[2] Known for his astuteness in battle, which he attributed to his rigorous training by British Commandos while in the 29th Ranger Battalion, Womer was never injured in combat.

He was the only one that remained in the Filthy Thirteen and participated in Operation Market-Garden in September 1944, the Battle of the Bulge in December 1944, and the advance on Hitler's home in Berchtesgaden, Germany, in 1945.

His father, William Walker (“Walk”) Womer, worked as an open-hearth melter in a steel mill in Lewistown.

[5] In 1922, Womer was still living in Sunbury with his aunt; his father decided to move the family from Lewistown, Pennsylvania to a small row house in Sparrows Point, Maryland.

[5] Womer began his employment in 1936 at Bethlehem Steel and, except for the four-and-a-half years he served in the military during World War II, continued working there until he retired in 1982.

Soon after Theresa's death, Womer moved from their home in Dundalk to a single family house in Fort Howard, Maryland.

The 29th Infantry Division billeted him at Tidworth Barracks, an old military camp in Wiltshire, England, and he continued to undertake training exercises.

In late January 1943, the volunteers were sent to Scotland for five weeks of intensive training under combat experienced British Commando instructors at Glen Spean.

Womer said this training was the most brutal he ever experienced, but credited it for enabling him to think strategically and tactically during combat, and saving his life and the lives of others.

[5] In early September 1943, Womer was asked to go to the British Commando Depot at Dorlin House in Acharacle, Argyll, to assist in the training of Ranger recruits.

Jake McNiece, the buck sergeant of the Filthy Thirteen,[9] had heard that Womer was trained as a Commando and had been in the 29th Ranger Battalion.

Womer relied heavily on his Commando training during these battles; he credits it with his own survival[11] and enabling him to keep many other men from being killed.