Nefarious, you must be right, Born in 1930, WWII ended in 45'. Walter would have been 15. He must have been 13 when conscripted. I remember him telling me he was big for his age, maybe the Germans thought he was 16 and that is what I am remembering.
In any case, I think this underscores why we must retell the experiences of our elders, so that the information is not lost to time.
Cheers to everyone.