Joseph Picard was a teenager when the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor in December 1941. Unlike some of his peers, Picard was neither excited to join the service nor dreading it. He just accepted that he would need to serve.

After completing basic training, Picard was assigned to the 552nd Field Artillery Battalion, working with the massive 240mm guns. The battalion was held out of D-Day operations and landed at Utah Beach in late June 1944.

In this edition of Veterans Chronicles, Picard takes us through all the work involved in assembling and operating the 240mm guns. He also walks us from Utah Beach through the Battle for St. Lo and the Allied drive to Paris.

Picard also describes the devastating combat at the Battle of Aachen, losing his best friend in combat, and the chaos and bitter cold at the Battle of the Bulge.