Thanks very much for posting that again, Gene. In my wanderings in France, I've found the French in general to hold onto memories of their American (and other allied) liberators. I spent the summer of 1976 in France with a group of high school French teachers. I think that the French may have made more of our bicentennial than we did in America. Virtually every Frenchman or woman I met, on learning I was American, offered their congratulations on our bicentennial. That summer there was a hit song on French radio: "Si les Ricains n'etaient pas la". (If the Americans hadn't been there.) Reminding the French that they might still be giving the Nazi salute if not for D-Day. We spent much of the summer in Angers, where we were received by the mayor. I was elected to speak for the American teachers. I mentioned the popular song, adding that we in America likewise should not forget how France helped us during our own Revolutionary War.
It's been a long time since I visited the 82d Museum at Ft Bragg. I found one very simple display very touching: An urn of dirt, free soil from Ste Mere Eglise, dedicated to the men who liberated the town.
The monument to your father must be very special to you and your family.
One thing I've never quite understood about D-Day is how Allied Intelligence failed to recognize the difference between British and French hedgerows. Tragically, that was a critical difference for the Allies, especially the Airborne units. Hard to imagine worse terrain for landing gliders.
Last edited by L. Brown; 06/12/23 07:11 AM.
