Back in Normandy for the D-Day commemoration

During the 60th D-Day commemoration I had the honor to visit the festivities together with Clancy Lyall and ride with him through parts of Normandy. From June 4 till 7 we visited several activities from which you can view a small impression on these pages.

Forrest Guth was present at the by Michel De Trez organized exhibit named "The greatest Generation".
At that exhibit Forrest autographed the books that were written about him by Michel De Trez.
Above: Forrest meets Clancy whom he served with in Easy Company.(Band of Brothers). Right: Clancy with Forrest's wife Harriët.

In Normandy we used my car to travel with but we were not allowed to pass everywhere. In the neighborhood of the most important spots everything was closed for the normal traffic and we had to walk for several miles. But not Clancy. He noticed that re-enactors with there vehicles were allowed to pass. He saw 101 AB vehicle and thought it would be a good idea to ride with them. It were Italian re-enactors who were very surprised when we asked them. They also felt honored to drive with a WWII veteran so all three of us suddenly had transport. A beautiful experience.

Molto grazie!

With them we went to a kind of private party at the Isle Marie castle in Picauville. For the Italians as for us a complete surprise.

Above Left: Forrest below his 1944 portrait. From that group he is the only one left. This is also the cover photo from the book 'Band of Brothers'.

Above middlet: The credential for the exhibit.
At the castle were 10 wwII veterans present who where honored there. One of them was Col. Bob Piper (4th from left) Next to Clancy (left) is Gene Cook.
Bob Piper is an American parachutist officer who served as a Platoon Leader in ‘G’ Company of the 505th PIR, as a Rgtl. Adjutant (S-1) and as a Rgtl. Intelligence Officer (S-2), during WWII. He made all four combat jumps effected by the 82d Airborne Division, and went through six battle campaigns of fierce fighting in Europe, being wounded only once by enemy fire.
As a member of the Regimental Staff, one of Piper’s many tasks was to oversee the only girl of the Regiment. Yes indeed, there were a few women in combat zones with the United States Army paratroops during WWII. Yes, they wore jump boots, jump wings, the 82d Airborne patch and steel helmet. They were very few, indeed, but they were there ! Piper took this task so much to heart that, as the war ended, he could not bear the idea to stop doing it, and took an oath to care for her for the rest of his life.(source:Michel De Trez website)
Above and left: A part of the interior of the castle and two drwaings that were made by American paratroopers on June 6, 1944 and which are still to be seen in the castle.

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