“77 years ago today, Allied forces made landfall on the beaches at Normandy in the north of France.
“There are very few events that we all would point to as moments that changed the course of human history. But as Hitler’s army terrorized Europe, and the fate of the free world was threatened, the morning of June 6, 1944 was one of those moments. It was a turning point in the war, and it could have gone either way.
“Our way of life was in the hands of the young men who stepped off the landing crafts into machine gun fire, scaled the cliffs, and took the beaches. By the end of the day, they had pushed the Nazi army inland and secured enough ground for the Allies to mount a western offensive. Within two months of the invasion, they would liberate Paris. In less than a year, Berlin would fall, and the war would be over.
“My Dad, Sgt. Howard Scott, from tiny Washington, Vermont landed in Normandy and fought with his unit inland to St. Lo France where his tank hit a landmine and he was severely injured, losing both his legs. But he thought he was one of the lucky ones.
“Today, on the 77th anniversary of D-Day, we must honor and remember those who never made it home; those who answered the call and gave their lives to further the cause of freedom.”
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