MEMORIES of HEROES !

By Howard Wilkinson
The Cincinnati Enquirer
Mon. April 12, 2004

Old friends sat around a long barroom table at American Legion Post 72 in Mount Carmel one afternoon last week, laughing and swapping well-worn yarns, tales from the decades-old event that bound them together for life.
WORLD WAR II.

Eleven men and one woman, all in their late 70’s and 80’s , who share a memory of a time long ago when, as wide-eyed youth, they were called on to serve and save the world.

“For all of us , World War II was the most important part of our lives, “ says Bill Bayer of Mount Carmel, who served in Europe with a combat engineer unit attached to Patton’s Third Army. “That’s what made us what we are. That’s why we have this camaraderie, even after all these years. “

In about six weeks they will travel together on a charter bus to Washington D.C., for a four day celebration culminating in the dedication of something many of them believe is long overdue – a National World War II Memorial on the National Mall, a last in monument to the 400,000 of their comrades who died in World War II and the 16 million who served.

About 117,000 tickets were sold for the dedication events, tens of thousands are on a waiting list should more tickets become available.

It is a memorial that has been in the works since 1987,when U.S. Rep. Marcy Kaptur, D-Ohio, introduced legislation after a Veteran approached her at a fish fry ,
and the rest is history...........................................................................................................

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