On D-Day, June 6, 1944, Nineteen-year-old Private First Class, Julian Parker stood in silence with his fellow American soldiers on the landing craft as it churned toward Normandy. Seventy-seven years later, he talked with me about his experiences. Continue reading
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Today is the 100th anniversary of the first Armistice Day. The 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month was the time and date established to remember the end of World War I.
World War I was to be the war to end all wars. The philosophy of the day was that man’s upward evolution and advances in science would usher in peace and prosperity for all. We see how quickly the reality of the nature of man revealed the error of that thinking.
After World War II, Congress changed Armistice day to Veterans Day to recognize all veterans who served in war and in peace.
Today, I decided to look back in my recent commentaries and pull out some stories of veterans. These are all men of the greatest generation who served in the World War II time frame. Just click on the photo or the heading to read about them.
Bob Bright turned 94 earlier this year and he is still going strong. He was shot down over Europe and taken POW by the Germans.
My father, Robert Cole, (left) and Billy Forrest (right) were in training when President Truman dropped the atomic bombs on Japan to end the war. It is quite likely that they, along with tens of thousands of young Americans, would have died in that war had it not been for Truman’s decision.
They both went to Japan after the surrender to help Japan rebuild. Today, Japan is one of our strongest allies.
Julian Parker of Cordele still remembers wading on that beach on June 6, 1944. The experience of war and death had such an effect on him that when he got home, he took his hunting rifle out to the woods and buried it.
I hope that you enjoy reading these past articles of veterans. we owe our veterans a debt of gratitude. From those who are approaching the century mark in their lives, to the men and women who have not reached the 2nd decade of their lives and are serving us today, we owe a debt of gratitude. Happy Veterans Day.
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“There were body parts flying everywhere.” 93 year old Julian Parker of Cordele still remembers D-Day, June 6, 1944, wading on that beach in France. He said that the Germans had two big guns that were supposed to have been knocked out before the Americans landed.
The young soldiers wading on the beach were like sitting ducks. Julian said that some thought they were being smart by huddling close together. From his point of view, that just made a bigger target. He put a little bit of distance between himself and other groups as he made his way up the beach.
After the landing he moved through France and Germany. He saw the horrors of Nazi Germany and the death camps. At one place he said that bodies were stacked up like cord wood where the Nazis had executed thousands.
Julian does not talk a lot about his experiences. A medal display in his room shows, among others, two Purple Hearts and one Bronze Star. He pointed to his head to show where he was hit one time. He said that sometimes he still feels bits of shrapnel in his body.
He did not remember what he did to get the Bronze Star. He said that they wanted to promote him on the battlefield, but he turned it down. As he put it, he told the Army that he did not want to be there to start with and just wanted to get the job done and go home.
As a young teenager, Julian lived near the Georgia coast. He was still in school when he turned 18 and was drafted. After basic training in Mississippi, he went to London, and from London took the cruise across the English Channel with 500,000 other troops to land on a beach in France.
The war had an immense impact on Julian. He said that when he returned home, he went to his house and got his old hunting rifle that he owned since he was a boy. “I took it to the woods, dug a hole and buried it. I had seen enough killing and didn’t want anything more to do with it!”
On the day those men stormed the beaches, parachuted from planes, and flew gliders behind enemy lines, President Roosevelt addressed the nation and prayed for victory. The prayer is about 6 minutes and it is worth your time to hear it.
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