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It is the day of the greatest invasion in history as the Allied troops have gone ashore on the Normandy Coast of France and descended on parachutes into the fields behind enemy lines. Today we begin the march across Europe to defeat Nazi Germany:
http://www.army.mil/d-day/
Please take a moment today to remember those who fought in this terrible but very necessary battle against the evil forces of the Axis Powers.
I have great uncles that died in that war to maintain our freedom. My gratitude to them and all the men and women that continue to serve and die for this country.
God bless them all.
. . . these men came here - British and our allies, and Americans - to storm these beaches for one purpose only, not to gain anything for ourselves, not to fulfill any ambitions that America had for conquest, but just to preserve freedom. . . . Many thousands of men have died for such ideals as these. . . but these young boys. . . were cut off in their prime. . . I devoutly hope that we will never again have to see such scenes as these. I think and hope, and pray, that humanity will have learned. . . we must find some way . . . to gain an eternal peace for this world. (Eisenhower: A Soldier's Life, by Carlo D'Este, p. 705.)
Amen, Jim!
While fishing the Tulpehocken this weekend, I was treated to flyovers by what appeared to be 4 Navy dive bombers, a P-47 Thunderbolt, a B-29, and a P-51 Mustang. The P-47 and P-51 were in the D-day paint. It was humbling to think of how many young men flew these planes into hell and how many never made it back.
Here's to my Uncle Marty.....47th Infantry Regiment, 9th Infantry Division, wounded later in the war in the Hurtgen Forest. Thanks for everything your generation did. Say hi to dad who never made it overseas, but was in the National Guard here in the States ensuring all the supplies and equipment made it to Europe. Thanks.
Ken
My late good friend H. G. "Pete" White went in with the 82nd earned two Purple Heart in the 18 months he was there lugging a BAR around, lost the ring finger on his left hand and took a round that went through his scrotum. Came home, got married to one of the Clinch Mountain TN girls and had a son, who served in Vietnam in the Army. Pete never woke up after his last heart surgery about 2 years ago. We spent some great time on the TN River around Muscle Shoal chucking plastic worms and assorted hardware.