WorldStrides Updates

We Remember: Experiencing the Stories of Those Who Served on D-Day

On the morning of June 6, 1944, the largest seaborne invasion in history began. The events that took place on the beaches of Normandy, on what would become known as D-Day, would begin the liberation of France and turn the tide of World War II. After months of planning, Operation Overlord began and more than 156,000 American, British, and Canadian forces landed on five beaches to carry out the invasion. Thousands of paratroopers landed to secure the ground behind enemy lines, and naval bombardments of the German coastal defenses meant the amphibious invasion of the beaches could begin. More than 10,000 Allied soldiers were killed, wounded, or went missing on that day. This year, on the seventy-seventh anniversary of D-Day, pause for a few minutes to think about the stories of those who served and the sacrifices made along the beaches at Normandy.

For our students that have the opportunity to travel to France and visit Normandy, their visit to the Pointe du Hoc, Omaha Beach, and the military cemetery at Colleville is often life changing. At WorldStrides, our students learn more by engaging with their surroundings; this hands-on approach embodies our educational philosophy, Learning Through Exploration and Active Participation (LEAP). Tour Director Michael Durnin describes the engaging activity where students relive the experiences of the D-Day landings from different viewpoints.

From the vast compendium of oral testimony of the Normandy campaign, we compiled eight short eyewitness accounts. At appropriate times during the visit, students relate the memoirs as though they were the authors of the account.

Conditions and timing vary on the tours, so sometimes the speakers can connect the text with the topography. Sometimes the weather is horrible, as it was in 1944, and the Pointe du Hoc is a muddy moonscape of shell craters and demolished bunkers – the very sight that confronted the Rangers who climbed the cliffs at dawn. Sometimes the tide on Omaha Beach coincides with sea-levels on D-Day. As the re-enactors talk of climbing out of the landing craft, the rest of the group can see the immensity of their task of just surviving.

The visits usually end in the cemetery at Colleville. The last of the stories are told as the group looks down onto Omaha Beach. Moving just a few paces, the group encounters the serried ranks of grave markers like marching troops, which demonstrate the immensity of the events and the loss.

Some WorldStrides students even had the opportunity to meet a D-Day veteran during a travel program a few years ago. Michael shares this story:

In June 2017, we encountered Stephen J. Weiss. He had just graduated from high school in 1942 when he volunteered for the US Army. He was thus no older than some of the students when he experienced war. He landed in the south of France in 1944, but was soon involved in the Normandy campaign. Three young men from the group were eager to meet him and he engaged them in conversation, telling them how they must always work for peace.

You can still talk about D-Day and the sacrifices made from the classroom as well. There are many oral history archives that are worth exploring to see if there are local veterans who have told their story, or maybe there is a veteran in your community who hasn’t shared their story yet. PBS Newshour has a great video and information from the seventy-fifth anniversary in 2019 that shares some individual’s stories. Docs Teach from the National Archives has a lesson around Gen. Dwight D. Eisenhower’s famous statement before the attack. If you like using movies or television to show historical examples, the opening scenes from Saving Private Ryan and the second episode of Band of Brothers show the realities of D-Day.

Whether you meet a veteran on the beaches of Normandy, in Washington D.C., at the World War II Memorial, or in your hometown, take a few minutes to talk to them and hear their story. On days such as today, it is important to hear the stories of those who were at important events such as D-Day and to find ways to remember and honor those who gave their lives fighting for their country.