Flight to freedom by Chief Master Sgt. Thomas Pucci AIA/XR Kelly Air Force Base, Texas

The wall was more than just bricks. A panaramic view of the obstacles the 14-year-old had to overcome on his flight to freedom.

My close friend, Army Specialist 4th Class Harry Knights, decided to experiment with his new camera. He wanted to take some pictures of the Berlin Wall, so he went to an area not far from our apartment where a tall platform stood for visitors to see into East Berlin.

After focusing his camera and scanning the area through his lens, he noticed a young boy on the East Berlin side of the wall. The boy was acting strange. Several times he had crossed the street by the barricade and he kept glancing over his shoulder. Suddenly, the boy ran to the corner, picked up a homemade ladder that he had hidden and ran to the wall.

It all happened so fast that the next thing anyone knew, he was up on top of the wall. He threw over his ladder and jumped the twelve feet down into the security zone. Everyone held their breath and prayed he was not hurt as he lay there motionless in the dirt.

Suddenly, the East German border guards began to shoot at him from their tower. He sprang to his feet and ran as fast as he could, but he had to slow down when he came to the area of the security zone that was mined.

From the West Berlin side, you could see the path the soldiers used at night to go through the mine field, and the boy followed it exactly. By now the Americans who had gathered on the platform and on their balconies started screaming at the guards. After making it through the mined section, the boy then had to climb two walls to get to freedom. Undaunted despite the bullets landing all around him, the young boy scrambled to safety.

When he finally came to the top of the American side of the wall, he was greeted with shouts and hugs and tears. Never before had an East German received such a welcome.

Just as suddenly as he had started his journey, two men appeared at his side. They showed us their credentials. They worked for the West Berlin authorities and they took him into custody and would take care of him.

For the next three days, the Americans who had watched this miraculous escape were beside themselves. Never before had any of them witnessed such a heroic and dangerous dash to freedom. Harry developed his pictures, and several were printed in newspapers and magazines.

Then it happened. We were all stunned. The morning newspaper's headlines read, "East German Escapee Returned to East Berlin." We could not believe our eyes. It couldn't be true.

"You can't send him back," we cried. "He risked his life for freedom." Several phone calls later, we learned the truth. The West Berlin government had an administrative treaty that stipulated that any escapee under the age of 16, must be returned because they were considered to be minors, and they legally belonged to their parents. This young man was only 14.

I can not tell you how we felt that day. Words cannot express what was going through our minds. Although the Americans did nothing more than scream and shout at the border guards and throw rocks at the East German reinforcements, they felt a bond with this brave young boy. His dash for freedom was somehow tied up with our commitment to serve our country in areas like West Berlin.

That day the "Cold War" became more than a political phrase. It was no longer the U.S. government against Communism-- we were personally involved.

It was us against a cruel government that took back a 14-year-old boy who had risked his life for freedom.

For the next several weeks, rumors about what happened to the boy when he returned were everywhere.

I honestly do not know what happened to him, but I can tell you that 12 years later, when the Berlin Wall came crashing down, the spirit of a courageous 14-year-old boy, and every other human who ever risked his or her life for freedom, was forever set free.

May Spokesman On-Line