From: Ben517@aol.com
Sent: Friday, May 01, 2009 7:53 PM
To: Ben517@aol.com
Subject: MAIL CALL NO. 1778- 517TH PRCT- MAY 1, 2009
70 Pleasant St. Cohasset, MA. 02025 ,781 383 0215 * Mail Call : Ben Barrett  Ben517@aol.com 
 
Hello,
I sent Mail Call 1776 and my friend MAILER - DAEMON said that it could not be delivered ,especially to comcast friends, and so I sent it out a second time with no changes in address book and it was delivered to all????????
 
Note message from Lory Curtis in you want to receive paratrooper wings.
 
Send contributions for Film Project to.
                                         Leo Dean             

Update on the                  14 Stonehenge Lane

517th Film Project            Albany, NY  12203

 
Please let me know if you want to receive Mail Calls or if you have a problem receiving them. You can always read back Mail Calls  by clicking on www.517prct.org/archives
Ben

Website                                www.517prct.org  
Mail Call                               Ben517@aol.com
Mail Call Archives                 www.517prct.org/archives
Roster                                 
www.517prct.org/roster.pdf

Click on                               National Reunion

                                             Salt Lake City

                                             July 9-13, 2009 

 


Recent website additions:

A Company in Life Magazine 1944

Pvt. Harry A. Hill, B Company - 200 photos and clippings

Pvt. Richard L. Lynam, H Company, KIA

Operation Dragoon After Action Reports

Mail Handling Procedure During the Invasion of Southern France

Photo from St. Cezaire


Gene Frice

all 

      Report on the hospitalization of Betty Davis (Jerry Davis):  The good news is that Betty is recuperating in the the Palm Springs, Eisenhower Hospital. During the Palm Springs 517th gathering our medical specialist, daughter  ("Florence Nightingale, Karen RN"), noted Betty was apparently suffering from a serious medical condition. At midnight, Betty was taken to the emergency room and suspicions confirmed. On Thursday a successful operation was made and today Betty is resting with Jerry at her bedside. Cards and get well wishes may be sent to their home as Betty's stay in the hospital is not known. Jerry has remained in our 517th Quality Inn until Betty's condition improves. Betty and Jerry Davis, 1501 Gary Way, Carmichael, CA  95608-5929.  Jerry's cell  916 801 3800

     Karen, by the way has been nominated by the Palm Springs ER professionals as an associate member to their staff due to her 32 hrs spent in the Palms Springs ER, in the week, with various medical problems with members of the 517th, 2007 Palm Springs. In fact I was present when the Supervisor in the ER said to Karen, "Karen, why don't you just come to work in our ER, it would make it much easier on all of us." 
 
     God Bless Betty, Jerry and all 517.
 
     Gene Frice, F Co- Ass't ER Supervisor

Irma Targnion
WE are so happy because you will come to Belgium. I think it is a good idea to rent a car in Brussels (Brussels Airport) We shall try to prepare a nice visit for you and your family in Ardennes and to visit at ease the places Ben likes to see and of course to meet some people of our committee. Maria will be so happy. I shall write more very soon. I'll send informations for the roads. Best wishes and thank you for coming. Love. Irma


Irma Targnion's Story
Battle of the Bulge


Lory Curtis

Ben,

I see on Mailcall Bob Dalrymple, Eileen Shaw and Bruce Broudy all would like me to get them paratrooper wings with combat star.  Please have them email me at lcurtis@utah.gov so I can correspond with each of them.
Thanks
Lory Curtis
P.S.  It is nice to see my brother Tim finally on Mail Call.

Myrle Traver
Lory Curtis, .
 
Put me down for one of the combat wings with the star.  Do I send the money to you or wait until the reunion?
Betty and I will be attending with our son and daughter-in-law.  See you in SLC
 
Myrle Traver
 - The Schmidt Bergstein Attack - Jan-Feb 1945 by Myrle Travers, F Co

Mary Globker
Hi Ben
I would like two of the wings. How do I order them?
Mary Globokar

Gene Frice
Ben 
     A long document-recommendations?

To all interested,

     During the Palm Springs, 2009 gathering a 517 related document came to my attention. The 517 material is 65 years old and can be best titled in my language "Order of Battle, 517, Italy, France, and Germany," or as the document reads, "517 Italian Campaign, to "Dragoon." and the Ardennes," to the end of the war, and unfortunately, the 13th Abn Div. I know no other way to identify the document as to the headquarters, or the author.

     The document came to me via Rita Davis (no relation to Betty) and Rita's husband, another Davis (whew). I, and several others, including Ben, examined the document. We all concluded the material had successfully been hidden for all these years. Likely the written (hand written) material had never been seen by Clark Archer. I wish I could identify the source and the headquarters. It contains too much unrelated material to have been the 517th (maybe) or the First Allied Airborne Army, certainly not the 13th.

     The material includes identification, in one paragraph of the 517; starting in Toccoa, Camp Macall, and Tennessee, to our subsequent transfer out of the 17th Div, to IV Corps and the 5th US Army in Italy.

     The documents identify no individuals. It does identify all units, including the French, British, US, and the Germans. It identifies cities or villages liberated (and by whom, aircraft departure points by unit. The number of aircraft (445 sorties), parachute troops (6,500), glider forces 2600 in 410 sorties, 9,100 troops total, to include the wings and groups-to include the aircraft for each drop zone. Wow!
     I could go on and on in identifying all the data in the 15 pages of hand written documentation of how WE won the war.
     Now...daughter Karen made several copies of a 15 page, 11x17 inch document (difficult) and spent $ 50.00, doing so. Im sure many 517th members would desire copies of this most valuable bit of our history. For those that desire a copy I would recommend a round financial figure of $ 10.00 which would certainly cover additional copies as well as the mailing cost of
 (approximately $ 5.00). Any balance will go to the 517th fund.

     A second and possibly much a better option is to put all the material on a CD-however, legibility-fine, hand printed, material may be a problem. I would ask Ben, Bob and Wade to examine this possibility.

     If you desire the mail option:      Gene Frice, Worldwide Security Services, PO Box 5459, Bend, OR 97008-5459. I'll handle the mailing-Karen has enough to do.

     Your obedient servant,

     Gene Frice, F Company
Dixie Welborn

Hi, Ben ---- Please let Lory Curtis know that I would like to order one of the 517th combat

wing pins that denotes the jump into Southern France in August, '44.  My husband was one

of the many troopers that made this historic jump --- Guy B. Welborn, "C" Company.

----- thanks --- and by the way, we have already made our reservations for the reunion and

are certainly looking forward to seeing all of youse' guys/gals and enjoying the many activities

that Lory has planned.

 
Dixie Welborn