Military Records: James L. Womack, 1976, Winn Parish, LA. Submitted by Greggory E. Davies, 120 Ted Price Lane, Winnfield, LA 71483 ********************************************** Copyright. All rights reserved. http://usgwarchives.net/copyright.htm http://usgwarchives.net/la/lafiles.htm ********************************************** From: June 16, 1976 Winn Parish Enterprise News-American James Womack Chosen Disabled Vet of 1976 James L. Womack, Winnfield attorney, has been named the nation's Outstanding Disabled Veteran for 1976. The following article about Womack appears in the June issue of the DAV, the Disabled American Veterans magazine: If a man can't see to read and has no hands to write, how can he succeed in a profession that requires voluminous reading and writing? Everyone who knew James Womack asked that question when he decided to study law in 1950, everyone but Womack. Five years earlier, near the end of World War II, a mine explosion had cost Womack both of his arms, the left one near the shoulder and the right one below the elbow. He also lost his right eye and has only faint vision in his left. Both ear drums were punctured, causing some loss of hearing. But Womack wouldn't listen to anyone who said he couldn't become an attorney. And today, besides his prosperous law practice, he is involved in several successful business enterprises as well as community and youth activity programs. That's why the Disabled American Veterans recently named James L. Womack, 50, of Winnfield, La., the nations Outstanding Disabled Veteran for 1976. An independent committee made the selection from nominations submitted by DAV departments throughout the country. The committee was made up of Ralph E. Hall, director, Veterans Employment Service, Department of Labor; Joseph LeMasurier, director, Veterans Programs, U. S. Civil Service Commission; and Dr. Daniel Ruge, a physician at the Veterans Administration Central Office in Washington, D. C. Womack will receive the award at the DAV National Convention in Miami, Fla., Aug. 1-6. Commenting on the selection of the Louisiana attorney for the honor, DAV National Commander Lyle C. Pearson said, "Mr. Womack exemplifies the characteristics it takes to overcome severe disabilities. He's an example of what pure determination will do. He's one of those people who just refuse to be held down." Born in Sikes, La., in 1925, Womack joined the U. S. Army in 1944, and was married shortly after that. He saw a lot of combat with the 63rd Infantry Division, including the Battle of the Bulge and the Battle of the Saar River. After Womack returned to action following recuperation from a minor wound that earned him his first Purple Heart, a German mine blew up in his face on March 2, 1945. That mine took his arms and his vision and impaired his hearing. A blow like that would stop many men, but Womack came back fighting. In a hospital rehabilitation program, he learned to operate a lathe, and turned out some attractive furniture, feeling the wood with his lips as he shaped each piece. Following his discharge from an Army hospital in July 1946, he returned to Sikes, where he raised cattle and ran a farm for a few years. Was he discouraged when he returned to civilian life? "For a while I was scared and I felt a little sorry for myself," Womack recalls. "But my wife, Geraldine, gave me a lot of support, and I got over it pretty soon." But, Womack wanted more out of his life than he was getting, and he decided to study for a career in law. After a long search for a college that would accept him with his handicaps, he entered Louisiana Tech in 1950. However, his troubles with officialdom hadn't ended. Authorities at the school in the Veterans Administration said studying law would be impossible. "Later I found a doctor was telling these people I'd fail and probably have a nervous breakdown because of it," Womack remembers. "But, I'd have lost my mind faster if they had held me back. I made good grades my first year, taking the same courses as pre-law students. So, when the VA said they wouldn't pay for me to take pre-law, I told them I'd do it without their help." That's exactly what he did. After six months of holding out, the VA saw how mistaken they were about Womack, admitted it, and returned to his aid. He entered law school at Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge in 1952. Graduating fourth in his class in 1955, he received the Order of the Coif and returned to Winnfield to set up a law office. Those first tastes of success had simply fired his ambition, and he has since built a large legal practice. "In court he relies a great deal on his sharp memory. He has a memory like you wouldn't believe," says Mabel Evans, one of Womack's secretaries who reads to him from his law books. "He catches things that people with sight never notice," remarks his other secretary, Ruby Garner, who drives Womack to court or to meetings if they are too far to walk. Womack walks anywhere in Winnfield by himself, and gets along very well with a hook prosthesis on his right arm only. "They left one just gets in my way," he says. Womack's family is his pride. His adopted son, Michael, 24, is following in his father's footsteps, and graduated from L.S.U. law school on May 14. His daughter, Angela, is 9. When Michael was a Cub Scout, Womack and his wife became interested in the scouting program. "Geraldine was a den mother, and I was a scoutmaster," Womack relates. "Then I started organizing Scout Troops and Explorer Posts." Active in scouting ever since, Womack received one of scouting's highest honors, the Silver Beaver Award, in 1968. He has also volunteered his services in behalf of the Salvation Army, the Heart Fund, and the Louisiana Society for Crippled Children. One year he acted as state chairman for the Easter Seals Campaign. Womack is a member of the Kiwanis and several times he has served as president of the Winn Industrial Development Corporation, which encourages industry to locate in Winn Parish. He also serves as president of the board of Winn Academy. Active in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints as patriarch for the Shreveport, La., Stake, he lays great importance on the fact that his daughter was born nine months and two days after he and his wife became Mormons in 1966, even though doctors had told him they'd never have children on their own. In addition to his church and community activities, Womack is also involved in several veterans organizations. He presently serves as adjutant-treasurer of Winnfield DAV Chapter 26, which he helped organize one year ago.