D-Day remembrance

[Sparktrician]

As the 70th anniversary of D-Day arrives tomorrow, I think it appropriate to recognize all our members, regardless of nationality, who participated in the efforts to stop those that would strip from us the freedoms that we know today.  To them, and to all that have gone on, I offer a humble and heartfelt "Thank You!"  If any of your family members were a part of that effort, please take a moment to recognize them and all those that are not here to hear our words of thanks.  We owe them so very much. 

 

[stvrowe]

Amen

 

[jmarkflesher]

My wife's father, 93, tells of pushing through the (Arbon?) forest after the Battle of the Budge and coming upon Auschwitz. They did not know what they were looking at.  " They didn't tell us GI's anything." Most 17 to 25 years old. We are losing the greatest generation that ever lived ,one at a time. My father,90, served in the South Pacific.

 

[tbellemare]

My Father, may he rest in peace, was drafted into the Army and sent to the Battle of the Bulge. Luckily for him and me, he did OK. I miss him a lot. He was a man of wisdom, peace, strength (both physically and emotionally). and incredible generosity. We never had much but he always had time and stuff to give to those more needy.

I grew up planning and expecting to go to war in the Far East. I got lucky and it stopped... Literally, just in time!

I was raised thinking, "Thou Shalt Not Kill" and several other similar things.

I'm wondering if we shouldn't consider those thoughts more often, collectively...

Kind regards,

Tom

 

[Administrator_JSVN]

My home town is about 10 minutes from Bedford, VA, which is home to the National D-Day Memorial. It's located there because Bedford had more losses of life on D-Day, proportional to its population, than any other town. You can read more here. http://www.dday.org/history/why-bedford-the-bedford-boys

God bless all of our nations service people, past and present, for protecting our country and others.

Shane

 

[peter halle]

Every time I drive thru Bedford the radio gets turned off, the truck slows down, and thoughts flow.  My family wasn't here in the US at that time, but I wouldn't be here if it wasn't for the service and sacrifice of those in the armed services.  Thank you all!

Peter

 

[Paul G]

My parents were children in Sweden at that time, their families preparing to fight an invasion that never came and smuggling Jews out of Europe knowing full well they would probably pay the ultimate price for their actions if the Nazis came. Footage of D-day is always captivating for me, not from some sick blood lust but rather that we never ever forget that too many paid the ultimate price for our freedoms. The irony of this thread is that this forum is focused on products from a German company that was spun off from the German company Festo that was founded in 1925. It's hard to imagine that they had no involvement, even indirectly, in their own national war industry efforts during WWII whether they liked it or not. Glad we can put the battles behind us and come together in common interests like quality tools, but lets never ever forget those who died so we can now concern ourselves with woodworking rather than dictators.

 

[semenza]

Bedford was featured in a D-Day program I watched yesterday. I think they said 19 KIA out of 25 on D-Day.

Seth

 

[Ivanhoe]

+ 1 to all those thoughts above! My son and I just finished our yearly watching of band of brothers. Lots of teachable moments that he'll never learn in school and hopefully will be passed along to the next generation.

 

[wow]

My father-in-law ( who lived with us for a three years prior to passing away in January) spent 20 years in the service and was part of D-Day. This was a hard time of year for him.

Thoughts go out to all who served and are still with us, and especially to those who aren't...

 

[tjbier]

We have two 18 yrs olds at work and I asked them yesterday what is special about today? They had some funny awnsers, but then I said it was seventy years ago, and the both got it right away.
My grandparents were all in Holland at the time  and my grandma has told me about being so happy when D-Day happened.  Then turn to fear during operation market garden because it was close to them.
I try to talk to her about it because when they are all gone the stories go with them, even thpugh she doesnt really want to talk about it. She will just say "oh, the fighting".
We have it easy because the sacrifice of so many,
thank you Veterans

 

[Stephen B]

Bedford was featured in a D-Day program I watched yesterday. I think they said 19 KIA out of 25 on D-Day.

Seth

[size=12pt]
Was this "D Day Laid Bare"

Australian link is SBS catch up. Download App from this site.

http://www.sbs.com.au/ondemand/

Program has to be found under 'Documentaries' once App is open.

This is all free, however do not know if will work outside Australia. Could not find this program on UTube.

Be warned this documentary discusses the brutality and bravery as a calculative assessment.

 

[Bob Marino]

My father (sadly passed and greatly missed) lied about his age (he was a year too young to) and enlisted in the Air Force (then known as the Army Air Corps) and was a radioman who saw action in Western Europe on 1944/1945. I was just reading his mission diary and on most days/nights the incoming flak was incredible.  I've watched in both in amazement and horror the numerous D-Day documentaries, showing soldiers, many of whom were barely teenagers - especially among the first waves to arrive, being slaughtered in the hale of machine gun fire when the gates opened on their landing craft. But the bravery was exceptional and the good guys finally won, opening that second front.

And yes, the  D-Day and WW II survivors are passing by the day and at the 80th D-Day anniversary, there won't be more than a handful left, but I am always touched when seeing those vets who long ago lost that spring in their step, but never the pride and honor in serving their country in what is/was the last great war. We baby -boomers and later generations literally owe not only our freedom, but our lives to them.  They were and are the Greatest Generation and let them never be forgotten.

Bob

 

[mhch]

One thing I'd like to remind people.

Foreword: My father was a Jew born in Germany and who left this country when he was 18 in 1933, the last year he saw his parents alive. Plus I also personnally know of a man who participated to the invasion on Omaha Beach. He died a few years ago. And I have absolutely no link with whatever left wing or Eastern country people.

So ... despite what we may think of past and current Soviet/Russian politics and political people !!

D-Day would have probably not existed nor be succesfull without the heavy fighting the Nazis were enduring on the East Front. Their air forces were so busy in the East that they weren't available be used in Normandy. And about half of the total amount of deaths during WWII was in the Soviet Unions.

So on D-Day we must remember of all people around the world who were involved in its success.

 

[Paul G]

Yea, Stalingrad was horrific. Keep in mind the US and other Allies like Australia and New Zealand were also fighting in the Pacific. Germany wasn't the only one fighting two fronts