In memory of the fallen on DDay

Lazylightningny

Masterpiece
Messages
2,257
Reaction score
2,105
Location
Downstate New York, Zone 6b
USDA Zone
6b
Nearly 10,000 allied forces fell on the beaches of Normandy that day. My grandfather was in a hospital in England with malaria. He somehow got wind of the impending attack, went awol from the hospital, and somehow managed to get to his comrades in arms on day 2 of the invasion. Luckily, he survived, but he lost many friends that day. Let's hope we never have to make war on such a grand scale ever again.
 

Brian Van Fleet

Pretty Fly for a Bonsai Guy
Messages
13,961
Reaction score
45,900
Location
B’ham, AL
USDA Zone
8A
My grandfather was also part of the second wave of the Normandy Invasion. He was supposed to be part of the first wave, but the “RMS Queen Elizabeth” was at port and had his ship blocked in, so he didn’t get out with the first wave.

He never talked about it until his last few years of life. Growing up, he always told us he was a “cook in Korea”. It wasn’t until about 2012 he told me the story of storming the beach; wading through the water and seeing “bodies stacked up like cord wood”. He told me how he spent that night silent, standing on a ledge with German soldiers above him, so close he could hear them speaking their language, could smell their cigarettes, and when they moved, dirt rained down on his helmet.

He later marched with General Patton on to Paris.

He was a good man, and I miss him very much. He died in January ‘18 at the age of 94.
D18441FC-A7CD-4371-B476-872203345A8C.jpeg
 

Lazylightningny

Masterpiece
Messages
2,257
Reaction score
2,105
Location
Downstate New York, Zone 6b
USDA Zone
6b
My grandfather was also part of the second wave of the Normandy Invasion. He was supposed to be part of the first wave, but the “RMS Queen Elizabeth” was at port and had his ship blocked in, so he didn’t get out with the first wave.

He never talked about it until his last few years of life. Growing up, he always told us he was a “cook in Korea”. It wasn’t until about 2012 he told me the story of storming the beach; wading through the water and seeing “bodies stacked up like cord wood”. He told me how he spent that night silent, standing on a ledge with German soldiers above him, so close he could hear them speaking their language, could smell their cigarettes, and when they moved, dirt rained down on his helmet.

He later marched with General Patton on to Paris.

He was a good man, and I miss him very much. He died in January ‘18 at the age of 94.
View attachment 246385
That's a great photo of him. Looks like an old time movie star.
 
Top Bottom