World War II veterans remember: Charles Ward, WWII veteran who serviced in Europe with Gen. Patton's army. 

He had come to Reims looking for leftover Germans.

But instead, all 1st Lt. Charles Ward found was a humble priest.

Just hours after German troops evacuated the French city, Ward and his sergeant became the first Americans to set foot in Reims’ fabled 700-year-old cathedral in four years, since the occupation began.

The priest there was ecstatic to meet them.

In recognition of the 70th anniversary of the end of World War II in 2015, the Tulsa World is trying to capture and preserve some of the personal stories of veterans living in the Tulsa area.

Stories in the series "Serving Our Country: World War II Veterans Remember" will be collected at tulsaworld.com/ww2veterans.

Article written by Tim Stanley on Tulsa World. WW2live has special and granted permission from the Tulsa World to use part of this article and this video.