U.S. Medic Is Still Local Hero In France

63 Years Later, Townspeople Still Remember American Who Saved A Cow

(CBS)  It was D-Day that set the stage, 63 years ago today. It allowed one American soldier to advance into France and win his own small victory — one that never made history except in the tiny French village of Batilly, population 300.

That one man in uniform is retired Capt. Sidney LaPook, who served in the 3rd Army 20th Corps, CBS News correspondent Richard Schlesinger reports.

"We were the Ghost Corps; we went like a bat outta hell," LaPook said.

He ended up in France in 1944 as a dentist who served as the outfit's medic. It was Nov. 13. During a shelling attack, LaPook pulled an injured soldier out of the line of fire, getting nicked by shrapnel himself.

But he became a local hero that day after saving a more unlikely patient — another victim of shrapnel.

"You do what ya gotta do. And this was a wound that had to be closed up. And so, I closed it up," LaPook said.

Did he hesitate?

"Not at all," he said. "Not at all."

But LaPook's patient that day was a local — one of the local cows.

At any point in this process, did he think "what in the world am I doing?"

"No. I felt this is what I should be doing. There is a somebody; this somebody is a cow. If it had been a soldier, I would've done that," he said.

Say what you will, but in a farming community saving a cow is something people remember. And in the middle of a war, simple acts of kindness are hard to forget.

"Our kids were getting blown apart here and there, the Germans were getting blown apart, everybody was, he said. "And here I had an opportunity to do something I thought was good."

LaPook has been back to France several times since that day. On his latest trip, videotaped by his son, CBS News' Dr. Jon LaPook, the LaPook family tracked down some of the few survivors to see if they might still remember what he did.

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Read Dr. Jon LaPook's perspective of the story.

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They remembered.

Paulette Denat was a teacher in 1944. Her daughter Janine was a teenager. They were both eager to reminisce.

"I always trusted the Americans," Paulette said, "because they saved the cow."

On that last trip, LaPook's family sponsored a lunch for the citizens of Batilly, and many of them turned out to cement his place in the history of their tiny town.

He was awarded the Medal of Batilly; a high honor for one old American serviceman who helped hundreds of soldiers and civilians, including one resident who was very important to the ancestors of the citizens of Batilly — every single one of them.

[petera9]

I would hope that some readers would remember that the French were invaluable in the American Revolutionary War. The Battle of Yorktown wouldn't have been won without the French Fleet. I suspect the average frenchman has more empathy with the U.S.A. than the press would have us believe.

[mitch0927]

PeterA9,
I agree. We had to hold our own until the French arrived. The war would have lasted a lot longer and could have turned out much differently if it weren't for the French.

[random_radar]

The French gave us the Statue of Liberty as a gift, too. I was surprised that congress didn't send it back when they were renaming French Fries to Freedom Fries and all at the start of the Iraq war. The French people have been better friends to the American people than anyone else in the world.

[joelhar]

It is wonderful to read about human kindness, regardless of country of origin, race, color, creed and now, species. A good man is being honored for an act of kindness. A farming community had a valuable resource saved. Well-deserved kudos!

[adian1-2009]

This is a really beautiful moving story. It says a lot about that courageous soldier full of generosity. And that the French remember that occurrence with sympathy and gratefulness says what the whole world should know: French people are the nicest people in the world. It is just that US government, as of lately, has missed people sensitive enough to understand, or at least make an effort to understand, the French people. A lifetime would not be enough to count how much the entire world owes to France and its people. In all fields of human endeavours, absolutely in all. In fact, like DeGaulle once said while supporting political independence for the Province of Quebec: culturally we are two millenia ahead of America. And they certainly are!!

[dkwillia]

Adien,
Have you lost your mind? I have been living in France for more than a year, and have traveled throughout the world. I have never seen a population so negative about Americans, and so indignant about history beyond their shores. I live and work only one hour from Normandy beach, yet of the over 40 French people who work for me, only THREE have ever visited the memorial there. The over 9000 white crosses there is one of the most sobering sights I have ever seen, and I do not think that the average French citizen has much appreciation for the sacrafice made there.
:Culturally... two millenia ahead of America" ??? Little wonder that the Allies left DeGaulle completely out of the planing for the D-Day invasion. As the saying goes, "France is a wonderful place... if it weren't for the people". Thank God Dr. LaPook was able to save the cow, but the fact that the French remember and appreciate that, more than the incredible human sacrafice, speaks volumes about them... "culturally".
DKW

[slevinemd]

I can't believe it.
We moved to the midwest from New York and occaisionaly have the opportunity to see the CBS Evening News.
What a thrill to see the greatest dentist ever, as well as a wonderful, kind and gracious gentleman, as a feature on the news.
The heck with the cow, re-open your office I haven't been the same since you retired.
Please contact, it will be great to be in touch when we visit NY