You’re a Good Man, Sergeant: The World War II Combat Memoir of an Armored Infantryman in Patton’s Third Army

Sergeant Paul S. Porter experienced combat like few soldiers have lived to write about. Serving with the Fourth Armored Division in Company B, 53rd Armored Infantry Battalion, Porter and his light machine gun squad entered the front line of World War II on July 17, 1944, and were soon in the thick of the action. The Fourth fought through the hedgerows of Normandy before leading Patton’s Third Army in its breakout and pursuit toward the German border. The slugfests that followed as the Fourth advanced through the mud and battered villages of the Alsace-Lorraine region were Porter’s most difficult of the war. For his heroic actions in combat on December 4, 1944, Sergeant Porter was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross.

This memoir presents the full story of Porter’s extraordinary service in his own candid words, illustrated with family photographs. He paints a vivid portrait of a young man coping with the unique pressures of the battlefield. His candor when describing his officers and fellow soldiers provides a sober view of the dynamics within a team when comprised of individuals with diverse backgrounds and motives. Sergeant Porter has an intense desire to survive yet possesses a resolve to enter the fray and engage in combat eye-to-eye with the enemy.

Paul S. Porter was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross for his extraordinary heroism during WWII. He served with the famous U.S. Fourth Armored Division, the vanguard of Lt. General George S. Patton’s Third Army. Colleen C. Porter is an entrepreneur, investor, and franchisee of Bud’s Broiler in New Orleans. She is also a professional vocalist and composer...and the proud daughter of Sgt. Porter. Don M. Fox serves on the Board of Directors of the Army Historical Foundation and resides in Jacksonville, Florida.