Several years ago, when I was in Atlas Cement Company Memorial Museum, Mr. and Mrs. William Hoffman visited. William, at one time, was the manager of the Whitehall Cement Company, now Amrize.

He presented the museum with some rare photos relating to the history of the Whitehall Cement Company. Some photos dated back to 1906.

William was raised in a Lehigh Portland Cement Company home in Fogelsville. My older readers may remember the solid structures on the tree-lined road leading into Fogelsville.

William’s father, Stanley, started at the Lehigh plant as a laborer, sweeping box cars. Wanting to improve his status, he purchased volumes of books on chemistry from a correspondence school, spending his after-work hours reading and studying the material.

Workers didn’t have the leisure time we enjoy today, as work hours were long — 10- and 12-hour days were common. Eventually, hard work enabled the young man to gain a position in the laboratory. Later, he advanced to chief chemist — a field his son William would pursue in later years.

“My father attended a one-room school, but I was able to attend Fogelsville Elementary School, a palace compared to my father’s school,” William said. “Our class attended Allentown High School. Upper Macungie Township paid our bus fare; we traveled to high school on a Lehigh Valley Traction bus.”

I asked William about Allentown High School. He replied, “Our principal was Mr. Hamm, and the students were there to learn.”

In 1944, William asked his parents if he could enlist in the U.S. Army. His parents agreed, and he entered the Army at the age of 17. The Army sent him to Johns Hopkins University for six months and later to Virginia Tech for three months. The program was called the Army Specialized Training Program Reserve.

In 1944, many college classrooms were empty, as most young men were in the Armed Services.

William’s basic training was at Camp Wheeler in Georgia. The basic training was in jungle warfare, preparing the men to fight the Japanese in the Pacific.

“Fortunately, the United States had the atomic bomb and President Truman used it to end the war,” William said.

As a result, William’s unit was never shipped abroad. William was sent to Virginia Military Institute and West Point to work with the Army Corps of Engineers. There, cadets worked on various engineering projects.

Each group had its own basketball and baseball teams.

“The Army engineers played the Armed Forces teams,” William said. “One of the players was tall and imposing; his name was Chuck Connors.”

Do you remember him starring in “The Rifleman” and in movies?

While on furlough, William had a life-changing meeting. His mother worked at Hess Brothers Department Store. She told William she arranged a date for him with a nice young lady in the gift-wrapping department. Her name was Miss Rhoda Cope.

Miss Cope would not agree to the date until she saw William. The young soldier appeared at Hess’s in his neat Army uniform, making a positive impression.

“It was my first date — and my last,” William said.

The young lady would soon have a bright gift-wrapped husband. The label read, “Mr. and Mrs. William Hoffman.”

In June of 1946, William was discharged at Fort Dix in New Jersey. He would return to his family’s home in Fogelsville when the war was over.

His first job on returning home was in the chemical lab of Lehigh Portland Cement Company in Fogelsville. With a keen interest in chemistry, William decided to take advantage of the GI Bill.

The law was named The Servicemen’s Readjustment Act of 1944. The law offered education at various levels including on-the-job training by paying tuition, living costs and incidentals depending on years of service and marital status.

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In two weeks, William will earn a college degree with the GI Bill.