Historic Fort Wayne Coalition-New event!

[PlymouthRes]

Please come out and "Support the Fort"!

Thanks,

Plymouthres

[kryptonite]

I'll need to attend that. My father fought in the Battle of the Bulge, the stories are heartbreaking. Thanks for the heads up.

[PlymouthRes]

Kryptonite-

You, my friend, are welcome.

Please bring dad if you can. We will be having a special Veterans Honoring ceremony both days and the Army and Marines will be having an Induction Ceremony during Saturday of the event to swear in some new recruits. We will be asking all of the Veterans present to step up and surround those who are being inducted, and show their support for their committment.

By having him there, he also may be able to share some of his stories with the guest speakers that we are having, too. A couple of them were at the BotB, so he should have a kinship with them as brothers in arms. In honor of his service and to all Veterans, this event is free for them.

I would hope that there won't be a dry eye in the place after that, and he certainly deserves the honor of those who fought so bravely as he did.

This may very well be the last time to see and hear these brave men who sacrificaed so much, and your father is more than welcome to join the few that remain. It would be our honor to host him on that day as well.

For all, please bring a Veteran.

I hope also that firstsarge and 5thsfg can come down as well, and any of our forum vets are welcome to attend so that we may honor their service as well.

Additionally, and not on the flyer, the last remaining remnant of the Tuskegee Airmen will be with us, among them Alexander Jefferson, a former Redtail and prisoner of war who was shot down over Germany. These men will all be in full regalia, wearing their famous "blue coats" and their various medals, along with the opening of the Tuskegee Airmans museum for tours and for their insight into what they provided this country with their bravery and fierceness.

Hitler was particularly afraid of these brave men, having a special name he used for them "The swartze voglemenchen"[[Sorry, Gistok, if I got it wrong!)-"The Black Birdmen"!

This should be a great event!

See you all at the Fort!

Res

[kryptonite]

Unfortunately my dad passed away 1995. He is now in a peaceful country cemetery in Alabama, and in our memories forever.

He was illiterate and grew up on a tobacco farm in Tennessee. he was the only son that survived childhood. He came to Detroit around 1950 to work in the auto industry.

He never told me much about the war. One time however, my brother's mother-in-law was an Indonesian who had spent time in a Japanese prison camp during WWII. Dad and her talked quite a bit about the war one time. I listened to take in all I could, that was the only time he went on at length about his experiences in Normandy, Belgium, Sicily, Tunisia, the Rhine valley etc.

I will make it a top priority to attend the Fort Wayne event, that is quite the special place.

[PlymouthRes]

Kryptonite-

Sorry about your dad. My dad was a veteran of WWII as well, but he died in 1987. I do what I do at the Fort in his memory.

Please let me know when you get to the site for the event, as I am looking forward to meeting you!

Somehow, even though they are not with us and have walked-on, I believe that they will always be with us, as they are always in our hearts.

Take care.

Res

[gnome]

..., even though they are not with us and have walked-on, I believe that they will always be with us, as they are always in our hearts.

true that

c u there

[PlymouthRes]

Thanks Gnome! Looking forward to seeeing you there!

Res

[PlymouthRes]

Just a reminder to everyone that this weekend is the Historic Fort Wayne's WWII Veterans Rememberence/Re-enacment Event. Along with this event will be the Historical Society Guild's Fall Flea Market in the Visitor's Center. Please come out and support our event and while you are at it, check out the Flea Market!

There should be a little of something for everyone!

Hope we see you at the Fort!

Res

[Kathleen]

Are the daily schedule of events available yet? Which authors at what time? Reenactment start times? Thanks!!

[PlymouthRes]

Yes, Kathleen, this just came out:

Sorry it wasn't included before but the details were just finalized this week. I hope that people come out and hear these symposium speakers as they are reaching the end of the line.

One of our previously featured speakers passed away last month so if you are interested in WWII history directly from those who served, this may be your last opportunity to do so.

Hopefully everyone can come out and support our efforts with this event as it is one of our major fundraisers and will help to keep the Fort open for next year!

Take care to all and hope to see you at the Fort!

Res

[PlymouthRes]

Forgot to add that this information is also available on our website at www.historicfortwayne coalition.com.

Res

[Kathleen]

Thanks, Res! Looks like this info is Hot Off the Presses!!!

Will share this with Dave and our sons and see if we can make it out to the Fort sometime this weekend.

Hope it is a super event!!!

[WaCoTS]

ill be there 9am sharp

[gnome]

Wow, just wow. Showed up a little late in the day, but had the opportunity to see quite a few of the WWII vets and PlymouthRes too. The attention to detail in the various troops was impressive. Jeeps outfitted with 50 cals and those wacky German Thing looking things with MG 20.

Well worth a look-see. I encourage everyone to go take a peek on Sunday.

[JenniferL]

I was there too. It was interesting to see all the vehicles and equipment up close. A couple of the guys representing the Germans told me they'd had some problems with protestors. But they said this is all about military history; they're not neo-Nazis or skinheads or anything like that.

[PlymouthRes]

Thanks for the great words on the event, Gnome! It was nice seeing you and the missus again and to JenniferL, I'm sorry that I missed meeting you but glad that you came out and enjoyed yourself.

We did have some controversey in regard to our German re-enactors from some of the fringe groups but as one of my Jewish friends stated : "How can you adequately represent WWII if you don't show the German or Japanese involvement?" They also said that it was tastefully done, and a couple of the incidents that did occur were instantly dealt with and taken care of.

We allowed no swstika's or other blatant references to the SS, only typical German uniform insignias, and, during the mock battle that took place, the Americans prevailed and kicked their ass!

It was kind of cool to have to go through the checkpoints after presenting your papers, and to be stopped by the sentry and questioned in regard to where you are going and what you are doing by the German guards as well. It added a different dimension to the usual re-enactment type stuff. All of the displays were extremely accurate and told their stories quite well.

The two things that stood out most to me were the speakers at the symposium and the Army induction ceremony that took place during the afternoon. Listening to those men tell their stories and explain to us what it was like to be there for the Battle of the Bulge and the Breakout, Normandy and many other places throughout Europe was very interesting and put a spin on the war for me that something like Band of Brothers just couldn't do.

We also were very lucky to have one of the few remaining Tuskegee members, Colonel Alexander Jefferson, attend and speak on behalf of those who could not. His statements were raw and filled with the emotion that goes along with having been a proud Airman and a POW as well. As a member of the 425 Bomber Escort Group, he was personally credited for many kills and his heroic flying efforts before being shot down and serving his last year in a German POW camp. It was quite a special moment to hear him explain his story, and I hope that others can make it out today to hear it as well.

As for the induction ceremony, there wasn't a dry eye in the place when the folks were sworn in in the center of the star fort for the first time in over forty years! It was quite a poiniant moment when all of the veterans in attendance stepped forward to surround the recruits and send them off in a proper fashion. I only wish that I had the same send off when I enlisted in the early 80's!

There is one more day of the event left, from 9 to 4 today, so if you missed it yesterday, please try to make it out today, as we could use your support. Come down and enjoy the Flea Market, too, and with today's weather forcast looking awesome, you should have a great day and a great time supporting some of Detroits most vital history!

Hope to see you all at the Fort!

Res

[WaCoTS]

spent both days there, and am proud to say that it went very well for the first year. next year will be even better.

thanks to some new equipment and a lot of recent outside-volunteer help from Boy Scouts, etc, we had the Fort looking almost presentable!!

[WaCoTS]

btw, the battle on Saturday was INCREDIBLE...