It was 75 years ago that Nazi Germany surrendered to Allied Forces, bringing the war in Europe to an end. 96-year-old veteran E.T. Roberts was in Holland on that day. It's one he'll never forget.
Through all the death and destruction he witnessed first hand, he said he still wasn't ready to leave. He was still watching for the enemy.
"Kept my eyes going side other, didn't want them comin' out behind wall," Roberts said.
Slowly, the news began to sink in. When his unit finally realized it was over, they started pulling off their uniforms.
"Pull patches off, badges, let's forget it now and live," said Roberts.
As soldiers began rotating back to the states, Roberts volunteered for MP duty in Germany, even though he was at the front of the line to leave.
"I had more points, 178 days in combat, ask me, 'Hey would you mind, let guys come home that had families."
It was because of that he got the chance to get to know the real German people.
"We got ready to come home, Germans filled streets, hugging necks, thanks for the job we had done, we didn't want this more than you did."
For E.T. Roberts, Germany surrendered on May 8, 1945. But it was six more weeks before he said goodbye to Europe for a three-day cruise back to the U.S. on an old German boat.
