and assigned as Colorado's assistant adjutant general for army and commander of the Colorado Army National Guard. Sparks held this position until retiring upon reaching the mandatory retirement age of 60 in 1977. Awards Sparks was a recipient of the Silver Star for heroism, as well as two awards of the Purple Heart. In addition, Sparks received the Croix de Guerre from the government of France. He received his Silver Star for heroism during combat in Italy in February 1944 while he was commander of Company E, 2nd Battalion, 157th Infantry. The citation for his Silver Star read: Dachau liberation In September 1956, news of a planned reunion of 3rd Battalion, 157th Infantry Regiment scheduled for Denver in October included details of Sparks's role in the liberation of the Dachau concentration camp. On April 29, 1945, units of 3rd Battalion, 157th Infantry Regiment, commanded by Sparks, were ordered to secure the Dachau camp; he led his troops as they entered the camp over a side wall. At about the same time, Brigadier General Henning Linden led soldiers of the 222nd Infantry Regiment of the 42nd (Rainbow) Infantry Division to accept the formal surrender of the camp from German Lieutenant Heinrich Wicker. Linden was traveling with Marguerite Higgins and other reporters, and as a result, Linden's detachment generated international headlines by accepting the surrender of the camp. More than 30,000 Jews and political prisoners were freed. Since 1945, adherents of the 42nd and 45th Division versions of events have argued over which unit was the first to liberate Dachau. Death and burial Sparks died of pneumonia at St. Anthony Central Hospital in Denver, Colorado, on September 25, 2007. He was buried at Crown Hill Cemetery in Wheat Ridge, Colorado. Family In 1941, Sparks married Mary Blair. They were the parents of four children. Legacy Sparks's wartime experiences were the subject of a 2020 Netflix miniseries, The Liberator. Sparks's role in the Dachau liberation is also the subject of Alex Kershaw's book The Liberator, upon which the miniseries is based. In 2008, the United States Post Office at 10799 West Alameda Avenue in Lakewood, Colorado was named in Sparks's honor. See also Dachau liberation reprisals References Additional reading Beuchner, Emajean Jordan (1991). Sparks. Metairie, LA: Thunderbird Press, Inc. External links McClearn, William C. "An Oral History: Felix L. Sparks", The Colorado Lawyer, October 1998 "Dachau and Its Liberation: Personal account by Felix