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 Ben

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Website                                   www.517prct.org                                                        
Mail Call                                  Ben517@aol.com

Mail Call Archives                 www.517prct.org/archives
Roster                                     www.517prct.org/roster.pdf

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 517TH ST. LOUIS REUNION BEGINS:

 

THURSDAY, JUNE 26, 2008 THRU MONDAY, JUNE 30, 2008

THE BANQUET WILL BE ON SUNDAY JUNE 29

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Information and Registration Forms:

formatted pdf forms	simple Web Page format
Sheraton Westport Registration Form Reunion schedule of Events 517th Reunion Registration Form	Sheraton Westport Registration Form Reunion schedule of Events 517th Reunion Registration Form

Recent website additions:

Lester Gene Hyman and friends, 596th PCEC

Lots of pictures of the 596th, most unidentified soldiers

517th Victory in Europe Prop Blast - May 19 1945

Toivo Moisio (?), Company D

Blue Book Magazine articles - 1947-1948

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Dick Seitz

 

Ben, following for Ray Hess.  Ray,  I was so sorry to hear of the passing of you lovely wife.  My heartfelt sympathy for you, your fine children and grand children.  Perhaps some solace is found in knowing she will be happy in heaven. May the Good Lord encircle you and your family in his arms and lift you with beautiful memories to help ease  your deep sorrow.  You are very much in my thoughts during you period of deep grief.  Dick Seitz

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Boyd Ellis

Ray...we are very sorry about your loss...we will pray for you and your
family................your friends will give you comfort, but only GOD
will give you peace... Bless you and your family...Boyd

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Vanessa (Fraser) Armand

Dear Ben,
Please extend my deepest sympathies to Ray Hess and his family.  I remember meeting Ray and his wife at previous reunions, and seeing them was always a pleasure.  She was indeed a classy lady and she will be truly missed. My thoughts and prayers are with Ray and the Hess family.

Sincerely,
Vanessa (Fraser) Armand

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Bob Dalrymple

Dear Ben, I was so happy to see and be with you at P Spgs . Didn't we have a great reunion ! And the Banquet Night was most enjoyable, one of the best of our minis . Bill and Sophia really outdid themselves . Their efforts to make everything just right for us is outstanding, indeed ! What great dedication  and brotherly love . Theirs knows no bounds . I am looking fwd to 2009 there already . May the Lord Bless You and Keep You, Sophia and Bill . And may He Hold all of us in His Hand till we meet again . Bob Dalrymple, 596th 

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Morris McDowell

Ben,

After talking with Chris Lindner, yourself, and getting input via Chris, we have decided on the method for handling the honoring of the Veterans that have passed on.  # 1, We will honor those that have passed since the Washington reunion.  # 2, I would like to have some brief information about the Veteran, Full name, unit, Bn., company, rank, date of birth, date of death, and home town.  # 3, A picture in uniform, and a picture near the time of death, if possible. The presentation will be done in the hospitality room as numbers permit. I will post a list of the men that I have received  this information on periodically on mail call. We want this to be a  respectful presentation. My e-mail address is garandaddy@comcast.net.  

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Bob Cooper

 

You have been sent 1 picture.

Bill Maulden Cartoon.jpg

 

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1945: U.S. troops capture Leipzig

"The German army surrendered this fifth largest city of the reich [Leipzig] to the U.S. First army at 11 a.m. today after fighting raged fiercely throughout the night and morning," informed the Joplin Globe on April 20, 1945. "After firing ceased today, after a six-day siege, thousands of the city's inhabitants emerged from their hiding places, some of them waving and cheering in delight that the war was over for them. A white flag waved from each building still standing in the wreckage." NOTE: As the surrender took place in Leipzig, the U.S. army also captured most of Nuremberg and moved tanks south to Munich.

Links to the Past
Bag 20,000 Nazis at Leipzig
Joplin Globe, April 20, 1945

Yanks Capture Nuernberg, Push on Munich
The Oelwein Daily Register, April 20, 1945

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Bob Barrett

 

Wasn’t Earle Ehly at your recent Florida reunion?  He is mentioned in the 2^nd part of this article by Hal Boyle.

Note: The first half of this article is about a Corporal Blank, who fought in Italy, France and Belgium, and was killed in Trois Ponts.  But I can’t find any record of that name in the 517^th material.

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Jim Mortensen

Oh me, I think I've forgotten to send my new address

  It is 

UPS Store box 220

13046 Race Track Rd.

Tampa, FL 33626

Hope you can send it on so I can get a copy of the thunderbolt.

\

Best

Jim Mortensen

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Lory Curtis

 

Ben,
   Please inform Claire and Helen was a terrific job they have done
with the Thunderbolt, and in color too.  As I have said before every
time I open my mailbox, and see the Thunderbolt I can't put it down
until I have read the entire issue.  What a wonderful work these two
young ladies are doing.  Thank you very much and keep up the good work.
See you in St. Louis.

Lory Curtis, son of Bud Curtis, HQ, 1st BN

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Lory Curtis

Never saw anything like this before, pretty cool.
Lory

I've never seen the flag and anthem presented like this opening an event before. Sure would be hard to top this.   Amazing.  
 
From the show at Rickenbacker Field, Columbus, Ohio, in September.  This was the opening ceremony each day. The camera guy stayed tight on the flag so the 4 Steerman laying smoke rings around the flag don't appear much.

Click on the following:

        http://youtube.com/watch?v=iCz3BA-oNlY