European Stars And Stripes (Newspaper) - September 11, 1985, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Wednesday september 11, 1985 the stars and stripes Page 9 Wii survivor recalls Stormy past by Don Tate. Staff writer the scouting is Over. The clock ticks. And 40 years arc memory. I have seen a  says the Man with the thick German accent. There were several worse ways Peter Hoermann could have spent the last forty years. He could have spent them red or dead. Peter Hoermann lived and worked under the nazis then the russians and then the americans. It was our fault what happened in the War he says brow furrowing into tiny Trench links of regret. All our fault. In the occupation of Poland in Russia what happened to the jews. We Are Lucky that we arc still  and then peering intently through his glasses As though into the smoke and fire of the past he says it again slowly. We Are Lucky that we Are still alive " he talks about 19331937as if it were last night. About being a boy in the Hitler youth. Was there no Way to avoid the Hitler youth for a 10-year-old?" he shakes his head. In that time All youth were Hitler  moreover he says in an interview at Tempelhof Central Airport in Berlin most people in those Days were running blindly toward the fuehrer not away. Thousands were crying for Hitler. I remember walking along one Day and a mob went sweeping past me. All the people were very excited. " what s happening i asked. " Hitler is coming they cried happily. Of. Hitler is coming i turned around and walked in the opposite direct  the Hitler youth was disillusioning he said. New people were coming in. One year they were professing to be communists the next year they were 100 percent shouting stomping nazis. Then after the War you could not find a real nazi. All the big Mouths. They had All been forced into the  he could have become a member of the nazi party he says but after Hitler youth i wanted nothing More to do with parties. I was not a party person. I retired from parties at 13." but he could t retire from the War Effort not in the Gerry by of the third Reich. And the War in the Early Days was going so Well. The third Reich was rolling. We were winning so easy. Poland easy. France easy. I cannot say there was not a certain patriotic feeling in the  Hoermann. With a degree in mechanical Engi Neering was of More use to the fatherland in an air plane factory than As a gun toting Soldier. In those Days he was building Junker-87 dive bombers for the Luftwaffe in the hangars of Tempelhof. The Allied bombing of Berlin grew steadily worse a bomb exploded in hangar 5, and the As Sembly of planes was driven underground. They were working 12 hours a Day. Thundering nights a two for Sis to Thomai Farr Peter Hoermann War is terrible were spent in  basement air raid Shel ters. As the War wore on we grew so tired. Stress so much stress. People would die and nobody would know How it happened. War is terrible. Goering had said it would never happen that Berlin would be bombed. Goering was a Little wrong. Perhaps he was somewhat crazy. Hitler was wrong. Probably he was  but having wrong crazy leaders did not Stop germans from doing their duty he says because in that time it was forbidden even to joke about the third Reich. It was forbidden to Flap jaw about the fuehrer. You must understand there were inform cars everywhere. You talked Only to people you knew very very Well. Some workers at Tempelhof were making Small jokes about Hitler and one Day five of them were taken away and five of them Wert executed. Nearly to the end newspapers were still making Good propaganda about winning the War. Some people thought we still had thousands of air planes ready to Fly out of the rubble at a moment s  when the bombing of Berlin made building air planes impossible he was sent to a factory ask pc until the Day the russians were  by March 1945, the factories had stopped running. Was told i was now drafted in the army. 1 was Given a uniform a Rifle a pistol and Small rockets and told to Advance to the fighting line. Fighting line i had no training no experience fighting. 1 never advanced to the fighting line the fighting line advanced to me. We heard awful things about the russians. All around German soldiers went looking for americans to surrender  the War ended and he made his Way through the chaos Back to Berlin. The shouting was All Over the propaganda kaput. Like a dead place he says. Artillery squashed buildings smashed swastikas corpses in the rubble russians and Shell shocked hollow eyed germans looking for food shelter work and missing relatives. We were a Skinny people for a Long time. In the morning we ate dry bread. In the afternoon we ate bread and potatoes. In the evening we ate potatoes and bread. Water and Power was disconnected except for a Short time each Day. And everybody looking Over their shoulder afraid of the russians. The Best a person could think each Day was i am Lucky to be alive. I am Lucky to be alive " Hoermann managed to get a Job at his old Tempel Hof. Instead of building dive bombers he found him self repairing smashed streetcars in the hangars. Sometimes we worked but one hour a Day. The rest of the time we worked on surviving. Bread and potatoes potatoes and  things would get better. The russians would leave and he would go to work for the americans. After 40 years of distinguished service he has retired As Deputy chief of operations maintenance for civil engineering a Nice Normal sounding Job for a Man and a place that survived strutting nazis who could t take a joke vengeance crazed rus sians and the Thunder and lightning of american bombers. I have seen a lot says Peter Hoermann 64. What s the greatest difference Between the Ameri cans and the nazis and russians they replaced the answer is not mysterious. Working with the americans you can say what you think. And stay  after All the years at Tempelhof what will he and his wife of 38 years do now Well i have Aat Home he says voice fading off in contemplation and another out in a  a what at Home a what in the Field did he say guns Gar Dens he bursts out laughing. I have Gar  Peter Hoermann shakes his head pushes out a hand As though shoving even the idea of it forever from his thinking. Not guns. Please. No More of those.  3 College students fire questions at Reagan Washington a president Reagan has assured three College students that he does not favor any commitment of is. Troops to fight in Nicaragua or else where in latin America. The president in a radio interview taped monday for later broadcast Over College and Public radio stations also said that if be had two minutes to address the soviet people be would let them know the United states is not As aggressive As the soviet Media portrays it. Reagan spoke at the White House for 33 minutes with three students picked by the North american network a satellite broadcast service started last year. The interview will be broadcast on hundreds of tation sept. 19. The White House was expected to Issue a transcript possibly on tuesday. The students Para phrased the president s remarks in a news conference at the National press club. The students Cly Fernandez 18. Of Miami a Junior at the University of Miami Stephen s. Sanders 22. Of Chicago a Grad uate student at Indiana University in Bloo Mington and Jean a. Whalen 21, of Asb Tabitta Ohio a senior at John Carroll University in University Heights Ohio said they came away impressed with the Man and his facility for defusing Sticky questions. Whalen a political science major had sail beforehand that unlike the White House press corps the students will be looking for answers not inconsistencies to convey to their  but after sitting Down with the presi Dent in the Roosevelt room across from the Oval office she told reporters i can appreciate the position you re in. No matter How Many questions you ask him or How Many ways you ask him. That question if he does t want to answer it he won  he did t drop any  said Sanders who has been an intern for the Chicago Tribune Scripps Howard and the Knoxville Tenn news Sentinel. He always teems to look at the Bright Side of things. And to turn the questions to Bis advantage Sanders added noting he asked Reagan about criticism of the . Military buildup specifically that voiced by the outgoing Bishop of the episcopal Church in the United states. Reagan replied that the United states provides Morr. Aid to poor countries than the rest of the world combined Sanders said. Fernandez a daughter of cuban Immi Grants and the Florida slate Champion in extemporaneous debate posed the question about students fears of . Involvement in Nicaragua. Basically he said that he does not fore see any commitment in terms of sending toops into Central America in general As Well As latin America she said. She also asked Reagan what he would say if he had two minutes to address the soviet people. The White House expressed an interest in that possibility last week after time Magazine ran a lengthy inter View with soviet Leader Mikhail Gorba Chev. He basically said that the people in Russia. Arc Given a certain View. He believes that. Maybe we should let the people of Russia know that we Are not As aggressive As we seem to be she said. Whalen whose Home area of Cleveland has been hard hit by the decline of the steel Industry asked Reagan what the govern ment was doing to help Idle Blue Collar workers make the transition to a High technology Era. He quoted a lot of facts and figures and the improvement Over the last three years the unemployment s gone Down she re lated. I was Happy that he had something to say about All of this but i would have liked a Little bit More of a personal opinion of what can the government actually be  but she added the whole experience was tremendous. I think i be got a better opinion or at least a different opinion of our president now. I am just very Well impressed with the Man. I think that he was very fair and Hon est in Bis answers to us she said. Whalen said the president enjoined the students to Check his facts. She called that pretty surprising. I think that s what has improved my opinion of him  it was just delightful said Fernandez