Tag: D-DAY

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I Came Across a WWII Veteran, That I Found Out I Knew For Over 65 Years.

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Military news…

Six Killed After Vintage Military Aircraft Collide at Dallas Air Show

Emergency crews raced to the crash scene at the Dallas Executive Airport, about 10 miles from the city’s downtown. News footage from the scene showed crumpled wreckage of the planes in a grassy area inside the airport perimeter. 

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Army Sgt. Maj. James O. Schmidt Served in 3 Wars. Now He’s Sharing His Stories with the Next Generation.

“I always felt that serving in World War II was my duty as an American,” Schmidt says. “The country needed us to do a job, so we did it.”

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US To Sanction Military Procurement Network Aiding Russia, Yellen Says

U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said the sanctions would target 14 individuals and 28 entities, including financial facilitators, but she declined to provide details on where they were located.

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Marine Vet Gifted With Brand-New Vehicle for Service to Disabled Veterans and Local Children

U.S. Marine veteran Len Johnson drives to other veterans’ homes in Philadelphia to support them in any way he can—so people at the TrueCar website saw an opportunity to honor him.

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Daughter Honors Memory of Her Dad, Who Lost a Leg Shooting Famous Photos of D-Day Invasion in WWII

“I thought my father was Superman. Isn’t that what many little girls believe?” Katherine Wall Panatone wrote in the book’s introduction. “In the end, he was truly a super man, whose life and work will inspire anyone who reads his story.”

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I was at a meeting where my son was the MC. He did a tremendous job leading the meeting. I was sitting behind all the people to try to stay out of the meeting. Then someone asked who I was, and my son said, “He is my dad.” Then a women shouted, “You were my fourth grade teacher.” Sure enough I met with the lady and she in my fourth grade class many years before that. We had a special relationship as I was her tutor during the summer.

She reminded me that my helping her put her on track to be an outstanding student.

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I am sure you have many people you didn’t know where veterans. They seem to hide. They aren’t sure they want to share their time in the service. Be free to ask anyone if they are veterans. You will be surprised to find how many are.

I will share one story where I found out a person was a veteran, that I knew for over 65 years.

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I was shopping for groceries, and came across an older man who had on a WWII veteran hat on. I thanked him for his service and moved on. I kicked myself for not asking him if I could interview him for my upcoming book, Signs of Hope for the Military: In and Out of the Trenches of Life. Well, I came up to the cash register, and there he was checking out ahead of me. (Accident? I don’t think so.) . I approached him and asked him if I could interview him and he said sure. He gave me his business card, and I stuck it in my pocket.

When I got home I looked at the card, and it was his business card from where he worked. Actually he owned it. The business was “Bob’s 19 cent hamburgers.” I almost fainted.

In 1957 there was a new hamburger joint that opened up. It was his place, It was on the way home from school. I stopped there everyday, and bought a hamburger. Bob came up to me several times to thank me for being there. We developed a friendship.

So 65 years later he was back in my life. I had the interview with him and it was fantastic. He was a Captain in Okinawa, and had a near death experience.

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Keep coming back to read about other people I will have in the book. Better yet…go to the top of this page and click on subscribe. When you do all future posts will go directly to your inbox.

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Checking in on you. How are you doing? Is everything going OK, or are you fighting back memories?
FEAR NOT!
There are over 15,219 Veterans on this site who have your back.
If you are battling mentally, but you are losing, GET HELP!!
Here is a toll free number that you can call 24/7. There are highly qualified counselors there to help you, and they will not hang up until they know you are OK.
1-800-273-8255…texting 838255.

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Remember:

You are never alone.

You are never forsaken.

You are never unloved.

And above all…never, ever, give up.

+Now there is an easier way to get help. Just dial 988, and you will have help ready for you.

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+If you like what you see, please subscribe at the top of this page where it says, “subscribe.” When you do, all future posts will come directly to your inbox. Also, if you know some else who could benefit from this site, please let them know.

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My Three Uncles Were War Heroes During WWII.

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Military news…

North Korea fires 8 ballistic missiles off eastern coast, South’s military says
The launches mark the 17th round of missile tests so far this year by North Korea and its first in June.

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NATO begins US-led Baltic Sea naval exercises with Finland, Sweden

NATO kicked off a nearly two-week U.S.-led naval exercise on the Baltic Sea on Sunday with more than 7,000 sailors, airmen and marines from 16 nations.

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Russia hits Kyiv with missiles; Putin warns West on arms

Russian strikes appeared aimed at thwarting the resupplying of Ukrainian fighters, a rising concern in Moscow.

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As war drags on, weary Russians yearn for a return to normal life

The deadening gloom of a long war worries the Kremlin because of the challenge of dragging the population along as sanctions bite, businesses retrench, prices continue to surge and it dawns on people that life may never go back to the way it was.

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Australia says China threatened plane over South China Sea

An incident in international airspace saw a Chinese Air Force J-16 intercept a P-8A Poseidon maritime surveillance aircraft, Australia said.

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Veterans remember Battle of Midway, one of Navy’s greatest victories, 80 years later

Eighty years ago this weekend, a military miracle unfolded. The U.S. Navy ambushed the Japanese fleet at the Battle of Midway and altered the course of World War II.

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D-Day through the eyes of a combat medic in the first wave at Omaha Beach

“I had to push what I was experiencing out of my mind, so I could function the way I was trained to function.”

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I had three uncles who fought in WWII. They were my heroes. It is the main reason I joined the military. I wanted to continue the tradition of my family in the military. My son followed me into the military and retired as a Colonel.

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Each uncle had an important part of the war. My uncle Claude was a Seabee. They put in brides, and roads vital to the advancement of the troops.

My uncle Dwight, was a tanker. He was the lead man in his tank and was the driver. There were three or four guys in his tank. One day he stopped the tank and opened the hatch to get some fresh air into the tank. It turned out to be a huge mistake. A Japanese soldier came along and tossed a grenade into the tank. It instantly killed my uncle’s best friend, and the rest were wounded. My uncle received a Purple Heart for that. He never recovered in his mind from that incident. He took to his grave the feeling of failure by having his best friend killed.

My third uncle Norton was in the infantry. He was fighting in France when his platoon was overrun by the Germans They came through the troops, and if they found anyone alive, they killed them. My uncle played dead, and survived. He was also wounded and received a Purple Heart.

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These three stories are just a few of the stories I share in my upcoming book, Signs of Hope for the military: In and Out of the Trenches of Life.

Keep coming back to see more stores, and interviews with WWII veterans. Better yet…go to the top of this page and click on subscribe. When you do all future posts will come directly to your inbox.

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Checking in on you. How are you doing? Is everything going OK, or are you fighting back memories?

FEAR NOT!

There are over 15,0030 Veterans on this site who have your back.

Here is what I am asking you to do…please share this site with as many other veterans as you can. It has helped so many.

______________________________________________________________

If you are battling mentally, but you are losing, GET HELP!!

Here is a toll free number that you can call 24/7. There are highly qualified counselors there to help you, and they will not hang up until they know you are OK.

1-800-273-8255…texting 838255.

______________________________________________________________

Remember:

You are never alone.

You are never forsaken.

You are never unloved.

And above all…never, ever, give up!

_______________________________________________________________

+If you like what you see, please subscribe at the top of this page where it says, “subscribe.” When you do, all future posts will come directly to your inbox. Also, if you know some else who could benefit from this site, please let them know.

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The Heroes From D-Day 1944 Had Fearful Moments When They parachuted in.

+If you like what you see, please subscribe at the top of this page where it says, “subscribe.” When you do, all future posts will come directly to your inbox. Also, if you know some else who could benefit from this site, please let them know.

________________________________________________________________

Military news…

NATO fighter jets intercept Russian planes over Black and Baltic seas
NATO fighter jets positioned around the Baltic and Black seas scrambled multiple times over four days to track and intercept Russian aircraft flying near allied airspace, NATO said Friday.

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National Guard soldiers work again with Ukrainian troops they trained before Russian invasion

Florida National Guard soldiers who trained troops in Ukraine before Russia’s invasion are now training Ukrainian forces again outside the war-torn country, chief Pentagon spokesman John Kirby said Friday.

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Confronting Russia will deter China, says Japanese defense minister

A strong international response to the Russian invasion of Ukraine is critical to deterring China from embarking on territorial conquests in Taiwan or the South China Sea, said Japanese Defense Minister Nobuo Kishi.

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North Korea fires suspected submarine-launched ballistic missile, South’s military says
North Korea fired what is suspected to be a short-range ballistic missile off its eastern coast, according to a message sent to reporters from South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff on Saturday.

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Dozens feared dead in bombing of Ukrainian school

Scores of Ukrainians were feared dead Sunday after a Russian bomb flattened a school where about 90 people were taking shelter in the basement, while Ukrainian fighters held out inside Mariupol’s steel plant as Moscow’s forces apparently raced to capture the city ahead of Russia’s Victory Day holiday.

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Ukraine is rebuilding cities as fast as Russia destroyed them

The rebuilding effort is imbued with a sense of optimism that Ukraine will outlast Russia’s assault. Volunteers are mostly carrying it out, allowing government funds to remain focused on the war.

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Last Ukrainian fighters in Mariupol vow to fight ‘as long as we are alive’

Civilians in Mariupol’s Azovstal steel plant have been evacuated, but fighters who remain there say there is no way out.

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What follows is some information about some Band of Brothers who lived right in my home town. These soldiers fought in WWII and parachuted behind enemy lines on D-Day June of 1944. They were called Easy company. They are part of my upcoming book, Signs of Hope for the Military: In and Out of the Trenches of Life.

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Band of Brothers in my home town.

One of the honors I shared was right in my home town of Salem, Oregon. Three members of the Band of Brothers live close to me. Two of the three died before I started this book.

One name was Leo Boyle and high school teacher and then the special education director. He was the least known. He died in 1997. That was four years before the Emmy winning television series aired.

Only Bill Wingett was still living when I started this book. He was in a military assisted facility in Lebanon, Oregon. I was ready to go interview him and the pandemic hit. He died before I could get to him.

He is part of the ever shrinking Easy Company of the 506 Parachute Infantry Regiment of the 101st Airborne, which most Americans know as the Band of Brothers.

I also personally met another Band of Brothers in Minneapolis, Wisconsin.  I bought his book that shares many of the actual happenings in WWII that was done by this group.

A list shows that there are only 14 Brothers left, but it is outdated.

Easy company was involved of some of the most brutal on D-Day over 75 years ago. They also fought during Market Garden-the battle of Bastogne, and the Battle of the Bulge.

But the whole story about them got started on June 6th, 1944. They were assigned a night jump behind enemy lines several hours before the invasion.

Wingett said that one day was a “red-letter day.”

As important as that day was some details faded for him who just turned 97 during this interview for the Statesman Journal, Salem, Oregon. The interviewer was Capi Lynn.

“I may not be able to dig up some of the stories, but I lived them,” Wingett said. He really didn’t want to tell his own stories.

Years ago he described D-Day like this, “We got in an airplane in England and we jumped out of the Damn thing in France, and the fight began. There’s not much more to say about that.”

His group jumped into darkness in the early morning hours.

The target was Utah Beach. The allies divided the 60-mile coastal stretch into five code-named sectors for the invasion. Omaha, Gold, Juno and Sward were the others.

Wingett landed where the Germans flooded the area as a defensive tactic. Many paratroopers were killed by gun-fire before they hit the ground. And many more drowned.

Wingett struggled in the water That day. He only survived because he was slowly able to shed much of the 150 pounds of gear he was carrying, including a main and reserve chutes, weapons, ammunition, and rations, between breaths of air above water.

Malarkey from Salem, jumped roughly in the same area and landed in a tree. He dangled in his chute until he got his bearings, then cut himself loose and fell to the ground.

He went on to serve more time on the front lines than any Easy Company soldiers. He received the Bronze Star for his bravery in the Battle of Brecourt Manor.

Boyle also parachuted into Normandy, where he was wounded and evacuated to England. Boyle was later promoted to Staff Sergeant, and served as commanding officer Richard Winters’ right hand man before being severely wounded during Operation Market Garden. He was discharged after nine months in various hospitals.

Wingett said he never had a close call even though he was wounded three times.

I wasn’t able to see all of his medals because of the Pandemic. He had a purple heart with two oak leaf clusters. This was along with the many medals, ribbons, badges, and patches displayed in a frame on the wall in the apartment where he lived at the Oregon Veteran’s Home in Lebanon, Oregon.

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There are more parts of the book dedicated to these heroes from WWII. Come back of ten to check them out. Better yet…go to the top of this page and click on Subscribe. When you all future posts will come directly to your inbox.

____________________________________________________________

Checking in on you. How are you doing? Is everything going OK, or are you struggling?

FEAR NOT!

There are over 14,640 veterans on this site who have your back.

Here is what I am asking you to do…please share this site with as many other veterans as you can. It has helped so many.

______________________________________________________________

If you are battling mentally, but you are losing, GET HELP!!

Here is a toll free number that you can call 24/7. There are highly qualified counselors there to help you, and they will not hang up until they know you are OK.

1-800-273-8255…texting 838255.

______________________________________________________________

Remember:

You are never alone.

You are never forsaken.

You are never unloved.

And above all…never, ever, give up!

_______________________________________________________________

+If you like what you see, please subscribe at the top of this page where it says, “subscribe.” When you do, all future posts will come directly to your inbox. Also, if you know some else who could benefit from this site, please let them know.