Recent website additions:
St. Cezaire and Les Arcs
today
A Company in Life Magazine
1944
Merle McMorrow
Board of Directors:
As some of you know I had the misfortune
earlier this month of being selected for the position of President for the
517th. It was a great reunion and one of the highlights was the viewing
of a film recently produced about the actions the 517th in Europe during
1944-1945.
A friend of the 517th (Wade Gilbert)
has graciously and generously offered to make copies of the movie and ship
them at no cost to the Unit members and other interested parties. The
Association would like your imput as to how this distribution should be
handled. We send well over a 1,000 Thunderbolts each mailing and this is
still our primary means of keeping Association members informed. Many do not
have computers. We recognize some are not interested in the publication
since husbands are no longer living. We have even had wives of members
request their name be taken off the mailing list. Addresses have changed
and the editor has not been informed of the change. To minimize problems for Mr.
Gilbert, we would like suggestions on how the handling and distribution to
interested parties can be accomplished. The preparation of the
next Thunderbolt is scheduled for printing next week. An order form
for the film should be included in that printing for those that may be
interested. It was also hoped the generous contribution by Mr. Gilbert may
tweak the conscience of those ordering the film and result in a contribution to
the Association.
There are a number of options:
1. All order forms returned to a single location or address. Someone
could volunteer or be designated to handled the distribution of the
copies. Order requests should include postage along with the request.
Regardless of the number of copies requested, the individual making the request
could make further distribution of the requested copies. Family members of
a trooper (sons, daughters, grandchildren, etc) could make one request and
this would result in handling of one order. It would then be up to the
trooper to make further distribution to his family members. Set a time at
which all orders need to be in following the next
published Thunderbolt. This could then result in Mr. Gilbert being
informed as to the number of copies requested and his having to make only
one shipment to our volunteer.
Subsequent Thunderbolts could continue to carry order forms
until such time as to when no additional requests for the film are
made.
2.
Your suggested options
Your response is urgent since the printing
of the Thunderbolt is scheduled for next week and it is desired to have some
type of order sheet in it for the above mentioned film.
Merle
Eric and Michael
Find attached the files of the Ad, Program .
Eric &
J.Mickael
Le Muy France
http://www.517prct.org/reunions/2009_anniversaire_liberation/2009_le_muy.htm
Marie-Louise Spencer
In the past we have sent money and we'd be glad
to do it again.
To whom and where?
Joe has a bronze star, I hope he is on
the list.
Marie-Louise Spencer (460th HQ)
Ben, did you just have
one? In any case I send you love and
best wishes. You are a great guy!
Marie-Louise
Steve Markle
I could not have said it better. Thanks for everything you
have done.... which is more that most men accomplish in 10 lifetimes. You are a
true role model and hero.
Happy Birthday.
The Rocklin Markle's
Gene Frice
Ben,
Look up Helena Schrader <http://valkyrie-plot.com/index.html
<http://valkyrie-plot.com/index.html>, a most
interesting person. She, along with her writing (author) and a current State
Department Foreign Service Officer (that's how I met her) did an amazing amount
of work on the subject. An interview of her is one of the links and the
interview tells much more about Valkyrie and the personalities-an interesting
topic-dats why I am here. Have a nice day.
Gene
Rick Sweet
Hi Ben and happy birthday,
I second
what Mr. Hensleigh has to say about you! You were my first contact a few years
ago when I discovered the 517th prct website and since then a whole new world
has opened up to me. I have learned so much from you, Mr. "H" and
many others and enjoyed the new friends that seem like old friends and the
fellowship and welcome atmosphere at the two reunions that I have attended. I
know that there is a common bond among soldiers because it is passed to the sons
and daughters of the "Battling Buzzards" and you all have left a great
legacy. I greatly appreciate what you have done for us. No other website that I
have found compares to the 517th website. As you know My dad Odas, was also in
the 504th as well as the 517th and their site offers little information in
comparison, not to mention the reunions and mail call and "The Thunderbolt" that
we all enjoy. Paratroopers Odyssey and "Letters home" by Lory Curtis are also
two must reads for anyone interested in what their fathers went through as well
as Gerald Astor's "Battling Buzzards". There is also a short section about the
517th in the "13th Airborne Division" book and it has some pictures including
one of my dad and Jim Sutcliffe laying on the ground resting. This is but a
small sample of information that I have discovered since our first contact. The
website itself has a wealth of information and pictures sent in from all of the
family's and mail call includes many gem's.
A note to Darrell Egner and Wade
Gilbert.....I personally look forward to receiving a copy of the 517th movie
project and I truly thank you Wade, for your generosity. I would be happy
to make a donation to the 517th or the movie project or however you would like
to handle it. Freedom isn't free and neither was the project that was undertaken
by so many involved and again as a descendent of a "Battlin Buzzard" I greatly
appreciate the ones who volunteered their time, expertise and money to make
it a reality. Thank you, thank you, thank you!!! I think that the information
should be in the "Thunderbolt" and in mail call and on the website. You wouldn't
want to miss anyone! Just thought I would add my two cents worth.....and thank
you again, Ben for the forum to do so.
SOB
Rick Sweet
Jerry Wolfford
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Greetings to all 517 associates. I am still unpacking my
bags from the Salt Lake City reunion. What a fun occasion it was and the
people I met there were real down to earth folks. It's nice to be able to
put a face with a name that I have read about from the various
publications concerning this PRCT. I was at the table with Les Perkins of
C Co. and I was able to put a face with the story I read about the first
American soldiers to cross the Var River during the war. Actually it was
Les and PFC Richards both of C Co. who volunteered to take a wheelbarrow
across the Var Bridge. They stripped off their shirts, unbloused
their boots and tied sweatbands around their heads. Throwing their weapons
in the wheel barrow along with the shovels they set out for the other side
of the bridge looking like two labor conscripts going to work. According
to the account I read, the guys were almost across when the German sentry
became concerned and fired a round in their direction. As it turned out
the boys from C Co. got the drop on the sentry and sent him and
another German to the promised land. Now that is the sort of scenario that
you can play out in your mind and almost see it as it happened all
those many years ago. That story would make for a very interesting scene
in a movie I would think. Hmmm, maybe that interview will
be added to the upcoming "517" movie "Cut Above". I guess we will just
have to wait and see. This account was taken from the big white book,
"517th Parachute Regimental Combat Team"
"Nephew of a Buzzard"
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