.

Give my regards to everyone + tell Louie to write, I am OK and getting along swell. Please write + also try to get the family to write. Thanks again for the pkg.

Sincerely, Henry (Rothblat)

Love to the kids tell them I miss them

V-MAIL
Feb 14, 1945
Dear Helen:

Have finally been able to sneak in a few minutes and so am writing this finally. You probably realize that I have been busy or you would have had mail from me prior to this. I am well and according to your recent letters am very happy to learn that all of you are the same.
It wasn’t long after my return from the hospital that I got back into the swing of action again. It is difficult to get back to the sound and scene of action after once being hit without having a severe case of the jitters. However I am getting over them and expect to take things in stride before long.

This place we are at now, Prussia, is our fourth entry into Germany and I hope that we can see the end of this war before long.

Not much else to say. My regards to Henry and the kids. Yours Louie

Mrs. Philip R. Cohen

Monday, Feb. 20, 1945
Dear Mom,

Received your letter of the 11th and am very happy to learn that all of you are well. I am fine and everything is going along as good as possible.

We have had some nice weather with a bit of rain and as a result all of the snow has disappeared. I hope it means an early spring as it would go a long way toward a sooner ending if we had the weather with us.

I received my second package since September and it also was from Rose. It was a very nice one as it had the tonic in it and it went over very fast and with a bang. I haven’t as yet received the sweater, mittens and socks. It will be like last year in England when I received them in May. Those socks will have traveled thousands of miles. I probably, will send them back again. I hope, however that I don’t have to send for them next fall.

We are still in Germany and if it weren’t for the war one could like this country. It really is beautiful but just as soon as that enters your mind you realize why you are here and then you hate the sight of it.

I haven’t much more to tell you at this time so my best regards to Ellie and his wife and the gang upstairs.

Take good care of yourself I’ll write again soon. Love Louie

Mrs. Philip R. Cohen

Sunday, Feb. 25, 1945
Dear Mom,

Received your letter of Feb. 14 which is pretty good time. Air mail is now faster than V. and as you say it is better reading. I am fine and happy to learn that all of you are fine in spite of the cold and snow that you have been getting. There is no more snow over here and we all hope that we don’t get any more.

Things here are as usual and I am back in the old swing of having a job and working it it. Now each day is like the one before and it is a problem to decide whether it is Sunday, Monday or what day. As a matter of fact my five weeks in England now seem as if they never were.

Your reaction to the Nazi flag is the same as mine and that is one reason that I never have sent any thing like that or any souvenir home. I just can’t figure my being here as part of a travel tour. Maybe I am crazy but that is the way it is and I don’t think that I can change. I have seen too many of our boys laid out to figure otherwise.

I suppose the bad news about the stores has been……….(next page missing)

2/26/45
Mrs. Philip R. Cohen
Letter stamped Apr 9 1945 Willimantic, Conn Parcel Post
[first page missing]

compiled but I know don’t worry about it as I know that everything will work out O.K. after this mess.

I guess I have covered all that I can think of. My best to Ellie and the Moskowitzs. Take good care of yourself. Love Louie

P.S. I know that you would like to send me a package so please send one and don’t forget a big rum fruitcake. Love Louie

Enclosing a few shots taken in France and Germany last year.

Mrs. Philip R. Cohen
Passed by E.K. Arthur
Wed. Feb. 28, 1945
Mar 2, 1945 (postmarked)
Dear Mom,

Have a few moments to spare before going to work and so am writing a few letters. I am very well and everything is O.K. here. Your mail has been coming very nicely and it has been pleasant reading. I am happy to learn that all of you are in good health.

Yesterday I attended a Purim service and it was very gratifying to say the least to get a bit of religion in this land of oppression. Let’s hope it won’t be to long before all religions enjoy freedoms throuout.

I got one of your Dec letters and from what you said I guess the stores had a very nice holiday season. I hope so.

Weather here has been very nice and if it continues we will all be very thankful. I am enclosing a few more photos of some of my friends taken earlier or rather last year.

Not much else to say. Regards to all the gang. Take good care of yourself. Love Louie

V-MAIL
Feb 28, 1945
Dear Helen

Just a short little letter to let you know that I am fine and that all is well. Am glad to learn that you and yours are all well. Also enjoyed reading of your get together in NY with the gang. I know that if well wishes could get me home, I would have been there by now.

Still operating as before and right now as you can gather from the papers we are really on the go. We all hope it is really the beginning of the end for the bastards.

Not much else to day. Regards to Henry and the children. As ever. Louie