(Information provided by VA WNY Healthcare System)
World War II Veteran Sydney Cole celebrated his 106th birthday at the Spruce Lodge Community Living Center at the Batavia VA on Tuesday afternoon with a virtual party.
Family and staff celebrated with a Zoom Birthday party complete with cake, signs and balloons.
Born in Buffalo in 1914, he was a champion swimmer in high school and was on the U.S. Swim Team. Sydney initially enlisted with the Royal Canadian Air Force before the United States entered the war and in September 1943, he enlisted in the U.S. Army and joined the 776th Field Artillery Battalion.
Captain Cole was serving as Chief Forward Aerial Observer when his aircraft was hit by enemy fire. He was shot down on January 2, 1945 over Bastogne, Belgium, during last major German offensive of the war, “The Battle of the Bulge,”
Sydney battled for survival not only from the enemy, but from cold weather. Suffering serious injuries from shrapnel and ground fire he sustained in the cockpit, with only his parachute available to wrap himself against the bitter sub-zero cold and ward off the winter conditions. He lay unconscious for a few days until the Germans captured him. Before losing consciousness, however, he removed his dog tags that identified him as “H” for Hebrew and threw them into the woods. Had the enemy determined his religious affiliation, he would have been shot on the spot or sent to a concentration camp.
Despite the beatings and the deprivations he endured as a POW, going from 150 to 80 pounds, he survived the last five months of the war due to his strong will. Sydney kept a positive attitude in the camp and saved many POWs who had almost given up. He was repatriated after the Russian Army took over his POW camp.
Sydney was discharged from the Army in December 1945. He married his wife Sybil, and has one son, Richard. Sydney was presented with numerous decorations including a Bronze Star, Purple Heart, and POW Medal.
He owned and developing several businesses after returning home to Buffalo, including a car dealership, a liquor store, and an athletic club in downtown Buffalo. He was recently inducted into the New York State Veterans Hall of Fame and was finally awarded his high school diploma in 2016 from City Honors/Fosdick Masten school.
Sydney has been a resident at the VA in Batavia for about 5 years.
