From Normandy to Bastogne

Early this morning, the group departed the beautiful and memorable Normandy area with stories and scenes etched on our hearts. These six men, who we have known less than one week, have already left an indelible mark on each of us. We left behind the beaches and made our way across northern France to Belgium.

Our guides, Ray and Cristy Pfeiffer, have been exceptional and their attention to detail remarkable. With 29 years of experience, they have created an environment for those who have much to learn about the war (the sponsors and students)and for those who have much to tell (our beloved veterans).

We settled into our hotel in Bastogne and had one of the most delicious meals we have ever eaten for dinner. The Pfeiffers, who visited the College in April for the George W. Bush event, presented a beautiful silk map of Holland, Belgium, France and Germany, which had been used by a soldier during WWII. It was in mint condition and will be a notable addition to the WWII exhibit at The Keeter Center.

Tonight Bill Kamsler shared a wonderful story about singing Christmas carols on Christmas eve in 1944 within earshot of some Germans, whom they captured the next day.

Everyone is looking forward to hearing more about the role of the 101st Airborne in the Bastogne during our day tomorrow.

by Sue Head

Day 5

Today we enjoyed the nicest weather so far with fair skies and plenty of sunshine. Our first stop of the morning, Dead Man's Corner, was a solemn reminder of the casualties of war. The place is named after the soldier left hanging from his tank after a battle. The original buildings remain and stand as a memorial and museum to commemorate the events that took place at that site. We then made our way down to the coast along Utah beach to the ceremony honoring the American Naval and Coast Guard Veterans. Students had ample time to explore the terrain and the newly opened museum before lunch at the infamous Roosevelt Cafe, which sits atop a WWII German communications bunker. After lunch we made our way through the villages of Normandy to Saint Marie Du Mont, where we were greeted with open arms by the town's mayor, and our Veterans were inducted as honorary citizens of the town. The mayor also presented the College with an honorary diploma of citizenship. As the ceremony concluded, we all raised our glasses of Coke in a toast, and due to the language barrier, said in unison one of the only French phrases that we know, "Oui, oui!" After the reception, we headed to Saint Mere Eglise, an important landing site for the Veterans of the 101st airborne division. There, a historic cathedral stands as a reminder of the events that took place. On the belfry hangs a replica of the paratrooper who hung there until he was cut down; surprisingly enough, he was still alive after being wounded in the foot. Our day concluded with a visit to a German cemetery. Unlike the cemeteries we have visited so far, the aura there was one of solemn peace rather than triumphant victory.

Throughout the day, we were given multiple opportunities to appreciate the sacrifices of American WWII Veterans. At Utah Beach, Courtney and Ben explored the far reaches of the low tide, which was hundreds of yards from where high tide reaches the shore. They stopped to take a picture, and within literally one minute the tide began to rise quickly. The two had ventured onto a peninsula-like area on the beach, surrounded on three sides by a few inches of water. When they turned around, they quickly realized that they were about to succumb to the rapidly changing tides. As Ben struggled to take off his tennis shoes and roll up his pants, Courtney snapped a quick action shot of the situation and proceeded to take off for higher ground. Shorter and apparently slower than Ben, her jeans were soaked to the thighs by the time she reached dry ground. Shortly thereafter Ben and Courtney shared their story with other students who quickly remembered Mr. Anderson's account of injuries that became fatal as wounded soldiers drowned in the rising tides. Courtney and Ben's seemingly comical experience gave much insight to what the soldiers faced that day and the potentially fatal results of natural forces.

Throughout the week we have seen many European re-enactors in many different regions of Normandy. It is amazing to see the welcome that we as Americans, especially the Veterans, continue to receive throughout France. People of all ages and nationalities constantly approach the Veterans to express thanks and gratitude for the sacrifices made during the war. Today, a man from the Czech Republic excitedly approached the "Infamous John Primerano," a paratrooper in the 101st Airborne. He remembered John from a ceremony four years earlier. This chance meeting was yet another example of the respect paid in Europe to American WWII Veterans. At almost every ceremony we have attended, the speaker commented on the great friendship between France and the United States. We in the United States do not share the same perspective with the residents of Normandy because we live so far from the actual battle sites. Original German bunkers and munitions, war cemeteries, and military monuments are but a few of the things that remind the people of France of the sacrifices made in Normandy.

We look forward to the adventures that lie ahead as we depart for Belgium in the morning. We appreciate your support and ask for your continued prayers as we journey along.

-Courtney Brown and Jennifer Hurley

67 Years Later: Reality Check

At 0630 on June 6th, 1944, Alliance Troops started to land on the beaches of Normandy. The Alliance knew Omaha Beach would be the hardest beach to invade. Americans got this mission for two reasons: the United States had more soldiers and were more rested to accomplish the job.

Omaha Beach is 4 miles long (7,000 yards), and I was surprised to find it is a little rocky.

At 0630 the young men of the 1st Division landed on Omaha Beach, and they had to run 200 yards before they had shelter. Two-thirds of the men in this division were killed before the day was over. One of the veterans on our trip, Andy Anderson, landed on Omaha Beach with the 348th Division. Andy shared with us stories about D-Day. One story he shared was the view points of the Germans and the Americans. Today Andy laid a wreath at a monument for the men who died in his area of the beach on D-Day.

After Andy gave his talk, he pulled out a coin that he and his division members had ordered for their retirement ceremony. This was the last remaining coin. Andy said he wanted all the WWII veterans and the College of the Ozarks’ students to hold and read the coin. Once all of us had done so, Andy gave Dr. Sue Head the coin to be put it on display at College of the Ozarks.

One of the most bombed places before D-Day was Pointe du Hoc. The canons were pointed in the direction of the beaches to take out the American soldiers once they had landed. Pointe du Hoc is located between Utah and Omaha beaches. This vertical cliff is one hundred feet high; however, American Army Rangers scaled wall in five minutes. Without taking over Pointe du Hoc, the American soldiers had no chance to complete their mission. Unfortunately, none of the German canons were taken out by American bombings. For this reason, their mission was more difficult. In the end, however, America prevailed.

Ten years after D-Day James Earl Rudder, the Ranger commander, came back to Pointe du Hoc with his son and told him, “I still do not know how we did it.”

Since 2004 Pointe du Hoc has been closed to visitors; the wall has been eroding since 1944 and was becoming unsafe. Today, June 6th, 2011, Pointe du Hoc was reopened with a private ceremony, and we were honored to be part of it.

Some well-known attendees at the ceremony included: U.S. Ambassador to France Charles Rivkin, United States Senator John Kerry, Member of Congress C.W. Bill Young.

Many homes in Normandy fly American flags year around. The citizens of France fly American flags more than any other country in the world except the U.S. I was surprised to see that French citizens still walk up to thank our veterans for what they did sixty-seven years ago. One thing I hear over and over from the veterans is, “We did what we had to do.”

As a country, we tell our veterans, “We shall not forget what you have done.” I cannot count how many times I have seen a veteran back in United States and not thanked them. This makes me ashamed of myself.

I am saddened by how fast we can forget something that has happened to our country.

When I get home, I am going to do my best to thank every veteran for his service to the United States and to the world.

-Benjamin Hopper

The Day Our Worlds Changed

By: Ana Boyd


Before today, we really had no idea that by 10 am this morning our whole lives would begin to be changed. We all woke up at 7 am and began our journey by 8:20 am. We proceeded to the Hoisting of the Colors at the Normandy American Cemetery. The Veterans each hoisted two flags; 3 Veterans for each pole. The emotions present were raw and real from both the Veterans and the students. After the hoisting of the colors, we all proceeded to a wreath laying ceremony. Something amazing happened before the ceremony. The recorder for the National Anthem was not working, so all of the College of the Ozarks group sang the National Anthem. That was truly an honor for us all, and we were amazed at the blessing that had been handed to us. Then the six Veterans placed flowers on the Spirit of American Youth. People from other groups were joining us all in the emotions, and there was not a dry eye in the area. We then made our way to the Wall of the Missing. As we were about to begin the presentation, a group of French people wanted to thank the Veterans for their service and took pictures with them. For me, and I am sure the rest of the group, that was one humbling experience to witness. It was amazing to see how welcome and appreciated American Veterans are in Europe. We also went to see one of the Veteran's, Mr. Andy Anderson, friends who had passed in the war. He got a few moments alone to speak to his fallen comrade, and then he began to speak about his friend. The choking in his voice as he spoke about their dreams and hopes moved us all to tears. To see the real pain in his eyes put things in a much clearer perspective for people who did not fight. As we went to a few more of the graves, two men approached us. They were French reporters who wanted to get pictures because they are planning on writing an article about our tour and our experience of a lifetime. I should also mention the weather because it is very significant to the Veterans' experience. The day was cold and rainy. One of the Veterans who landed on D-Day said that this was just how the weather was that morning of June 6, 1944. How surreal it was to realize that our feelings were akin to the way our Veterans were feeling. In the afternoon, we were able to see a German observation tower and German gun brigades from the Atlantic Wall. We all grew silent as we realized that this is all real. We could not fake our emotions when we began to realize that we were standing in German entrenchments, the source of danger so many years ago for our World War II Veterans, and the enemy our Veterans had to fight against.

We finally made it to the part in our day when we would visit two of the beaches. The first beach was Gold Beach. The water felt so amazing even though the day was cold and rainy. To look out and see the artificial harbor was another humbling experience for the day of emotions. We then made it to Juno Beach. Both of the beaches were amazing experiences and we, of course, collected sand! We finished our tour today with a stop at the British Cemetery. It was humbling to see the grave of the very first death of D-Day. Their cemetery was much different to see, but it was just as breathtaking as the Normandy American Cemetary. We topped off the day of emotions with a fabulous dinner at our hotel and an after dinner conversation where the Veterans spoke about what they did before the war. We are all beginning to realize exactly how much these men have given up to get us to where we are today and all of their comrades who passed in the war for our freedom.

Continuing Our Journey

by Sadie Huff
Today we awoke and after an amazing breakfast buffet we loaded our bags, boarded our tour bus, and departed the quaint and colorful town of Roissy-en-France. After traveling through the breathtaking French countryside, we arrived in Normandy. Normandy itself is about the size of Connecticut, therefore we were in it long before we reached Bayeux. Bayeux is a medieval town that played a key role in WWII. It is the only town that was not completely obliterated during the bombing of the war. We saw the infamous hedges which are over 1,000 years old and many do not know this, but the hedges were overlooked when the invasions were being planned and more men were killed there than on D-day itself. We finally arrived in Port-en-Bessin and Ray, one of our tour guides, described the actions that had taken place there. I cannot even begin to describe the feeling of standing there on the beach, hearing the waves splash the shoreline, and know that the air was once was filled with the sound of mortars exploding and bullets flying through the air with sickening whistles. Even the German bunker on top of the hill is now surrounded by vibrant flowers emitting a sweet perfume into the air.
After leaving the Port we visited the cathdral in Bayeux: an enormous and stately 1,000 year old cathedral.
Tonight we enjoyed a lovely dinner and then retired to a conference room where we went over tomorrow's schedule, and then introduced ourselves and any connections that we had with WWII. Everyone has a story who is here. There is such an encompassing bond that has continually drawn all of together. The veterans are continually sharing their stories and seem just as eager to share them as we students are to ask questions and hear the answers. I cannot even begin to describe the feelings of comraderie. It is as if there is an indelible bond that draws us all together; the veterans experienced the battles, and we students want to hear the stories and understand as best as we can what these men went through. Driving into the town of Bayeux and hearing the history around it, seeing the places where battles were actually fought, observing firsthand graves of men that died...one cannot even begin to explain it. History is no longer just a technical word or a subject that is required to learn. History has come off of the page of the history books and is now a reality. These men remind us of the freedom that we have now. It reminds us, and teaches us, that freedom was not just a right or easily had, it was fought for and many lives were given for its cause.

June 3, 2011

Here We Go
by Jonathan Wahl

As we traveled by tour bus to the Kansas City airport, I had the privilege of talking with veteran Bryan Sperry. Mr. Sperry began to tell us about his time in Belgium. He explained that one night while staying in a small Belgium town, the town crier walked through the town calling out to the villagers. As he cried out women began to come out of their houses carrying white sheets. The uniforms of the American troops caused them to stick out like a sore thumb in the snow. The Belgium people were giving away all their white bed sheets to serve as camouflage for the American troops.

It was at this time I remembered what a group effort WWII was. The victory of the Allied Forces was vitally important to the people of the world. Defeat was not an option. Without the sacrifices made by so many during the war our world would be a very different place. When you thank the veterans for their sacrifice they just shrug and say they did what they had to do. It is amazing to see such humility in the men who played an integral part in saving the world from the Nazi regime.

Our group flew into Paris, France, and today we took a tour of the city. As we toured the city our guide pointed out bullet holes still left in the buildings. For years German forces occupied major buildings in France. The bullet holes were created when the French were forced to fight the Germans to retake their own buildings. I can only imagine how demoralizing it must have been for the French to have Paris occupied by the Germans. Although these buildings have been remodeled since the war, the bullet holes were left as a way to remember what took place in Paris.

Paris was simply breathtaking. We were able to see the cathedral of Notre Dame, the Eiffel Tower and many other well known sites. The city was full of life and activity. It was sobering to think that Hitler once ordered for the city of Paris to be destroyed if the Germans could not keep it.

While touring the city I was amazed to see how many monuments commemorated the American people. We saw statues of George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, and Benjamin Franklin. The people of France so respected these men that they even modeled their Republic after America’s democracy.

Tomorrow we will embark on our journey to Normandy. I am so excited to continue this trip with our veterans. These men have so much energy! What a delight it is to travel with such heroes and to have them share their stories with us. I owe each of these men so much. It was their sacrifice that allowed me to be raised in the America that I know.