WWII Veteran gets award 80 years after liberating France from the Nazis

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by: Magee Hickey

Posted: Apr 26, 2024 / 10:39 PM EDT

Updated: Apr 26, 2024 / 10:40 PM EDT

BAYSIDE, QUEENS (PIX11) — For a 101–year–old Bayside Queens resident, it was the honor of a lifetime. 

WWII  veteran Jack Hausman received the highest honor possible from France for his bravery in liberating Europe from the Nazis in the 1940s, and Hausman is as humble as he is generous and kind.

It’s been more than 80 years since this Bensonhurst Brooklyn native helped liberate Europe during World War II, serving in Africa under General Patton. Hausman was drafted when he was just 20 years old and said he never wanted to kill anyone.

“When I was in the army, I didn’t aim at the Germans directly. We wanted to scare the hell out of them,” Hausman told PIX11 News. “We shot above their heads, and a lot of them gave up,” he added. 

In his Queens living room, the father of two, grandfather of four, and great-grandfather of seven received the French Legion of Honor, the highest French Order of Merit established in 1802 by Napoleon Bonaparte.

In liberating France and Europe during WWII, we are humbled and honored to award you the Legion of Honor,” Acting French Consul General Damien Laban said during the ceremony. 

“I accept this award for the 250 men,” Hausman said, holding back tears. “They did all the work,” he added. 

There were champagne toasts and celebrations. 

“We’re just so proud of him and so thankful that the French government has chosen to thank my father and all the others WWII for the sacrifices that they all made in liberating France from the Nazis during WWII,” Linda Margolis, Hausman’s daughter, told Pix11 News.

But why was this award so long coming?

“President Chirac, when he was in office, realized we did not do enough for all the veterans who saved France and Europe, and now it’s a rush to find them?” Laban, the acting French Consul, told PIX11 News. 

Jack Hausman has lived in the same house in Bayside Queens for 75 years. It’s been a life of generosity and devotion to family. They are life lessons not lost on his great-grandchildren.

“I realize how not selfish he was by helping liberate other countries,” Robbie Margolis, Jack Hausman’s 12-year-old great-grandson, told PIX11 News. 

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