D-Day Conneaut 2013 (Picture heavy)

[slim]

Over the Aug. 16/17 weekend, I had the honor of 7th Stepping the D-Day Conneaut 2013 event. Over 1,000 re-enactors converged on the small town of Conneaut, Ohio to honor the sacrifices of The Greatest Generation, "Not to glorify war, but so we'll never forget." - And what an event it was! 

Birdman (who seemed to know everyone in town!) got us a booth and Stand joined us from Pennsylvania with his wife and kids in tow. These two worked the event last year and encouraged me to get out and see the sights, watch the re-enactments, and just generally enjoy myself. I walked around like a kid in a candy store for the first four hours or so just saying, "Wow! Wow. Wow, look at that!" and finally after lunch made it back to pick up a few flyers and business cards since that lightbulb went off and I remembered I was there in an official capacity and not just to enjoy myself.

It sure is hard not to take something from this event. What a spectacle! Some 300+ volunteers - including everyone from the Sea Cadets and Scouts to local soccer moms - put in time, effort and energy to coordinate this thing and corral everyone to the proper places. The 1,000+ re-enactors came out - on their own dime! - dressed as Allied airborne troopers, Nazi SS officers, French Resistance fighters and everything in between. There were half-tracks, Jeeps, motorcycles with side cars, even a B-25 bomber doing flyovers... and a Sherman tank that shot every hour on the hour. BOOOM!

And this whole event is FREE!!! 

The re-enactors camped on site and invited guests to tour the camp during the day. They had their kit out on display including working weapons and were more than happy to field questions and pose for pictures. I had a guy actually stop his vehicle and ask, "Did you get the shot?" The coolest thing was the volunteers would ferry the vets - over 100 WWII vets were on site for the event - around in golf carts. Whenever they'd pass, the re-enactors would salute them. Talk about respect!

My words can't do this thing justice. I'll post pictures and you can see for yourselves. Next year will be the 70th anniversary. I hope many more of you can join us for this special event.


I was busy walking around most of the day but whenever I'd walk back, a crowd would be gathered around and Birdman and/or Stand (or his kids!) would be engaging the curious passers-by.


"Omaha Beach." - The beach at Conneaut is appx. the same length as Omaha. There's a bluff overlooking it too so it's about as real as we can get here in the midwest.


German SS guard on the bluff.


German soldiers filling sandbags and preparing defensive positions.


German commanders positioning defenses.


Aerial bombardment just prior to the invasion.


Landing craft bringing men ashore.


Allied forces advance up the beach.


Almost there!


Armor support made it up the beach.


Have some freedom, Jerry!

[slim]

Lots and lots of vehicles were there too.


German GP vehicle.


German motorbike with side car.


German amphibious scout vehicle.


German GP vehicle.


German troop carrier.


Been way too long since I've manned the machine gun!


German armored scout vehicle.


No, this picture was not staged. These guys were actually working on the old German car trying to get it running again. They were using a period-correct tool kit and the crank (starter) was laying on the ground next to it.

[slim]

Allied vehicles.


My Jeep's great grandpa.


Sherman Tank.


Several Jeeps.


Light GP truck.


Half-track.


One of the first Jeeps on the beach.


Deuce and a half.


Another deuce.


Landing craft.


Duck!

[slim]

Weapons.


Bren Gun. (Overlooking the ridge held by French Resistance.)


Schmorgasboard of German weapons.


Panzerschrek. (So simple in design. So deadly in implementation.)


Mortars, rockets, machine guns, mines... who's bringing the chips?


Lots of US Rifles, 1919s, Ma Deuces, and even some Tommy Guns.

[slim]

Allied camp. (British, Canadian, American, even the 303 paratroop regiment from Poland.)


Polish tents on the right, British on the left.


American tents from across the parade grounds.


Navy HQ.


Allied camp.


The Ritz!


Allied field hospital.


Enlisted men ready for inspection.


Kilroy had already been there by the time I arrived.


French camp.


Viva la resistance!


Axis checkpoint.


Nazi officer's quarters.


Enlisted men in camp.


Officers in camp.


Camp life.


Axis tents.


Axis tents.


Field mess wagon. (Was cooking potatoes and sausages!)

[slim]

French Resistance captures a Luftwaffe pilot.


French Resistance prepares to attack a German convoy.


German convoy.


Canadians going over the battle plan.


Call to muster!


Forming up.


Rangers coming in!


Canadians in formation.


Invasion force assembled.


Kitting up.


Ready to jump in.

[slim]

French Resistance getting ready to pull the ol' "Car broken down in the road" trick.


French Resistance fighter picking out a good spot.


Getting ready to ambush the column.


Reminds me of another dangerous young lady I know...


La Resistance actually played a pretty big part in the D-Day landings. They were active in intelligence gathering, disrupting supply lines, providing misinformation, and carried out several attacks.

When I talked to one of the gentlemen (pictured above with the .30 carbine adjacent to the car) about the role civilians played in resisting the occupation and assisting the allies during the invasion he said, "Yeah, have you ever heard of the minutemen? That's basically what they did!" Huzzah!!!

[slim]

The women played a huge role in this event. They were all dolled up like my great-grandma in the pictures of her standing next to my great-grandpa and clutching him just a little tighter when he came back from the war.


Tea party as they got ready for the day.


Look closely at the woman in the foreground. You may recognize her as the French Resistance Riflewoman.


The hardest job in war is supporting the troops on the homefront. I can only imagine what these women sacrificed when their fathers, brothers, husbands and friends left to fight.


The German women were just as busy, if not more!


So many pictures just like this one hang in many homes to this day.


Married right before he shipped out.


This couple took time off from active duty army to come volunteer at this event. Huzzah!


Homespun dresses.


These women personally sacrificed during the war. They looked lovely the whole weekend and had an air of grace around them as they reconnected with their youth.


Johnathon Harrington's mom woke him up in the dark of night. "... something must be done." Women the world over have done the same in defense of our freedoms. God Bless them all.

[Nero]

Hey, slim, this is awesome stuff.  You ought to have scuzzy move it out into the AAR area or some other public area so everyone can see it, not just the IC.  It deserves the exposure!

[slim]

Recreating the capture of Italy.


Coca-Cola always screams 'merica!


The guy on the left was eating Doritos and as soon as I pulled out my phone, the bag disappeared. Everyone took their roles very seriously. Hats off.


Many of the airborne troopers jumped in with mohawks!


Field Marshall Rommel who was actually away on vacation when Normandy was invaded.


Every re-enactor bought his own uniform, kit, weapons, ammo, and traveled to be there. Volunteers, FTW!


Chow time!


Go Navy!


The officer corps.


Three generations of re-enactors.

[slim]

So honored to be there with WWII vets.


These men recreated this scene for me and undoubtedly it was one of the most frequent events of the day before the invasion.


I felt humbled to be there and honored to witness such a wonderful recreation of American history.


May the men who never made it home rest in peace.


Liberation!


On to Paris!

..... ON TO BERLIN!!!

[slim]

Hey, slim, this is awesome stuff.  You ought to have scuzzy move it out into the AAR area or some other public area so everyone can see it, not just the IC.  It deserves the exposure!

If he can work his magic, have at it!

[Birdman]

AWESOME pictures Slim!

I hear rumors of PARATROOPERS next year!

Thanks to Stand (and family) for manning the booth for me on Saturday!

[Pain Killer]

That looks like a really great event! Make sure to post when it will be next year, when you know the date. I will bring the whole family. I can't believe that is free.

PK

[FFJim]

Fantastic post. I was most impressed with hearing how the vets were treated.

[scuzzy]

Great event and pics! Wow.

[TaosGlock]

Outstanding! Thanks for taking the time to share those!

[Charles McKinley]

THANK YOU SLIM!!!!

Your help at the booth was great and those pics were worth every minute you were gone!

You did an excellent job of capturing the feel of the event.  I told EZ3 if there was a conflict again next year I would Shootboss so he could go.  It really is an AWESOME event.

On Saturday my wife and kids got to ride in one of the landing craft. There was no charge for that either.

They accept donations and sell prints, patches, and other souvenirs to fund the event.   
http://www.ddayohio.us/

For vetrans that want to attend:
http://www.ddayohio.us/veterans.htm

It is a very moving event.  I encourage all to come.

A special THANK YOU to Birdman for hosting us and making the arangement for us to stay in his home and aranging parking with his cousin right at the entrance of the event.  It made the weekend much easier!

[Rayne]

~

[Birdman]

I have heard that the next year's D-Day Re-enactment will be Aug 22-23, 2014.
Pencil in those dates on your calendars.
Slim's pics are great, but you need to see this in person.

Think about this: re-enactors firing just 50 blank rounds each, and let's say 500 soldiers actually on the beach fighting equals 25,000 blanks at $.50 each for a total of $12,500  -  out of their own pockets!

( I like firing LIVE ammo!)