FORT CAMPBELL, KY – The Fort Campbell Historical Foundation (FCHF) is supporting the installation of a memorial in France to honor paratroopers of the 101st Airborne who died during the allied invasion of Normandy in World War II.
The outdoor memorial, set in a field near Picauville, is where on D-Day, June 6, 1944, a C-47 transport aircraft carrying Fort Campbell soldiers was shot down by German anti-aircraft gunfire and crashed. The project is slated for completion on June 3, 2021.
Marie Pascale Legrand, a French businesswoman leading the effort, grew up in a village close to the site. Over the years, she has been inspired by meeting many of the U.S. veterans who survived WWII and secured freedom for her country.
FCHF board chair Pete Kinney, retired lieutenant colonel, became aware of the project last October 2020 when a friend introduced him to Dr. Paul Herbert, military historian and fellow veteran of the 101st. Herbert suggested the foundation might be interested in supporting Legrand, and a friendship began.
In a video released by FCHF, Kinney explains how the project aligns with the organization’s goal to build bridges between military and civilian communities.
“This is just a great example of how our foundation can honor the legacy of those soldiers and their families who have served there,” he said. FCHF has provided a grant to help fund the memorial.
After purchasing the site where the C-47 crashed, Legrand set out to establish an appropriate tribute to the 20 men who perished there. In keeping with the pastoral surroundings, plans call for a garden shaped in the outline of a C-47 planted with trees representing the brave soldiers who died.
“It’s one thing to erect a memorial, but if we can add the human value that means these families will have a spot where they will be able to come over here to pay their respects and pray,” Legrand said.
Herbert said another important aspect of such work is educating future generations who have no living memory of World War II and especially D-Day.
“I think as a society we’re forgetting the scale of the effort and then the tremendous impact on every single community across the country,” he said.
Bringing such history alive and forging partnerships are two key aspects of the FCHF’s ongoing efforts to strengthen its education and outreach arm, according to Mike Oates, president, and CEO.
“Every generation needs to be reacquainted with where the military fits in, which is why we’re making plans to provide continuing education about the role of the armed forces in American democracy and around the world,” he said.
Since 1992, the Fort Campbell Historical Foundation has worked to honor the courage and sacrifice of soldiers who call the base home. The organization is now cultivating a public-private partnership that will build and operate the Wings of Liberty Military Museum to honor the soldiers of Fort Campbell and its major combat units.