Today we commemorate the 70th anniversary of D-Day. Seventy years ago – on June 6, 1944 – some 160,000 Allied troops established a foothold on the beaches of Normandy, France. That foothold was hard-won, with more than 9,000 Allied soldiers wounded or killed. But when the sun set on the French coast, more than 100,000 Allied soldiers already had begun their march across Europe – a march that ended in Hitler’s defeat less than a year later. Sadly, there are fewer and fewer D-Day veterans each year. With D-Day commemorations held every five years, this likely will be the final time that a significant number of veterans journey to Normandy to remember their colleagues who died on that bloody day. Many of those Americans were laid to rest in the U.S. war cemetery in the village of Colleville-sur-Mer. In that hallowed ground, 9,387 young Americans are buried. Many were teenagers when they died. My father was a World War II veteran. I remember and salute his service and sacrifice – and the service and sacrifice of so many others who lost their lives to preserve our freedoms. We will never forget their bravery.
Posted on: Fri, 06 Jun 2014 16:34:27 +0000
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