Sent: Thursday, November 09, 2000 9:04 PM
To: undisclosed-recipients:
Subject: Mail Call Nov. 9, 2000 NO. 31
Hello, We are grateful for the praise for our website from Patrick O'Donnell the historian for thedropzone.org which is the premier Airborne website. I saw on TV that it was 17 degrees and dropping in Bismarck Wednesday. Have had some request for back copies of Mail Call . Can forward recent ones No problem. Older copies can cut and paste and send. No Problem. However, when I get new computer and have to transfer files all bets are off. Will try one more time to reach Merlin Allard(M5895@adacom.net) and if not successful will try to contact him by phone or regular mail. Ben Website---members.aol.com/prct517/
Subj: Trying to find someone.
Ben: Date: 11/8/00 1:45:32 PM Eastern Standard Time
From: ROYHERREN
To: Ben517
Ben: In 1945 near the wars end I was given special dispensation to take an officer of our outfit. 517th to visit his brothers grave in Switzerland. The brother was killed in the Ardennes Forest. On the way in the jeep, we had a flat and he says what happens now? and I said I would change it. He was surprised that I could, I guess. I was used to doing things myself as I grew up in a large family of eight, being the eldest I do not remember the city but I do remember the sight we had at the cemetery. Like the poem, Crosses row upon Row Near the entrance was a place fenced off in black, set aside for deserters, etc. Looking out over this vast cemetery, I thought, how will we ever find his brothers. They fortunately had a good system of platting every thing there. This officer was sure a nice soldier. Seeing all those G.I,s out there sure made you stop and think about the supreme sacrifice they made for all of us. I never saw this Officer again, wondered who he was as I have forgotten completely. I am sure I have made a few errors in remembering but gosh it has been 55 yrs. ago. HA Motor Pool-596th Abn. Engrs. From The Sunny south, Roy & Naomi Herren
Subj: Thank you Date: 11/8/00 6:29:03 PM Eastern Standard Time
From: historian@thedropzone.org (Patrick O'Donnell)
Reply-to: historian@thedropzone.org (Patrick O'Donnell)
To: Ben517@aol.com, PRCT517@aol.com
Gentlemen: I just wanted to thank you for posting my link the www.thedropzone.org in your links section. Together we are helping preserve your history. By the way, I like the way your site is thoughtfully laid out - it's one of the best unit websites I've seen. Additionally, BEYOND VALOR, a book that tells the epic story of WWII airborne and Rangers will be published by Simon & Schuster in the first quarter of 2001. The book incorporates over 650 oral history interviews, that I conducted, into a seamless narrative beginning with North Africa, and moving to campaigns such as Southern France, and the Hurtgen Forest, ending with the end of the war in Europe. MANY voices from the 517 help tell this important story of personal sacrifice. Best wishes, Patrick O'Donnell
Subj: Re: Thank you Date: 11/8/00 8:10:22 PM Eastern Standard Time
From: historian@thedropzone.org (Patrick O'Donnell)
Reply-to: historian@thedropzone.org (Patrick O'Donnell)
To: Ben517@aol.com
Ben: Thanks for the email. Keep up the great work on the site. F.y.i, here's a tiny portion of the advance praise that I've received for Beyond Valor. The great thing about many of the comments are come from America's top professional historians - the toughest group to please. There's also a nice mix of other notables. I'll keep you posted. Pat
"What Steven Spielberg accomplished visually for the cinema in Saving Private Ryan, Patrick O’Donnell has accomplished through the printed word.” Carlo D’Este, author of Patton: A Genius for War, Anzio: The Fatal Decision, and Decision At Normandy
“Beyond Valor is a great war book. It has pathos, excitement, and sometimes suspense. Above all it reminds us that wars are fought by men on the ground, not in the war rooms of higher headquarters.” John S. D. Eisenhower, author of Agent of Destiny, and The Bitter Woods
“My own father served in WW II, and I always wanted him to share his experiences, but we only got bits and pieces. The memories were just too painful. Time is running out for this ‘vanishing generation,’ and unless someone like Mr. O'Donnell takes the time to gather these stories, a part of the Second World War will be lost forever. No simple narrative of a battle can give you the viewpoint of these now-aged warriors.” Larry Bond, author of The Enemy Within and Day of Wrath
“These paratroopers and Rangers speak for themselves in phrases simple, forceful and extraordinarily poignant. What is so striking and saddening is the persistency of pain fifty-five years later. Beyond Valor teaches realities of World War II combat that I have encountered in no other book.” Gerald F. Linderman, University of Michigan, author of The World Within War: America’s Combat Experience in World War II, New York Times History Book of 1998
“These narratives are highly charged, emotional, dramatic, intense. The horrific underside of war has seldom been exposed so graphically. What is shown here, often very powerfully, is the ‘Bad War’ which we prefer not to know too much about.” Stanley Weintraub, Pennsylvania State University, author of MacArthur’s War: Korea and the Undoing of an American Hero
“As one of the many soldiers who participated in D-Day, I can attest to the importance of documenting the personal accounts of those who fought in the Second World War. Beyond Valor offers a realistic portrayal of life at war told by the men who know what really happened--those who were there.” Senator Strom Thurmond (R-SC)
“The pioneering oral historian Patrick K. O’Donnell has done a wonderful job of making the experiences of America’s elite troops come alive again in Beyond Valor. These riveting accounts by glidermen and rangers, and paratroopers are reminiscent of such books by Stephen E. Ambrose as D-Day and Citizen Soldiers.” Douglas Brinkley, director of the Eisenhower Center and Professor of History at the University of New Orleans
"Told by the GIs of WWII in their own words, the extraordinary personal histories collected here prove that real war can ultimately only be explained by those who fought it, and that the true heroes too often go uncelebrated. Beyond Valor is a fitting memorial to these men." W. E. B. Griffin, author of The Corps and the Men at War series
“The Drop Zone presents the remarkable and often terrifying war stories of U.S. Army Airborne and Ranger troops. Browse through a few of these tales and you will probably gain new respect for the older men in the Veterans Day parade.” The Wall Street Journal
From Ben517@aol.com to hisorian@thedropzone.com(Patrick O'Donnell)
Thank you Patrick. The Dropzone is recognized by all as the premier Airborne site. We are grateful to you for your kind words about our site. It is strictly an amateur site. When we started the site, I didn't know much about computers and my son knew less about the 517th. We will look forward for the publication, of your book. If you wish, sign our guestbook and tell our members about it. Best Regards, Ben
Subj: Back on line - Nolan
Date: 11/8/00 8:21:24 PM Eastern Standard Time
From: NLP2849@prodigy.net (Nolan L Powell)
To: Ben517@aol.com
Ben I have returned to my winter home, after spending three months in the Adirondack Mts. at my summer home. I have been receiving and appreciating your 517th E Mail correspondence. Also I have been visiting your 517th website. I thank you and your son for what you are doing for me. During the 1980's, I visited the World War II National Archives in Suitland, Maryland. I copied many of the documents stored there. Some examples are operations reports, medical reports, intelligence reports, after action reports, etc. If you are interested I could send you a list of the specific reports I have. Then, if there are any you would like to have, I could send you a copy of them. Looking forward to your future E Mail correspondence and you mentioned some past letters you could send to me. Nolan
Subj: Mail Call Date: 11/9/00 8:56:45 AM Eastern Standard Time
From: eharger@chartermi.net (Elsworth Harger)
To: Ben517@aol.com
Ben et al: Just received my first Mail Call ! Great idea, opens the door to more frequent contacts. It was always a chore for me to write, easy to put off- since joining the net-folks I have sent more messages to my family then I had by snail mail in past ten years! On 18 0ct this year, my 75th. bd , I made my 1,381st. skydive! Total now stands at 1388. I have decided to go for my diamond on my gold wings (2,000 free falls) Keeps me young and in shape. Blue Skies EL