Submitted by Amy Cairns
Summit has started a Hometown Heroes program to honor our local veterans. From Memorial Day through July 4 2018, banners with an image and service dates for veterans will be displayed along Deforest Avenue, Summit, New Jersey.
This year, the City of Summit honored Robert Max, one of their hometown heroes, at our Memorial Day ceremony for his outstanding service to our country.
Robert Max is a 94-year old World War II veteran and survivor of a Nazi slave labor camp. He enlisted in the U.S. Army when he was a 21-year-old college student. An accomplished musician, he ended up in the Fort Dix Band playing alongside top big band musicians. Although he could have remained stateside, Max opted to fight in Europe. He was involved in three military campaigns, including the Battle of the Bulge where he was captured by the Nazis. Forced to repair bombed out railroad tracks, Max marched hundreds of miles and worked in the bitter cold, enduring nearly four months without a coat, sufficient food, or any shelter at night. He went from 155 pounds to 89 pounds before his escape to a nearby home where he was rescued by American liberators.
Robert Max has been awarded the Purple Heart with the oak leaf cluster, three bronze campaign battle stars and the New Jersey Distinguished Service Medal.
