NORMANDY 2019 75TH COMMEMORATION OF D-DAY - World War II Foundation
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75TH COMMEMORATION OF D-DAY
NORMANDY 2019
RETURNING 15 WWII VETERANS
TO NORMANDY FOR THE
75TH COMMEMORATION OF D-DAY
The Best Defense Foundation is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization
whose purpose is to celebrate and honor our Veterans.
This year the foundation is returning dozens of WWII Veterans
to foreign battlefields across the world, at zero cost to them.
Learn more and support our mission at:
www.BestDefenseFoundation.org
EIN #82-5125497
`Take Care of the Ones who Took Care of Us`
BEST DEFENSE FOUNDATION
a nonprofit organization focused on helping our military veterans and their families.
Our mission is to Take Care of the Ones who Took Care of Us.
We make a difference in the lives of Veterans With the programs below.
OPERATION ARCHIVE
Although recognized as The Greatest Generation, fewer and fewer people remember the sacrifices made by our WWII veterans.
We launched The Best Defense Video Archive to educate our young and preserve this living history for future generations.
Our library of videos, photographs and testimonials are a first party account of heroism, tragedy, acts of bravery and acts of liberation.
To date, we have interviewed over 200 WWII veterans and have created a video archive of more than 2000 hours of history.
BATTLEFIELD RETURNS
From the shores of Normandy to the black volcanic sands of Iwo Jima...The Best Defense Foundation ensures that any WWII veteran
who wants a measure of closure or the recognition he so richly deserves has an opportunity to return to his battlefield.
At these unique battleground reunions our veterans have received numerous awards, such as the French Legion of Honor,
and have been honored at dozens of events and parades.
Donnie has been taking WWII veterans back to their battlefields for more than thirteen years. What began as a simple conversation
during a chance meeting with a WWII veteran has turned into a life’s mission.
TRANSITION PROGRAM - TRAINING CAMPS
There is a critical need to help recently retired Special Forces operators return to civilian life. These specialists often lack the struc-
ture and support needed for an easy transition; and these soldiers are among the least likely to ask for help. Combining concepts from
the battlefield with ideas forged on the gridiron, the foundation has created Training Camps: unique retreats that preserve bonds of
brotherhood while providing tools and services that equip and empower our veterans to move forward.
At our retreats, we connect operators with the services they need. We begin by assessing key issues then provide resource roadmaps,
skill development seminars, a network of sponsors and an individualized roadmap to success.
OUR FOUNDER - DONNIE EDWARDS
Donnie is a retired NFL football player who has spent the last 22 years giving back to our military. He has done numerous USO tours,
visited many military bases and accompanied hundreds of WWII veterans and Vietnam veterans back to their battlefields.
Donnie was the Los Angeles Chargers Salute to Service Award recipient in 2017.
His dedication and support for our military is unwavering.
`Take Care of the Ones who Took Care of Us`
MAJ Edward A. Burke
(Capt.) Company A, 821st Tank Destroyer Battalion 29th Infantry Division
Edward Burke was born on April 9, 1920 in the state of Ohio.
He was involved in the campaign for Normandy, Brittany Peninsula, Northern France, Rhineland, and Central Europe, where they met
the Russians at the Elbe. He received over 10 combat medals/awards/citations from the United States Army, including the Silver Star,
Bronze Star and 5 campaign battle stars.
The Silver Star was for gallantry in action in the Battle of the Roer River, the Bronze Star was for service at St. Lô, Villebaudon, Vire,
and Brest. He also received 2 presidential unit citations and the Pre-Pearl Harbor ribbon. Edward remained in occupation in Germany
until the war came to an end and the occupation of Berlin was determined by the Allies.
“The big problem for our tanks was that we weren’t staying on the roads all of the time, so if our tanks were to push through and over
the top of the hedges, their soft underbelly was in plain view of the Germans. After a while, we learned to put some metal prongs on
the front of our tank destroyers to help cut through the hedges, but if the Germans were on the other side of that field camouflaged
in the next hedgerow, you were exposed and they got you. Of course if you’re towed, like we were at that time, you’re hauling a truck
and you have to dismantle everything, dig it out or come off the road where you’re out in the open and susceptible to firing and then
reassemble. We were at a disadvantage the entire time in the Normandy hedgerows.”
`Take Care of the Ones who Took Care of Us`
TEC5 Andre C. Chappaz
Engineer 1885th Aviation Engineer Battalion
Andre C. Chappaz was born on September 14, 1925 in San Francisco, California.
When he was four years old, he moved to France until age twelve when his family returned to
California. Having grown up in France, Andre is still able to speak French and has deep love for the people of France.
Andre finished high school at age sixteen and was in art school when World War 2 began. He was listening to a Sunday radio show when
an announcer broke through and reported that the Japanese had attacked Pearl Harbor.
When he turned eighteen he volunteered for a graphics unit in the Army, but was sent to the 1885 Aviation Engineer Battalion after
basic training instead. His battalion was responsible forbuilding airfields on Guam for the B-29s that were to arrive. Even after the
island was“secure,” his company performed many patrols searching for and destroying the enemy in the caves and cliffs located
throughout Guam. Andre and his battalion were then sent to the Okinawa invasion where he served the remainder of his combat time.
Andre returned home in February, 1946 with a TEC5 rank.
`Take Care of the Ones who Took Care of Us`
SM2C V6 Gerard R. ‘Jerry’ Deitch
Naval Combat Demolition, UDT 24 & UDT 30, D-Day
Jerry Deitch was born in April, 1926 in Brooklyn, NY,
where he was raised with his four siblings until he joined the US Navy at age seventeen.
Jerry had concerns with his swimming abilities and challenged himself by volunteering for special duty with the elite Underwater
Diving Teams, which were the predecessors to the US Navy Seals. Jerry was sent to Scotland, in preparation for the upcoming invasion
of France, which was still a mystery as to when and where it would occur. As a member of Naval Combat Demolition, Unit 30 (NCD30),
Jerry trained night and day with Army Engineers, perfecting their stealth and explosive techniques.
On D-Day, June 6, 1944, Jerry’s unit was in the initial wave on Utah Beach, exploding obstacles and anti-tank mines, under small arms
and artillery fire, while men were dying all around him. A sailor next to him was struck down and soon after Jerry was struck
unconscious, not knowing what happened, and woke up in an English hospital eight days later. After recovering, Jerry was involved in
Operation Dragoon, the invasion of Southern France, which for him, went much better than the Normandy invasion.
Upon completion of his assignment in France, Jerry returned to the US as a member of UDT24, in preparation for the Pacific Theatre
Operations. Arriving in the PTO, UDT24 performed reconnaissance missions, infiltrating Hakkaido Island off the Japanese mainland, in
preparation for the invasion of Japan, until the Japanese surrendered.
Jerry returned home in March, 1946 and married his wife Selma. Jerry was a paramedic and an instructor at the Albert Einstein Medical
School and still volunteers for the Las Vegas Police Department.
`Take Care of the Ones who Took Care of Us`
CPL John D. Foy
Company A, 1st Bn, 347th Infantry Regiment 87th Infantry Division
John was born on October 12, 1926 in the state of New York.
John arrived with his unit on October 22, 1944 in France and was in combat in three different campaigns: The Ardennes, Central Europe
and the Rhineland. Of those, the Ardennes battle, also known as the Battle of the Bulge, stuck with him the most. Here’s what he
recalled of the battle in a speech for Veterans of the Battle of the Bulge.
“Let me take you back 74 years to a foxhole in the Ardennes in Belgium. We are just getting ready to jump off in an attack on a strong
German position. The temperature is about 10 below zero, a couple of feet of snow on the ground. German artillery is blasting our
position, the ground is heaving up and down with the violence of the explosions. Trees are splintering and crashing to the ground. The
shrapnel is slicing into soldiers’ flesh. Rifle and machine gun fire splits the air. The sound is deafening and overwhelming.
We are the machine-gun section of what is left of an Infantry company of the 87th Infantry Division, part of General George Patton’s
famous Third Army. Alongside of me is a good friend that I had trained with for over a year, Harvey Wilson. Harvey is very quiet because
Harvey is dead. He was feeding ammunition into my machine gun when a German bullet hit him. Within about ten yards of our position
are the bodies of three more of my comrades, men that I can never forget--Finn, West and Porzio, half-buried in the snow and frozen in
the ten below zero weather. An image that still sears my mind after over seventy-four years. There were to be many more before this
war was over. My machine gun squad of six men was now down to two. Then the word came, “move out,” and we began our attack on
the German position. This is a scene that was lived by most of the Veterans of the Battle of the Bulge still with us today to a more or
lesser degree.”
`Take Care of the Ones who Took Care of Us`
PFC Bradford C. Freeman
Easy Company, 2nd Bn 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 101st Airborne Division, D-Day
Brad Freeman was born September 4, 1924 in Artesia, MS, the seventh of eight children, to Irving Julius and Ollie Clara Freeman.
Brad worked on the farm at an early age and graduated from high school in 1942.
Brad joined the US army on December 12, 1942, and after completion of basic training, volunteered for the paratroopers, completing
his airborne training at Fort Benning, GA, November, 1943. Originally assigned to the 541st Parachute Infantry Regiment, Brad was
sent to Camp Mackall and soon transferred to Company E, 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 101st Airborne Division, as a mortar
man in Don Malarkey’s squad.
After extensive training in England, Brad parachuted into Normandy shortly after midnight on D-Day, June 6, 1944, along with the rest
of his stick from a C-47. Upon completion of the Normandy campaign, the 101st Division was sent to England, and in September, 1944,
participated in Operation Market Garden, parachuting into the Netherlands, fighting the Germans for the next two months. Arriving in
Mourmelon, France for some much needed rest, his company was soon sent to Bastogne, where they were surrounded by the
German Army in the Battle of the Bulge.
Brad was wounded in mid January, 1945 and spent four months recovering, until rejoining the 101st Division in Zell am See, Austria.
Returning home in December, 1945, Brad worked various jobs until landing a job with the postal service, where he retired in 1987.
Brad was married for 61 years to he is wife, Willie Louise Gurley, until she passed in 2008. They have two daughter, Becky and Beverly.
Brad is a proud and humble member of the 101st Airborne, 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment, E Company, “Band of Brothers”,
portrayed by Stephen Ambrose in his book, and the HBO mini-series, BAND OF BROTHERS.
`Take Care of the Ones who Took Care of Us`
PFC Rudolph “Roy” S. Huereque
5th Ranger Battalion
Roy Huereque was born in New Mexico April 16, 1926 and raised in Los Angeles, CA with three brothers and one sister.
Upon graduation from Roosevelt High School, Roy was drafted in August, 1944 and sent to Basic training at Camp Roberts, CA.
Soon after basic training, Roy volunteered for paratrooper training, but was denied, as there were no immediate training vacancies.
Therefore, Roy was on to New York to board the Queen Mary headed to Glasgow, Scotland for more training and then on through
England, where he crossed the English Channel as an infantry replacement. Arriving in Le Havre, France, Roy was approached by sol-
diers looking for volunteers for the Rangers and immediately signed up. Roy was sent to Company D, 5th Ranger Battalion. and fought
his way with them through Belgium, Luxembourg, Germany and Austria. Roy remembers countless patrols and numerous house to house
combat situations, where he experienced many encounters with the Germans, and also the constant harassment from “Bed check
Charlie”, which was GI nickname given for the night time strafing and bombings from the Luftwaffe.
When his company received the message that the Germans surrendered, they were near the Russian Army, near Vienna. Soon after,
they gathered anything they could find and burned it in the streets, dancing around the fires, in celebration of their great victory over
the Nazis. Some of Roy’s worst memories are the two concentration camps he witnessed along his journey.
After months of occupation duty and refusing to reenlist in the Army, Roy was sent home in 1946. Roy attended college but before
graduating, Roy joined the Teamster’s Union and drove trucks for 26 years, and raised three daughters and one son with his wife,
Barbara, of 59 years. Roy and Barbara live in Apple Valley, CA.
`Take Care of the Ones who Took Care of Us`
CSM Ralph G. King
Company H, 3rd Battalion, 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 101st Airborne Division
Ralph was born on August 15, 1924 in the state of South Dakota.
After being inducted in the Army, Ralph went to Fort Campbell, Kentucky for armor training.
He then volunteered for airborne training and was assigned to the 541st Parachute Infantry Regiment before joining the fame101st
Airborne Division in England. Then in May he was put with the 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment, Company H, aboard the Queen
Elizabeth, headed to England on a zigzag course.
He arrived in Scotland on D-Day, June 6, 1944, as a replacement. George was wounded during Operation Market Garden, the airborne
jump into Holland on September 17, 1944. He was wounded a second time on December 21, 1944 during the Battle of the Bulge near
the town of Foy, Belgium.
The Army discharged Ralph on January 3, 1946, however,15 days later he rejoined the Army, volunteering for the 82nd Airborne
Division. He then joined the 508th Parachute Infantry Regimant in Frankfurt, Germany, serving as a member of
Eisenhower’s Honor Guard.
King served a total of four enlistments, beginning during World War II and ending in December 1963 after a Special Forces tour in Laos.
`Take Care of the Ones who Took Care of Us`2LT Leila E. Morrison
118th Evacuation Hospital
Leila was born on July 9, 1922 in Blueridge, Georgia and grew up in a family of seven children.
Her dad was in his 50s when she was born, and her mother died when she was just three years old. Leila always enjoyed helping people
and decided to become a nurse after graduating high school. She attended nursing school in Chattanooga, Tennessee and graduated
June, 1943.
Leila enlisted because two of her older brothers were already in military service. She had wanted to enlist in the Army Air Corps to
become a flight nurse, but after training in Colorado and Mississippi, she was sent to the Army at Camp Bowie, Texas. It was there
that she met her future husband, Walter, during a dance in town. Leila was sent on a six-day overseas journey across the Atlantic to
northern England.
Three months after D-Day, she landed on Omaha Beach in an LST. She moved into Normandy and was assigned to the 118th Evacuation
Hospital where she nursed soldiers who were about to be operated on. Leila always worked in a tent. Her “shock and pre-op” tent was
directly behind the surgeon’s tent. During her time as a nurse, Leila treated many seriously wounded combat soldiers to the best of her
abilities under extraordinary conditions, serving in the Ardennes and other campaigns. After Leila’s unit pulled back into France, they
went into the Rhineland in Cologne, Germany.
At the end of the war, they went to Czech-Slovakia and met the Russian Army. After that, they moved to Weimar, Germany to help
survivors of the liberated Buchenwald concentration camp. When the war in Europe ended, Leila and her fellow nurses were told they
would have 30 days leave and would then begin training to tend wounded in the planned invasion of Japan. But the A- bomb dropped
and the war ended. Leila was discharged in August, 1945.
`Take Care of the Ones who Took Care of Us`SSG George K. Mullins
Company C, 1st Battalion, 327th Glider Infantry Regiment, 101st Airborne Division, D-Day
George K. Mullins was born April 29, 1925 in Jenkins, KY. He works on the family farm until he entered the service on
September 30, 1943. Being eighteen years old.
He received basic training at Camp Wheeler, GA where he served with the 327th Glider Infantry Regiment, of the 101st Airborne.
He landed in Utah Beach on June 7, 1944 and participated in the fighting of Saint-Côme-du-Mont. His company crosses the Douve at
Brévands on June 10, and is seriously pounded by the American canons. The 327th Glider Infantry Regiment liberates Brévands and par-
ticipated in the liberation of Carentan. The 1st Battalion and Company C attacked the Tucker Bridge on the evening of June 11. He then
moves towards Montmartin-en-Graignes and establishes a line of defense along the railway line. This is where his company is hit hard
by the guns of the USS Texas. His company then took positions at Méautis.
George participated in all campaigns of the 327th Glider Infantry Regiment. In Operation Market Garden in Holland he earned a Purple
heart for wounds received on November 9, 1944. He also was with the 101st Airborne Division in the Battle of the Bulge defending
Bastogne, and later went to Germany. He crossed the border into Austria to Hitler’s eagles nest in Berchtesgaden, Germany.
George was discharged on December 10, 1945 as a Staff Sergeant, however, he stayed in the reserves and returned to active duty in
1950 and spent one year with the Army security school. He was discharged a second time in 1951, became a lumberjack and went on
to own a back hoe construction business. George married his wife in 1978.
He is a lifetime member of the 101st Airborne Division Association and a lifetime member of the VFW.
`Take Care of the Ones who Took Care of Us`SM3C Gilbert D. Nadeau
Signalman, USS LCS (L) (3) - 45, US Navy
Gilbert D. Nadeau was born on April 4, 1926 in Beverly, Massachusetts where he still lived when World War 2 broke out.
As he and his family listened to the radio on December 7, 1941, they learned that the Japanese had attacked Pearl Harbor, which was
an unknown naval base to Gil. His brother enlisted in the Navy immediately, but Gil had to wait to join until he turned sixteen and had
his parents’ permission. Upon completion of boot camp and advanced training, Gil was ordered to the amphibious unit.
Gilbert became a signalman on LCS(L) 45 in the Philippines, Borneo. He was headed to Iwo Jima when his ship collided with a lar-
ger vessel and had to abort their mission and be repaired. His final combat mission was Okinawa, where he witnessed and survived
devastating kamikaze attacks.
When the Battle of Okinawa ended for Gil’s ship, his unit returned to the Philippine Islands and prepared to invade Japan; Japan surren-
dered before the invasion could happen.
Gilbert was finaly discharged on May 5, 1946
`Take Care of the Ones who Took Care of Us`PFC Russell L. Pickett
Company A, 1st Battalion, 116th Infantry Regiment 29th Infantry Division, D-Day
Russell Pickett was born in April 19, 1925 in Soddy Daisy, TN. Russell’s father died when he was eleven, causing him to quit school
at 16 to support his mother and five siblings.
When Russell turned 18, he was drafted in to the Army and sent to basic training at Fort McClellan, AL, and then trained as an infantry-
man in A Company, 116th Infantry Regiment, 29th Division. Russell spent about one year in England with the 29th Division, training for
the liberation of Europe from the Germans.
In the early dawn hours of June 6, 1944, Russell was on a Higgins boat, with his flame thrower, assaulting Omaha Beach on the first
wave of the invasion, when his boat was struck with artillery, killing and wounding almost everyone on his boat. Wounded, Russell
struggled with the tide from washing him out to sea by cutting life preservers from the dead. Russell finally made it to the beach, but
was evacuated back to England later that day.
Eight days later, Russel joined his company again, and fought in the intense combat until July 2, 1944 when he was wounded a second
time battling the Germans in the hedgerows near St. Lo. Grenade fragments tore into Russell’s body and he was bleeding heavily, but
somehow made it back to an aid station on his own, where they flew him back to England for surgery.
After a three week recovery, Russell was sent to join his company again near Brest, France and was wounded a third time when he
was struck by artillery. This time, Russell was unconscious for twelve days and the spent next month recovering at the 101st General
Hospital. Unable to rejoin his company, Russell was then assigned to the 61st General Hospital in England until the war ended and was
sent home in June, 1945.
`Take Care of the Ones who Took Care of Us`MG John C. Raaen Jr.
(Capt.) HQ Company, 5th Ranger Infantry Battalion, D-Day
John C Raaen, Jr. was born April 22, 1922 at Fort Benning, GA.
After graduating from the United States Military Academy, class of 1943, John was commissioned as a
2nd Lieutenant in the Corps of Engineers. Soon after, Lieutenant. Raaen volunteered for the new Ranger training and was assigned to
the 5th Ranger Battalion.
As a Captain on D-Day, June 6, 1944, Raaen led his company in the early morning assault on the Dog sector of Omaha Beach, and was
awarded a Silver Star for his actions that day, landing along with elements of the 29th Division, battling their way to support the 2nd
Rangers at Pointe du Hoc. The Rangers broke through the barb wire entanglements and across the sea wall, and up the Pill box infested
ridges under intense machine gun and mortar fire, advancing to Vierville-sur-Mer.
On D+3 the 5th Rangers, along with elements of the116th Regiment and 2nd Rangers, linked up with the 2nd Rangers at Pointe du Hoc.
Captain Raaen led his company through the invasion and on through the battle of Brest and on through Europe until , after advancing at
night in the Ardennes, Captain Raaen was injured and evacuated, ending his active service in World War 2.
After the war, Captain Raaen served his country for 36 years in the US Army, retiring as a Major General in 1979,
and currently resides in Florida
`Take Care of the Ones who Took Care of Us`TEC5 Harry “Pete” W. Shaw Jr.
283rd Field Artillery Battalion
Harry “Pete” Shaw, JR was born on November 11, 1924 in Clearfield, PA, where he grew up with his two brothers and two sisters until
he graduated from Clearfield High School in 1943.
Harry enlisted in the US Army in December, 1942, but was allowed to finish high school on June 21, 1943 and swore in to the Army
seven days later at Fort Indian Town Gap. After basic training in Alabama, Harry was sent for advanced training with the 283rd Field
Artillery Battalion in Alabama, Kansas and then to South Wakes, in preparation for the upcoming invasion of Europe.
Soon after the D-Day landings on June 6, 1944, the 283rd FAB arrived on Utah Beach as part of the 1st Army to fight the occupying
Nazi Army. The 283rd FAB fought in five battle campaigns in 263 days of combat, suffering more than fifty wounded and 13 men KIA.
Harry was awarded five Battle Stars and four Bronze Stars among his other various medals, and had the rank of TEC5.
Harry returned home after the war on February 6, 1946 and worked in a local steel mill and aluminum factory, but developed severe
allergies to both and decided to open up an automatic car wash until he sold the business in 1966.
Harry was married three times and lost all three wives to cancer, and lost two of his three children to cancer.
Harry lives in North Canton, Ohio.
`Take Care of the Ones who Took Care of Us`TEC5 John H. Stevenson
Attached to 29th Division, 195th Ordnance Depot Company
John H. Stevenson was born on December 9, 1923 in Morgantown, West Virginia. When he was five, his family moved to Hagerstown,
Maryland. The depression deeply affected John and his family and so he quit school after 8th grade to work full time.
Shortly after World War 2 broke out, John visited the local draft board and volunteered to be drafted. He was drafted two weeks later.
After basic training and bomb disposal training, John volunteered for the paratroopers, but his unit received orders to England and
would not release John since they were moving out immediately.
After training in England for the upcoming invasion, the 195th Ordnance Depot arrived on Omaha Beach on June 18, 1944 and
immediately moved inland in support of the divisions assaulting the Germans. One of the duties assigned to John during this time was
driving fuel and munitions to the front line units, mostly the 29th Division and sometimes the 30th Division.
John feels very fortunate to have survived many close encounters he had along the way and is grateful for the 29th Division who
rescued him on several occasions.
John served in five battle campaigns as a TEC5 and was Honorably Discharged in October, 1945.
He retired from the Pennsylvania Railroad and still lives in Hagerstown, MD.
`Take Care of the Ones who Took Care of Us`CPL David G. Tolan
Company C, 712th Tank Battalion. Attached to 90th Division, D-Day + 22
David G. Tolan was born June 14, 1924 in Cleveland Heights, OH where he was raised by his parents, along with three brothers,
all serving in the US Armed Forces.
When David turned 18, he enlisted in the US Army and after basic training was sent to Fort Knox , KY for armored training, and even-
tually transferred to Company C, 712th Tank Battalion, arriving in England in February, 1944. The 712th Tank Battalion arrived on Utah
Beach June 28, 1944 and soon saw extensive combat as the battles raged in Normandy, attached to the 90th Infantry Division, also
known as the “Tough Ombres”.
After Normandy, it seemed the fighting became increasingly difficult as the unit was also deeply involved in the siege of Metz, where
some of the bloodiest fighting of the war occurred. During the war the 712th Tank Battalion also was attached to the 82nd Airborne
Division and the 8th Infantry Division.
David served in five battle campaigns during this time and was discharged from active duty November 18, 1945.
`Take Care of the Ones who Took Care of Us`WWW.BESTDEFENSEFOUNDATION.ORG
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