On Saturday, June 7 the Boys of H Company were back in the field in remembrance of the 81st Anniversary of the D-Day invasion. As our event was on June 7 we crafted our scenario around a D+1 patrol to link up with other scattered 507th troopers at "Timmes Orchard". The 2nd Battalion commander Lt. Col. Charles Timmes was famous for leading an ever-growing group of paratroopers in defense of a small orchard north of St. Mere Elise. The orchard was utilized as a fall back position up through June 9 by different groups of paratroopers. So for our event, our leadership group plotted an ambitious plan to patrol up through the Loess Hills of western Iowa and make our way to a small orchard that we found while studying maps of the area. In theory it was a solid idea, but it proved to be too much for our group of heavily ladened troopers in the late morning heat. After reconsidering our plans for the weekend, our squad found a prime spot in an open valley to set up our defensive positions for the night. We dug several two man foxholes, or scrapes depending on how much digging each team wanted to do. Will made us a nice fire to cook rations and coffee on and we had a fun time trying out Hazard's new homemade D Bars. A six man sunset patrol was quite successful as they came back with a German flag, a Zeltbahn, and a few other odds and ends. D+1 came to an end with plenty of liberated French Calvados, cigarettes, captured German chocolate, and lots of laughs and stories!  The overnight proved to be rather uneventful but with pleasant temperatures so that no one froze in their foxholes. On D+2 we packed up early and made our way back home. It was a great overnight event and all of the guys left with plenty of fond memories of an "Orchard Too Far"!

On Saturday, May 24, the World War 2 Guys marched in our fifth annual Memorial Weekend Parade put on by Patriotic Productions. This was a great day for a parade with overcast skies and cooler temperatures for late May. This year our entire group wore the CC2'd M42 Jump Uniforms that the 507th PIR wore for their night drop into Normandy. The troopers of our squad also all carried extra equipment that would have been utilized during the invasion such as Assault Gas Mask Bags, Hawkins Mines, extra Grenades, and the Bazooka of course! We also recently discovered that Colonel Millett made an extra effort to get as much OD7 (darker green) web gear into the hands of his 507th paratroopers as possible before the big jump. He knew the value of having darker colored gear for camouflage purposes. So we are making an effort to sprinkle in some more OD7 items into our D-Day impressions.

On Sunday, April 13, the World War 2 Guys were back in action at the SAC Aerospace Museum's annual Operation: Easter Egg Hunt. We have a great turnout from our group with 8 members, all dressed in our Normandy M42 Jump Suits. Our mission was to escort the Easter Bunny around the museum and to be available for photos with kids. The museum went through over 3,000 Easter Eggs in just under an hour which was pretty impressive! We also had the opportunity as a group to get inside the C-47 and take some fun photos standing in the door. It was a quick, fun event and a great way to be involved in the community.

On Thursday, July 4, the World War 2 Guys were back in action at our favorite 4th of July tradition. We once again met up at the historic Field Club neighborhood of Omaha for their annual Independence Day Parade. This year, in honor of the 80th Anniversary of D-Day and Operation Overlord, we chose to represent the brave infantrymen of the 1st Infantry Division, known since World War I as "The Big Red One"! So we donned our Assault Gas Mask Bags, Gas Brassards, M-1926 Life Belts, and plastic rifle bags along with our wool uniforms and M41 Field Jackets. The weather was cooler than in years past so were comforted with a little relief from Mother Nature. It was another great turnout and our group earned 2nd Place in the Historical category. We were interviewed by John Chapman of WOWT Channel 6 News and were featured in a great little feature story. It was a great time for all of us and we hope to be back again next year!

On Thursday, June 6, the World War 2 Guys were honored to be involved with a ceremony to mark and remember the 80th Anniversary of D-Day. The event was quickly put together by Bill Williams of Patriotic Productions the week before the anniversary. Former Omaha mayor, Hal Daub, served as the MC of the early morning event. Four paratroopers jumped on Memorial Park which is always an awe-inspiring experience. World War 2 Guys unit commander, Eric Krelle, served as the keynote speaker and delivered a heart-felt speech about the ways in which D-Day has intersected with his life over the past four decades. It was a beautiful morning and all of us felt very happy to be able to remember the men who jumped from the skies and stormed the beaches 80 years ago on this date.

On Saturday, May 25, the World War 2 Guys were back in action for the 4th Annual Patriotic Productions Memorial Weekend Parade. The weather was glorious this year with full sunshine and perfect temps throughout the morning! In preparation for the parade this year, all of our members put forth a lot of extra effort working on our impressions and our historical authenticity. Four of our guys represented the infantrymen of the 1st Infantry Division "The Big Red One" who landed on Omaha Beach on June 6, 1944. The other four guys represented the paratroopers of the 507th Parachute Infantry Regiment who dropped behind enemy lines into Normandy on June 5, 1944. This was our largest ever group turnout for a parade and everyone looked top notch! Everyone in our group has an amazing passion for keeping alive the memories of our World War II generation and the incredible sacrifices that they made on our nation's behalf.

On Tuesday, June 6, Eric was invited to set-up a D-Day themed display at the Omaha Golden K Kiwanis Club weekly meeting. First Sergeant Dan Falcon, who is a big deal in the local Airborne community and a strong supporter of our group, invited me to be a part of his presentation. Dan has been an 82nd Airborne paratrooper since the 1970s and is a tremendous leader both with JROTC and with Airborne veterans. The morning provided another great chance to show off some of the uniforms, equipment, and weapons that the brave men of the 82nd and 101st Airborne took into battle 79 years ago in Normandy.

More photos and event After Action Report coming soon!

On Sunday, September 12, the World War 2 Guys were invited to celebrate the 20th Anniversary re-dedication of the Andrew Jackson Higgins Memorial in Columbus, Nebraska. Our participants for the day were Mark representing the "Big Red One" of the 1st Infantry Division on D-Day, Cody representing the U.S. Marine Corps in World War II, and Eric representing the 1st Cavalry Division in the Korean War. The park and memorial in Columbus were beautiful and the public interaction was great as well. It was very rewarding to show off the uniforms, weapons and equipment of our soldiers and marines who rode Higgins Boats to the battlefield in World War II, Korea and Vietnam. 

On Saturday, July 3 the boys were back in action at the 39th Annual Field Club Independence Day Parade. It was an amazing feeling to be back out among a spirited crowd at one of Omaha's best neighborhood parades. This year we had Joe representing a LRRP from the 173rd Airborne Brigade, Conner representing an infantryman from the 34th "Red Bull" Division, Jeff representing a US Army infantryman in HBTs, Matt representing a paratrooper of the 101st Airborne Division, and Eric representing a Captain from the 2nd Ranger Battalion. We had a great time seeing each other again and we're already scheming up something special for 2022 and the parade's 40th Anniversary.