June 6, 1944 D-Day 75 year Anniversary We Remember

[devldog]

75 Years ago tomorrow the Allied Forces stormed the Beaches at Normandy France and slammed headlong into the Nazi Axis. This was not easily accomplished and was not without a terrible price. These young men that took part in a great part of our History helped to Destroy the Nazi War Machine and helped to Liberate France from the Nazi's and helped to keep other countries free. We Must NEVER FORGET what these young soldiers did and at what cost. Many were never able to return home and remain there to this day and others were terribly wounded. These men were truly of the Greatest Generation. God Bless them al!.

 

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[GB1]

God Bless them all!. My grandfather was a Pt-boat driver for D-day

 

[Kansas_Jayhawk]

God Bless them all!. My grandfather was a Pt-boat driver for D-day

Amen. A generation of selfless people

 

[ECS]

My father was a Medic on Omaha Beach- all he ever told me is that his sister's husband died in his arms that day.
That's it, nothing more.
His metal Medic kit, which he gave me, had a bullet hole in its lid on the edge of the white circled red cross.

 

[davest]

there's a reason they are called the "greatest generation". I salute them

 

[huntsman53]

My Dad's first cousin, Tom, made landings on one of the beaches at Normandy on D-Day and fought across France to Paris. He was also involved in the first beach landings in Italy and North Africa with his Unit. Tom was highly decorated for his actions in WWII but he was never the same. Although my' Dad volunteered, they would not take him because he was crippled in his' right hand and lower arm. Many of my' other family members served and quite a few were wounded or killed. God Bless all those that served and sacrificed and also their' families at home that sacrificed as well.

Added Note: I have Tom's Mother's Bible which was given to my' Mom to keep and it has much of the War Records of where Tom fought during WWII. I will try to look through it and see if I can find out what Unit or Units Tom served with and post an update. I have never been to sure of the timeline of the events, so corrected that but the info may be in the Bible.

 

[Megalodon]

My uncle survived the landing but lost his left leg and had problems with it for the rest of his life. Never talked about it - but of everyone in the family, he was the one who hated automatic transmissions and he was restricted to them.

 

[RustyRelics]

God bless the valiant, courageous, brave, selfless and heroic men, who landed on those beaches, 75 years ago today.

 

[RustyRelics]

 

[sandchip]

It's impossible for me to say enough good things about the troops that sacrificed so much that day and in fact, all the ones that served in WWII. That the first wave lost 91% of its men, the second 80%, and so on until the sixth wave was able to break through speaks volumes about the men who would not back down no matter what. I use the term "men" and they were of the highest degree, but at the same time, so young, almost still kids, especially in the eyes of their mothers who also felt the far-reaching ripple effects of the sacrifices these guys made. Having a father who served in the 71st Infantry made me appreciate, but as generations accumulate between then and now, and children not being taught just how important this war was, well, you guys get it... I gotta get back to work.

 

[namxat]

Just out of interest,

Has or had anybody relatives that fought in the Hürtgen Forest battles later on during the campaign?

Have been there a few times and trekked along some of the fighting areas. Just looking no detecting. Too dangerous for me and disrespectful since it is the only battlefield in west Germany were still undiscovered remains are found.

Greets Namxat

 

[huntsman53]

Just out of interest,

Has or had anybody relatives that fought in the Hürtgen Forest battles later on during the campaign?

Have been there a few times and trekked along some of the fighting areas. Just looking no detecting. Too dangerous for me and disrespectful since it is the only battlefield in west Germany were still undiscovered remains are found.

Greets Namxat

Thanks for being respectful to all those who lost their' lives on that battlefield on both sides and especially those whose remains may still be there! That is likely a very hard question/query to answer. Many of our' relatives that fought in WWII never discussed when and where they fought, how many people they killed or saw killed and especially how many buddies they lost during the war. Many of these brave men's families just accepted that and never obtained any Service Records for their' family members that fought and without a specific Commendation or Award with Letter during the battles there, they would never know.

 

[huntsman53]

My Dad's first cousin, Tom, made landings on one of the beaches at Normandy on D-Day and fought across France to Paris. He then went on to make the first beach landings in Italy and North Africa with his Unit. Tom was highly decorated for his actions in WWII but he was never the same. Although my' Dad volunteered, they would not take him because he was crippled in his' right hand and lower arm. Many of my' other family members served and quite a few were wounded or killed. God Bless all those that served and sacrificed and also their' families at home that sacrificed as well.

I can understand the trauma that all soldiers go through when they are in battles but it has been proven that talking about what happened helps those with PTSD and other psychological problems work through them to get better. It is an afront to them that served then and even today, that they cannot get the help they need.

We always called my' Dad's first cousin Tom (who was my' second cousin), Uncle Tom because he was almost two years older than Dad and spent a lot of time with us because he was so messed up from the war. He told one story of an event during the war and I cannot recall him ever divulging any other stories or information. Here is the story as best I can remember: Tom and his' Unit fought across France and liberated a small town some distance from Paris and were told to hold the town until they got new orders. Being liberated, the town's folk were very appreciative and provided soldiers from Tom's Unit and others that were there to hold the town with plenty of beverage and accompaniment (i.e. single and widowed ladies) in a small Inn. Over a three night period, a German Sniper killed several American soldiers as well as several French ladies when they passed by windows while dancing but they could never pinpoint the Sniper. Tom said that the very next day, he and some other soldiers went into the town and borrowed some mannequins from a shop, dressed some in U.S. Army uniforms and some in French attire, placed them on Piano dollies. They built blinds all around the outside of the Inn and everyone got into position just before dark. Most of the soldiers manned the positions watching for for the light of gunfire in the distance while a few other soldiers and French ladies inside the Inn used ropes to pull the mannequins back and forth inside across windows imitating people dancing by the windows. Once the Sniper got into position and zeroed in on a window and target of opportunity, the Sniper fired. The soldiers outside marked where the gunfire came from and everyone on that side of the Inn fired everything they had at where the gunfire came from. It was quite the rest of the night with no more gunfire from the Sniper and the next morning, all of the American soldiers stalked their way through the woods to locate the Sniper's hide and hopefully the Sniper. Tom said that they found the Sniper dead and they were totally blown away that the Sniper was actually a German Fraulein (young lady). After several more days in the small town, they were ordered to advance on Paris and never saw any of the town's folk ever again.

 

[devldog]

I'll try not to be too long winded with this. I'm a retired Firefighter and some years ago while answering a call to an elderly couples home, I saw some small frames hung on the wall next to the fireplace as we began to leave. I spotted what I believed to be a Purple Heart medal and upon a closer look, I saw that it was. I saw the elderly gentleman watching me out the corner of my eye when I began to ask if he was the recipient of the Purple Heart. Before he answered I looked down just beneath his medal in another frame and there was his shoulder patch. The Big Red One. I swung around to face the gentleman and asked " You sir, we're in the Big Red One? " The old vet was smiling and his eyes filled with tears in appreciation for being appreciated. I grabbed the old gets hand with both of mine as I shook his hand and Thanked him, his comrades, and his generation for all they did during the D-Day Invasion and throughout WWII. The vet told me that he was a young Lt. in charge of a mortar platoon when they made the landing. He went on to say that if they had all been gambling men on this day that they would have all lost their shirts. He went on to say that at first they never would have believed that they would have been able to overcome the terrible odds and obstacles that awaited the Allies. The gentleman said that it wasn't until the Rangers began scaling the cliffs and knocking out gun posts that the Allies were able to push forward and take a foothold in the beach. I stood in awe. Not only was I speaking with an eyewitness to a vital part of our History, I was speaking to a Participant.

 

[dirtlooter]

I met an elderly man in a Long Island nursing home about 12 years ago. He had been living in the nursing home for several years as did his late wife. He explained to me how she had been his nurse after he was wounded at Normady and that he married her afterwards. I thought that is was a very awesome story. There are those today that fail to grasp the seriousness of what those men and women did back then and at what cost just so that they can do what they do today. Told the wife that I needed to watch "To Hell and Back" again.