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Published on 08/07/1995 All articles from this issue

D-DAY PLUS 50

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By Esther Payne Davis

Oh, where have all the soldiers gone? To Cincinnati.

They come from Kentucky, Indiana, Michigan, Florida, California. It is their 5th reunion but this one is special.

"Why, you look just the same as you did 50 years ago," springs from the lips of the men of the 359th Engineer E Company.

"Ours was a supply outfit often ahead of the infantry," chorus the men.

It is 9:00 A.M. in the Musket Room at the Holiday Inn. At ease, the soldiers, once clad in khakis, now in muftit file in. Soon the camaraderie is as thick as the musket once used by foot soldiers. This is D-Day Plus in Cincinnati, where rank and file lift from the aura of wartime to settle on all personnel alike. privates, sergeants and officers sit at damask-draped tables now scanning bygone photos and clippings.

"There's Joe, Emmett, Jim, Charles, Eddie, Fred."

"I remember this place well," reverbrates in an atmosphere of "I can't believe I'm seeing this again.'

They meet to relive their own particular indigenous culture, the rich heritage of comrades-in-arms.

They gather to reminisce, shake a hand not seen this side of Omaha Beach, to socialize, eat and drink, to compete in who can tell the best war adventure story.

one soldier recalls seeing troops going around chasing the Germans; airfights, shrapnel and tracer bullets flying everywhere. Another reflects on the beautiful French countryside, the sight of real food at last.

Some share memories of the apple orchard when the troops were told to dig in but failed to do so. After a night of heavy artillery fire they were glad to whip their bulldozers out the next morning, digging trenches.

They come simply to watch and listen. So, out of the mouths of soldiers 50 years hence, a day is remembered that changed the world.

All in all, D-Day Plus ends on a note of special pride for those who have been a part of such a pivotal battle. It's tempting to reflect on the Allied strategies, but what often gets lost are the individual soldiers themselves, those on the front line and those like the 359th E Company building pipelines and pump stations to service soldiers on the front line.

We salute you, 359th!