Author Description

Every war has at least two sides, and both experience constant heartache and occasional glory. Sometimes the cruelty of war just doesn't make sense, and sometimes the little blessings help soldiers make it through another day of searing-hot or freezing-cold temperatures. With 42 years in the military, Lt. Col. Gil Wilke has first-hand experience of the parts of war glorified in movies and the parts of war the average civilian never hears about. He has collected stories from both friend and foe, and neither is identified here. The story could be told by any side during any war through recent history. The common threads include the seeming randomness of events, some choices saving lives, other choices costing lives. A can of tomatoes stops a bullet meant for one soldier, while a limb from an isolated tree falls at the wrong second and kills another. Lieutenant Colonel Gil Wilke was born in Secaucus, New Jersey. While still attending Union Hill High School, he enlisted in the U.S. Navy Reserve and went to sea for the first time. On his twenty-first birthday he enlisted in the Army, and after attending Officers Training School at Fort Benning, Georgia. he was commissioned a second lieutenant. He served in the Korean War, returned home and married Etta Leshowitz in 1955. After the couple had two daughters, Lee and Lauren., Wilke was then solicited by a neighbor to join the Army Reserve Engineer Battalion, from which he retired as Battalion Commander. In 1973, Wilke earned a diploma from Command and General Staff College and decided to continue his civilian education at Fairleigh Dickinson University. While in college, he wrote his first story, "Hector of Company L." In 1990, he retired from the military after a 42-year career. He and Etta live in Manahawkin, N.J.