JUNE 6, 2014, WASHINGTON, DC
by Jimmy Carter
(Jun. 7, 2014) — Yesterday, June 6, on behalf of my WWII Veteran father, his unit, and every other WWII Veteran as well, I attended the D-Day 70th Anniversary Commemoration at the National WWII Memorial in Washington D.C. I got there around 9:30AM and stayed until around 4PM, shortly after members of the 3 and last Honor Flight (Honor Flight Network) had departed.
[Regarding the photo at right, Mr. Carter said,] “Note that all of them are holding folders containing their speeches. This photo was taken about 10 minutes before the next photo, wherein the three above are seated behind the podium on the right (facing the audience) while the Master of Ceremonies is at the podium speaking.”
[The Post & Email asked Mr. Carter if his meeting with those appearing in the featured photo was planned and if they had met before, to which he responded:]
No, I had never met any of the others in the first photo. My meeting them was indeed planned, by me and unbeknownst to them. Since FDR was President and Eisenhower was Supreme Allied Commander during WWII my father served under both of them during WWII. In addition, after returning from fighting in Korea in 1951 my father was an ROTC instructor at Gloucester MA High School and led his ROTC class in Eisenhower’s Innauguration Parade. So when I found out that FDR’s great-grandson and DDE’s grand-daughter were going to be at the 70th Anniversary of D-Day I was honor bound to my father to go there and meet them — I live only 15-miles from the WWII Memorial.
He added:
When I was introduced to Susan Eisenhower I showed her my Father’s personal copy of her Grandfather’s D-Day address to the troops (the leftmost item on the bottom row in the photo of my table) and she asked me whose name was written across the top of it. I told her it was my Father’s and she asked me if it was the original document or a copy and when I told her it was the original her jaw almost dropped and then I told her that my Father had led his High School ROTC class in her Grandfather’s Inauguration Parade. Can you say HUGS but no KISSES! :-) Heartwarming for me as well!
The Minute Men, the Black Robes, the Sons of Liberty, the Patriot tinker, barber, candle-stick maker, the Indian Scout, the freed blackman, the new immigrant made fresh recruit, all made soldier, the mothers, fathers, sisters, brothers wives and children all praying hopeful thoughts of Victory and safe return …….. the Honorable history of an Honorable Nation.