Bedford, Virginia D-Day Memorial
Bedford,
Virginia. In 1944, it had a population of about 3,200 people. On
D-Day,
June 6, 1944, nineteen of those citizens were killed. Today, in the town of
Bedford, there's a plaque to
The Bedford Boys the who gave the ultimate sacrifice during World War
II. The death of these young Americans gave Bedford the dubious distinction
of losing more soldiers from one town on June 6th, 1944 than anywhere else
in the country!
They've been called the "Bedford Boys" and they included a brave band of individuals who shared not only much of their life together in this Southern Virginia farmlands town, but their death, too, as they fell on the beaches of Normandy. To learn more about these American heroes, you can read The Bedford Boys by Alex Kershaw. Click here to order this book.
Today, Bedford is also the home of The National D-Day Memorial, a magnificent monument of emotional proportions.
During
my visit, I was privileged to meet Roy and Helen Stevens. Roy was one of the surviving Bedford Boys and he told how his landing
craft hit an underwater object and sank. He was rescued, returned to
England, and landed on Omaha several days after D-Day, only to learn about
the death of his twin brother
Ray. Having just returned from my
60th Anniversary of D-Day
group tour in Normandy, I found the chance to walk and talk with this man
extraordinarily moving.
As we toured around the D-Day Memorial, I felt like I was in the company of a hero...which, indeed, I was! This humble, gentle man explained his admiration for those friends who didn't survive and expressed his wish that others would remember the sacrifices made. This most impressive monument will surely help that cause!
Here are some pictures of the Memorial...
