French Families Adopt U.S. Graves in Normandy

[ckramer]

Source: npr

Eight years ago, a French couple founded an organization that adopts graves of American servicemen who died during the Normandy invasion of World War II. The volunteer group encourages French families to lay flowers on the graves when the Americans' own families can't do it.

High on a bluff above Omaha Beach, the American cemetery at Colleville-sur-Mer is a place of stunning beauty and tranquility. Rising from thick, manicured grass, rows of white crosses and stars of David face westward, towards America.

It's hard to imagine that 64 years ago, war raged here. But there are the 10,000 graves to prove it.

Among them is the uncle of a North Carolina NPR listener, Jennie Malcolm. Walter Malcolm was killed near here, two month after D-Day. Last summer, while investigating her uncle's death, Jennie Malcolm came across the French volunteer organization, Les Fleurs de la Memoire, or Flowers of Memory.

Malcolm said she mustered up her best French and asked if flowers could be placed on her uncle's grave. Two months later she received a photo of his grave in the mail. "It was quite an emotional experience," she says.

Read more: http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=90824280

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Yet the ungrateful Congressmen changed French fries to "freedom fries."

[Forkboy]

1. A very nice story.

Amazing that in a world where it's easy to give in and see only the dark that there is still so much light and kindness.

[Democrat 4 Ever]

2. This post made my day, brought a tear to my eye and a lump

to my throat. Just thinking about those graves on that cliff top, the soldiers' sacrifices and the French people being so kind to take care of them when their families can not visit really brings home Memorial Day for me.

[rateyes]

3. OMG. Thank you for this. My grandmother's brother

is buried there. I'm going to make a contact.

Thank you so very much.

:cry:

[Jack from Charlotte]

27. Here's a picture.............

I was there in 2004 and have some sand from the beach here in my office.

[rateyes]

41. Wow. Cool.

:patriot:

[Bozita]

4. France tried to take the car keys away from an intoxicated ally.

That drunk wouldn't listen to reason or facts and drove off into the darkness.

Wouldn't you know it? The sot's buddies got pissed at France.

It's the American way.

[bulloney]

17. Those stinky, sissy French!

:sarcasm:

Believe it or not, there is still a small chain of restaurants around where I live that are selling "Freedom Fries."

Needless to say, I don't patronize any place that displays such ignorance, especially after all of the lies about Iraq and their WMDs have been exposed for several years now.

[calimary]

19. Ah yes, the "hated" French.

The French - whose president, Jacques Chirac, was the very first international leader who made a beeline for Washington to offer support, comfort, and sympathy as soon after 9/11 as our airspace opened back up. Who was FIRST to hurry over here to offer us friendship and solidarity? THE FRENCH.

Stick that in your "freedom fries" cooker and sit on it and swivel.

BTW - I completely agree with you about not patronizing any such business. May I suggest one further thing? Get their phone number and call them up, speak to the manager there, and make sure to tell them - VERY POLITELY - why you are no longer going there, and why hatred and intolerance are as basically anti-American as it's possible to be. Jerk-ass behavior should not be allowed to stand.

I have found that they do respond. Or at least, any business with a conscience and a wish not to alienate any part of its customer base does. If they're not one of those, then you haven't lost anything. Besides, as far as I can recollect, the one "freedom fries" guy, bob ney, lost reelection in disgrace, after being found "in bed" with jack abramoff.

http://www.iht.com/articles/2006/08/04/opinion/edfries.php

and the other - Walter Jones - saw the light, expressed remorse, and began to stand with courageous Democrats against the war.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/4086380.stm

[Joe Chi Minh]

39. I think Chairman Mao was wrong when he said it was too early to

know whether the French Revolution had been a success. Very wrong.

[fishwax]

5. cool story

:kick:

[rateyes]

6. Thanks again. I just e-mailed them with my great-uncle's information.

http://www.wwiimemorial.com/registry/cemetery/search/pframe.asp?HonoreeID=709268&popcount=2&tcount=2

Above is a link to his page in the registry at www.wwiimemorial.com

Here is a copy of what's there:

Bruce Johnson

ID: 20451454
Entered the Service From: Tennessee
Rank: Private

Service: U.S. Army, 959th Field Artillery Battalion

Died: Monday, July 31, 1944
Buried at: Normandy American Cemetery
Location: Colleville-sur-Mer, France
Plot: F Row: 11 Grave: 3

Awards: Purple Heart


None of his family has EVER been able to go there. This means so much. Thank you.

[rateyes]

7. Here is a link to their website translated into English:

http://translate.google.com/translate?hl=en&sl=fr&u=http://fleursdelamemoire.free.fr/&sa=X&oi=translate&resnum=1&ct=result&prev=/search%3Fq%3DLes%2BFleurs%2Bde%2Bla%2BMemoire%2B%26hl%3Den%26rls%3Dcom.microsoft:en-us:IE-SearchBox%26rlz%3D1I7ADBS

[Joe Chi Minh]

38. "Tombs are flowers by members of our association" should read,

"Flowes are put on the graves by members of our association." And "...who rely on our soil for our freedom" on the opening page should read, ".... who, to win our freedom, died and rest in our earth (or soil)."

Would Google allow someone to translate the text on the site more accurately?

[rateyes]

42. Probably a machine translation...

:shrug:

[Joe Chi Minh]

46. It is.

[lapfog_1]

8. Yet the ungrateful Congressmen changed French fries to "freedom fries."

And they did so while standing under an American flag with it's colors of red, white, and blue. And the vast majority of them have NO IDEA why our flag has those colors.

[Dr.Phool]

9. Ginny Brown-Waite (R-Obviously) wanted to dig them all up.

Another of Florida's wonders of the World.

[Bozita]

11. Wasn't her husband convicted of stealing political lawn signs?

[Dr.Phool]

14. He was caught red-handed with a truck full of Karen Thurman signs.

However, Thurman declined to prosecute.

[katmondoo]

13. Google Katmondoo and find out what Katmondoo

thinks of her

[Dr.Phool]

15. Hopefully, John Russell can run her out of office this time.

[uppityperson]

16. I wonder if they know that the French flag is those colors also.

[lapfog_1]

22. Ummm... Our flag is red,white and blue BECAUSE the flag

of the French Republic was the tricolor. We wanted their help in fighting the English in the Revolutionary War (we were TERRORISTS!)

[salguine]

31. Terrorists hell—

We were INSURGENTS!

[uppityperson]

36. thanks, I didn't know the USA copied the French flag colors.

But the USA is the FIRST and the BEST and those french just copied US!!!111 :sarcasm:

[14thColony]

50. I'm going to get flamed for being pedantic, I realize...

but the French Tricolore didn't exist at the time of the American Revolution, so it is unlikely that the older US national flag copied anything from it. The tricolore was created during the French Revolution and only adopted as the national flag in 1794. The French national flag during the American Revolution, and the only one the colonial soldiers would have seen, was the drapeau blanc.

[Mike Daniels]

52. not to mention that the French support was probably more motivated by their recent wars with England

and the opportunity to muck up Britain's empire than any true support of the American cause for independence.

The fact that the very same supporters of our revolution were pretty damn reluctant to give up power when their peasants decided to rise up against them shows that their support was more grounded in the British and French rivalry than any other cause.

[knight_of_the_star]

54. Just to point out your history is a bit off

The French flag during the American Revolution was three gold fleur-de-lis on a light blue field, the flag of the Kingdom of France. The French Republic didn't exist or fly the tricolor until 1789, the Revolution was over six years before that.

[bulloney]

18. One of the leaders of the Freedom Fries movement was Robert Ney of Ohio.

As in Robert Ney of the Jack Abramoff scandal fame.

People like Ney and their superficial brand of patriotism make you ashamed to be an American.

[EFerrari]

10. One of my uncles was in that battle. He went back some years ago

and met some of the families that tend those graves. :)

[Wilms]

20. I have an uncle who was there.

He made his way home, eventually. Not all of him...but he's home.

:(

[EFerrari]

43. I'm sorry, Wilms.

:hug:

[uppityperson]

12. Thank you for the wonderful story. An offer to DUers with relatives in Colleville sur-Mer

I am going over to visit family in Normandy in August. If you would like me to visit, to take a picture or leave a flower, please let me know and I will do this. Drop me a pm with relevant info and I will find him/her, and send you a picture in Sept after I return. This does NOT mean you should not contact this group, as they are doing a wonderful thing and live there, just another option also, if you wish.

I did this a few yrs ago for a DUer, with a couple teens and it made a big impression on them, personalizing it.

[flyingfysh]

21. remember what else the French did for us

During the Revolution, French money kept the American cause going. And when Cornwallis was trying to escape by sea, it was French warships who blocked his way, and forced him to surrender to Washington.

[aint_no_life_nowhere]

24. And the French infantry and artillery

French infantry and artillery played an important role in the siege of Yorktown. In fact, the Yorktown campaign was the idea of General Rochambeau. Washington wanted to attack New York but Rochambeau convinced him to go south. I also recall hearing about the fact that Cornwallis surrendered his sword to Rochambeau, who graciously stepped aside and told him to surrender it to Washington, instead.

[happyslug]

47. Cornwallis was sick the day he surrendered, his second surrendered in his place

Cornwallis had been sick for some time when he agreed to surrender, so it was a legitimate sickness (i.e. Not an attempt by Cornwallis to get out of during the actual Surrender). Under the 18th century Rules of War, a Second surrenders to a Second. Thus when Cornwallis's Second surrendered he offered his sword to Rochambeau, who deferred it to Washington who deferred it to his honorary Second that day, General Lincoln (Who had surrendered Charleston to the British a few Years before and had been denied the Honors of War at his surrender, thus Cornwallis was denied the same honors at Yorktown).

For more on Benjamin Lincoln:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Benjamin_Lincoln

General Lincoln was some sort of Cousin (Second or three degrees) of Abe Lincoln:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Samuel_Lincoln

[14thColony]

51. That's for sure

I had to wonder as I looked at the monument to the regiments at Yortown, whether or not the Americans were the smallest contingent there. It appears we barely edged out the British forces for last place in numbers, and when you count the French sailors and marines in the fleet, French forces were close to double the size of the American contingent. Something they kinda gloss over in high school history class.

[happyslug]

48. Actually it as keeping out the British relief expedition in the battle Of the Chesapeake

For more on the Battle of the Chesapeake:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_the_Chesapeake

For more on Yorktown:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Siege_of_Yorktown

Yorktown was the city you wanted if you wanted to March and conquer the State of Virginia. General Grant would use it as his supply base in 1864-1865. The problem with Yorktown is that it is located at the edge of the Virginia Coastal Plain. Thus it is LOWER then the surrounding area. This means that it takes more troops to hold Yorktown then it takes to besiege it. Thus Grant kept a large army in Yorktown in 1864-1865 period to defend it against any attack by the South. On top of the problem of it being a poor city to defend, Cornwallis had less men then the US and French (Excluding the Militia, whose main job at Yorktown was digging the siege trenches the French engineers told them to build). In fact the French had more troops at Yorktown then Washington had Regular troops (The American Militia outnumbered both, but its main job was to dig entrenchments).

[DesertRat]

23. That is very touching

"A French priest recites the Lord's Prayer, then a rabbi chants the Kadish. And a French military band plays the "Star-Spangled Banner." O8)

[BlooInBloo]

25. :))))

[onager]

26. An unforgettable letter...

Once a while back, there was some sort of flap about Americans "not feeling welcome" in France.

A 13-year-old girl who lives near Normandy wrote a letter I've never forgotten. At least the gist of it, if not the exact words:

Every year since I was very small, my parents have taken me to put flowers on the American graves.

They tell me these are Americans who gave up their lives for our freedom. And they told me I must never forget that.

I will never forget, and Americans are always welcome in my country. And my home.

[madrchsod]

28. i guess there are people left that appreciate

what our fathers and grandfathers did so long ago.....

[MasonJar]

29. But,but,but the French were the ones who spoke against the Bush/

Cheney Iraq War and they were right. There were no weapons of mass destruction. How can we forgive that...if we are a Bushista?

[salguine]

30. That Congressman can cram it.

The reason the French didn't help us out in Iraq was because the French know bullshit when they smell it.

[ooglymoogly]

32. Very moving story

Also lest we forget the pugs were urging a boycott of French wine. It was the only time I bought French wine by the case. We have to face reality; TODAYS PUGS ARE A DANGEROUS AND UGLY BUNCH THAT HAVE DESTROYED THE GOODWILL AND FRIENDSHIP OF THE WORLD TOWARD US...AND FOR THAT, AMONG MANY OTHER TREASONS, I WILL NEVER FORGIVE THEM. The same bunch of crooks are trying to do the same thing to Chavez.

[Botany]

33. "Vive la France!

They are our real friends .... they tried to warn us about Iraq but bush/Cheney &
company wouldn't listen.

BTW the story made me cry.

[Puzzle]

34. I lived in that part of the world for a few years

I can't even remember how many taxi drivers, bus drivers, and other random people I'd encounter throughout the day told me how grateful they were for the Americans.

We desperately need leaders with a better knowledge of the world and history than the current crop of idiots.

[samdogmom]

35. Another interesting factoid: land is very precious in France.

They don't have expansive cemeteries like we do in the US. Normandy is a huge exception and a testament to how much they appreciated the U.S. help! Imagine our country having ocean front property dedicated to a memorial for France! My daughter visited this site last summer--even the physical memorial structure there is dedicated to the US--every state is represented. It should bring tears to your eyes and remind all of us how ungrateful and self-centered some in our country are!

We truly need a leader who understands how the world works! We don't need another dubya cowboy in office!

[skygazer]

37. This story made me cry

I love to visit cemeteries. They are beautiful and peaceful places, often the stones and inscriptions are interesting. But more than that, I like to feel like I am acknowledging the people who are buried there - that as long as someone is aware of them, they are never fully gone.

How much more that means for people who died in service, and are buried far from home. What a wonderful thing to do.

[Joey Liberal]

40. Only the "Faux News" crowd hates the French n/t

[Flagg]

45. I don't know about that

go to youtube. Type anti-French. Read the comments, you'll see real and insane hatred of the French.

[riverwalker]

44. made me cry too

mt Dad is a veteran of Utah beach, later captured and a POW from Oct 44-July 45. He is very modest about it, not into VFW events or anything, but he does have those license plates that say "ex-pow". A few weeks ago he was at the mall and someone left a little note on his car: "Thank you for your service and thank you for our freedom". It really moved him, and he has it taped to his wall now.

[kdmorris]

49. What a beautiful story!!

Thanks for posting that.

[shrike]

53. Reminds me of a story, told by a trombonist in the U.S. Navy band

They were touring Europe in the '80s and embarked on a leg through the French countryside. And everywhere they went, people would come pouring out of the small French villages, to welcome them. Women old enough to remember the war insisted they come into their homes, to be fed enough good, French food to make their stomachs explode.
To these old women, Americans were liberators. Most hadn't seen an American serviceman since the war, and they were grateful for the chance to say thank you.
The young trombonist who told me the story said it was the greatest and most humbling experience of his life.