70 Pleasant St. Cohasset, MA. 02025 ,781 383 0215 * Mail Call : Ben Barrett Ben517@aol.com

Hello,

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Leo Dean

Update on the 14 Stonehenge Lane

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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:

St. Cezaire and Les Arcs today

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

Bob Dalrymple

Dear Ben , For Herb Reichwald : Herb, I pray everything goes well w/ you and Marie . I will be your surrogate at SLC . BOB 596

Lory Curtis

Ben,

A change has been made to an activity at the Reunion on Saturday, July 11, 2009. Please post the below statement. I am sure everyone coming will enjoy this new activity.

A change has been made to the activities being held on Saturday, July 11, 2009. Originally, we were scheduled to have a city tour, but most recently a businessman who has the largest private collection of World War II tanks and equipment in the World found out the 517^th PRCT was holding their last National Reunion in Salt Lake City. This generous man has graciously offered to pay all expenses for our group to come to his facility and see his very large collection of weaponry. He will provide the buses to transport us to his World War II site located in Tooele Utah (about 30 miles west of Salt Lake City), sandwiches, drinks, and a guided tour of his tanks and equipment. His staff will put on a demonstration of the operations of a tank and some equipment. Mike Wells, a reunion committee member has been to this site and was most impressed with this collection of World War II U.S., German and Japanese equipment.

Finally, this gracious gentleman asked if there was anything else he could do for our group. Mike Wells asked him if he could have a group perform a parachute jump. A telephone call was quickly made and a parachute jump will be performed while we visit his facility.

We as your Salt Lake Reunion Committee are working very hard to provide you with a great reunion. We hope you will enjoy this activity as we see it as a highlight of our reunion. When we met with this businessman we found he has a genuine love and respect for World War II veterans, and wants to honor the troopers of the 517^th by hosting them at his facility.

Our goal as sons, daughters, relatives, and friends of the 517^th is the same as this businessman. To honor and remember what these great men did for us and our country. Our Veterans should enjoy this tour very much. See you in Salt Lake City in July.

Your Reunion Committee

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

Michael Wells, son of Chester Wells, H Co, 3^rd BN

Debra Coates, daughter of Robert F. West, HQ, 2^nd BN

Chris Lindner

Hi Ben:

I am sending this e-mail to Lory Curtis and I do not have his e-mail address could you please put this in Mail Call so that I may get in touch with Lory.

Lory I would appreciate it if you could e-mail (ctennis@sbcglobal.net) or call me at (210-822-8591). I need to ask you a question about registering for the reunion because I will not be able to attend the banquet, do I need to pay the $77.00 or is there a different price for now attending the banquet. Please let me know.

I have made my plane reservation and I am waiting to hear from you so that I can register to the AFR. I will be going out of town for 1 week and will be leaving on June 2, 2008. Hopefully I can get into contact with you prior to me leaving town so that I can send in the ARF forms. Thank you.

Thanks Ben for putting this in mail call.

Chris Lindner

Mary Jane Hanron

   Hi Ben,

As always happens when I visit with you (in addition to enjoying your company!) my awe and admiration for all that the 517^th accomplished is renewed. This time, I was inspired to write a poem for you. (Please scroll below.) I don’t know if I ever told you this but writing poems is one of my favorite things to do but they only come to me when I am truly inspired! Your amazing stories certainly do that!

Please share this with the other members of the 517^th if you wish…I would be very honored. If it is something you like, I also make bookmarks out of some of my poems and will gladly do that for you with this one as soon as my new computer is hooked up to my printer.

I hope you enjoy this.

Thanks for inspiring me.

Mary Jane

A Tribute to the 517^th

                                               Young boys they were in years gone by

                                                And gladly at a nod

                                                Kept this noble nation safe

                                                And went to serve abroad.

                                                Among the first elite they were

                                                As fighting forces trained

                                                Their bravery and expertise

                                                Saw freedom would be gained.

                                                Paratroopers they were called

                                                Saviors from the sky

                                                And boldly into hell they jumped

                                                As bullets whirred nearby.

                                                Brothers true they called themselves

                                                And watched each other’s backs.

                                                Bonds and lifelong loyalties formed;

                                                No trust or honor lacked.

                                                Small was this group but vital still

                                                Horrors of war they’d seen

                                                And close they stayed for decades since

                                                Those of 517.

An evil never known to man
They fought so strong and brave
As foreigners learned that U.S. might
Was kind with grace to save.

                                                Years have passed and heroes aged

                                                In the most humble way

                                                But thanks to the 517^th

                                                We’re free and safe today.

                                                So many paid the sacred price

                                                To keep our nation strong

                                                And others live among us still

                                                To pass the tales along.

                                                God bless those of 517^th

                                                And every noble deed

                                                They did so many years ago

                                                So justice we may heed.

                                                                                               Mary Jane Hanron

In honor of Ben Barrett and all the other great men of the 517^th PRCT.