Remembering a World War II veteran who took part in D-Day invasion

Today is the day! 

The day when The War Memorial and the community come together to commemorate the 80th anniversary of D-Day. 

This marks the final installment of our lead up to D-Day stories, the first of which came in February. On the sixth of each month, we featured a story related to the largest amphibious invasion in military history. In May for National Military Appreciation Month, we examined ways that military members were appreciated, and entertained, during World War II.  Prior to that, stories focused on Victory Gardens in World War II, women in the war, and the story of the 320th Barrage Balloon Battalion.   

For June, we pay tribute to World War II veteran Clifford Alvira who attended the dedication of Les Braves II: At Water’s Edge at The War Memorial in May 2023. Les Braves II is the official world-wide twin of Les Braves in Normandy, France, originally created for the 60th anniversary of the D-Day invasion and sculpted by French artist Anilore Banon. It is a lasting tribute to the western Allies that landed on Omaha Beach on D-Day.      

Alvira served in the Navy from 1943-1945. He passed away in April at the age of 99. Alvira arrived on Omaha Beach, the most heavily defended beach by German forces, at 6:30 a.m. on June 6, 1944, forever known as D-Day.    

Alvira served as a seaman 2nd class, arriving on D-Day in landing craft tank 542 with 30 other men. His job that day, still a teenager, was to take over for the operator of another landing craft, in the event he was killed.   

“Our job was to land the guys on the beach,” Alvira said. “Once we hit the beach, then we heard all of the fireworks. Everything was timed. The planes came over first and bombed the beaches, then we arrived.”  

As he approached the beach, he remembers it being foggy and seeing bullet tracers, bombings and plenty of planes. He notes that what made Omaha Beach so dangerous was that once his unit arrived, the plan was for reimbursements of supplies to arrive, something that never happened.   

“We ended up with 100 tons of supplies, not 2,400,” he recalled.   

Altogether, Alvira was in Europe from January to June 1944. 

We thank you for your readership of this story series and invite all to join us today at 6 p.m. for the commemorative ceremony.  

Showing appreciation for military, both then and now

Their appreciation did not go unnoticed while in the service, and it certainly does not go without notice now.  

With May being National Military Appreciation Month and with one month to go until D-Day, how fitting is it to look at ways that military members were appreciated, and entertained, during World War II. 

The website, The American Soldier in World War II, details how troops were entertained, what went into organizing morale, being a home away from home, and more.  

In commemoration of the 80th anniversary of D-Day - June 6, 1944 - we will feature a story related to the largest amphibious invasion in military history. These stories will be shared on the sixth of every month leading to June 6, 2024.  

Regarding entertainment, the article states how when people like Bob Hope went on tours of military camps for the United Service Organizations, it allowed troops to laugh and take their minds away from the war for a few minutes.  

The routines had a much larger purpose than simple diversion – it served to remind service members of home, of everything that they had left behind, and of everything that they hoped to return to at the war’s end. Entertainment gave them something to fight for. 

When it came to improving morale, the Special Services Division managed the Army Exchange System, “providing first-run Hollywood movies to be shown in camp theaters, organized a rapidly growing radio network that featured popular music and informational programs, published Yank magazine, distributed tobacco and candy to soldiers under fire, organized athletics programs, and operated clubs where soldiers could purchase food, read American newspapers and magazines, play games, and dance with girls from home.” 

National Military Appreciation Month is dedicated to people who are currently serving in the United States military. It was officially recognized by Congress in 1999. Since then, nearly every state has made proclamations about the month, with the first ones being Michigan, Arizona, Montana, North Carolina, and Washington. 

In April for National Garden Month, we examined Victory Gardens on the World War II home front. Check back in June for the final installment of the lead up to D-Day stories as we prepare to commemorate the anniversary with a program at The War Memorial on Thursday, June 6.  

A look at Victory Gardens in World War II

With spring upon us, the attention turns to gardening and new beginnings.

April is National Garden Month, a time to celebrate the joys of gardening and the many benefits it provides. For this month, we examine Victory Gardens on the World War II home front.

In commemoration of the 80th anniversary of D-Day - June 6, 1944 - we will feature a story related to the largest amphibious invasion in military history. These stories will be shared on the sixth of every month leading to June 6, 2024.

Faced with having to feed an expanded military and a hungry population, the U.S. government reintroduced the idea of War Gardens from World War I. They rebranded them as Victory Gardens for World War II.

The Garden for Victory: Guide for Planning the Local Victory Garden Program from 1942 cites the garden’s purpose would be to increase the “production and consumption of fresh vegetables and fruits by more and better home, school, and community gardens, to the end that we become a stronger and healthier nation; to encourage the proper storage and preservation of the surplus from such gardens for distribution and use by families producing it, local school lunches, welfare agencies, and for local emergency food needs; to enable families and institutions to save on the cost of vegetables and apply this saving to other necessary foods which must be purchased; to provide through the medium of community gardens, an opportunity for gardening by urban dwellers and others who lack suitable home garden facilities; and to maintain and improve the morale and spiritual well-being of the individual, family, and nation.”

World War II Victory Gardens were grown anywhere they could be: on farms, in backyards, on city rooftops, in window-boxes, on public lands, and in vacant lots.

A National Park Service article states that by the time the war was over in1945, American Victory Gardeners had grown between 8 and 10 million tons of food.

Locally, a presentation “Arsenal of Democracy – Victory Gardens” at The War Memorial is set for May 30 at 6:30 p.m. That evening, Grosse Pointe Garden Center Board Member Alaine Bush will present on Victory Gardens. The presentation comes as part of The War Memorial’s Arsenal of Democracy exhibit, celebrating the 80th Anniversary of D-Day.

In March, we highlighted the role that woman played during the war. Check back in May for another D-Day related story as we prepare to commemorate the anniversary with a program at The War Memorial on Thursday, June 6.

The War Memorial is home to a direct connection with the beaches of Normandy through our very own sculpture, Les Braves II: At Water’s Edge. The original Les Braves sculpture is located on Omaha Beach in Normandy, France, and was sculpted by Anilore Banon to commemorate the 60th anniversary of the operation that paved the way for the liberation of France during WWII. Visit our Les Braves II page to learn more about the sculpture and how you can support The War Memorial.

Women in World War II

Men and women each had vital roles to play during World War II, on the home front and beyond.

For Women’s History Month in March, we examine some of the many ways that ladies made their presence felt during the war. Women's History Month is celebrated in March every year to honor women's contributions in American history.

In commemoration of the 80th anniversary of D-Day - June 6, 1944 - we will feature a story about the largest amphibious invasion in military history. These stories will be shared on the sixth of every month leading to June 6, 2024.

Beyond serving in uniform in World War II, which some nearly 350,000 American women did, one way women aided the war effort was by working in defense plants and volunteering for war-related organizations, in addition to managing their households.

In his 1994 book “D-Day,” American historian Stephen Ambrose writes that when men left for war, women “became proficient cooks and housekeepers, managed the finances, learned to fix the car, worked in a defense plant, and wrote letters to their soldier husbands that were consistently upbeat.”

Assuring that the Allies would have the war materials they needed to defeat the Axis, Rosie the Riveter’s represented the women who worked in factories and shipyards during World War II, many of whom produced munitions and war supplies.

While the identity of the "real" Rosie the riveter is debated, one candidate is Rose Will Monroe, a riveter at the Willow Run Aircraft Factory in Ypsilanti.

Monroe became the nation’s poster girl for women joining the labor force during World War II. She worked on the assembly line building B-29 and B-24 “Liberator” military planes. During peak production at Willow Run assembly plant, up to one third of the workforce consisted of women.

Ambrose goes on to say that “the contribution of the women of America, whether on the farm or in the factory or in uniform, to D-Day was a sine qua non of the invasion effort.”

In February, we highlighted the story of the 320th Barrage Balloon Battalion.

Check back in April for another D-Day related story as we prepare to commemorate the anniversary with a program at The War Memorial on Thursday, June 6.

The War Memorial is home to a direct connection with the beaches of Normandy through our very own sculpture, Les Braves II: At Water’s Edge. The original Les Braves sculpture is located on Omaha Beach in Normandy, France, and was sculpted by Anilore Banon to commemorate the 60th anniversary of the operation that paved the way for the liberation of France during WWII. Visit our Les Braves II page to learn more about the sculpture and how you can support The War Memorial.

320th Barrage Balloon Battalion

In commemoration of the 80th anniversary of D-Day - June 6, 1944 - we will feature a story about the largest amphibious invasion in military history. These stories will be shared on the sixth of every month leading to June 6, 2024. As we honor the achievements and history of African Americans as part of Black History Month, we share the story of the 320th Barrage Balloon Battalion.

They are known as the first Black unit in the segregated Army to come ashore on D-Day. 

“The 320th was the only unit to storm the beach that day that was composed entirely of African American soldiers,” a description of the unit on the National WWII Museum website states. “They provided critical protection to the ships and soldiers below them from attacks by enemy aircraft.” 

The battalion was formed in 1942, with their first assignment being at Utah and Omaha beaches in Normandy, France for the D-Day invasion. The mission of the assault force, over 600 members strong, was to raise hydrogen-filled barrage balloons to protect assaulting infantry and armor from being strafed by enemy aircraft. The unit used smaller barrage balloons weighing less than 40 pounds that could easily be moved by a few men and transported across the channel on landing craft.  A handful of battalion medics were the first to land on Omaha Beach at approximately 9 a.m.    

"They flew at an altitude of around 200 feet to defend soldiers landing on the beaches against strafing attacks by German aircraft," a commendation by Supreme Allied Commander Gen. Dwight D. Eisenhower cited. 

The battalion served for over four months in France. In late July 1944, Battery A of the 320th moved from Omaha Beach to the port city of Cherbourg. The remaining three batteries stayed on Omaha and Utah beaches until early October, when deteriorating weather prevented ships from landing.  

By the end of October 1944, the 320th Battalion was on its way back to Camp Stewart in Georgia to train for service in the Pacific Theater. Fortunately for the group, the war ended before they reached the Pacific.  

Aside from being the first Black unit to arrive on D-Day, the 320th was also the only American barrage balloon unit in France. 

The unit's last surviving member, Henry Parham, passed away in July 2021 at the age of 99. 

The War Memorial is home to a direct connection with the beaches of Normandy through our very own sculpture, Les Braves II: At Water’s Edge. The original Les Braves sculpture is located on Omaha Beach in Normandy, France, and was sculpted by Anilore Banon to commemorate the 60th anniversary of the operation that paved the way for the liberation of France during WWII. Visit our Les Braves II page to learn more about the sculpture and how you can support The War Memorial.

A D-Day commemoration ceremony at The War Memorial is set for Thursday, June 6. Visit warmemorial.org for more information as it becomes available.