Antwerp to Tholen ~ Canadian World War II Cemetery (Day 9, Part 2 of 2)

I have to admit that my knowledge of Dutch World War II history is limited.  Of course I knew of Anne Frank and Corrie ten Boom, but I didn't know what battles were fought in the Netherlands.  I still don't know as much as I'd like, but our stop at the Canadian World War II Cemetery sparked my curiosity.

 

As I walked the rows I noticed that most of the dates were identical ~ October 13, 1944.  Four months after D Day, fighting was still happening.  Most of the soldiers buried at Bergen-op-Zoom Canadian War Cemetery lost their lives in the fighting north of Antwerp during the Battle of the Scheldt.  The Battle of the Scheldt was one of the largest and most severe military operations on Dutch soil during the Second World War; a series of military operations that took place in the autumn of 1944 in the north of Belgium, the province of Zeeland and in West-Brabant.

 

From Wikipedia:

Black Friday is the nickname given by the Black Watch (Royal Highland Regiment) of Canada to the date 13 October 1944. On that day, during World War II's Battle of the Scheldt in the Netherlands, the regiment's only overseas battalion attacked German positions on a raised railway embankment near the village of Hoogerheide after advancing across 1,200 yards of open beet fields. When final casualty totals were tabulated, it was determined the battalion had lost 145 men killed or captured; 56 men were killed, including all four of the commanders of the lettered companies, 95 wounded and 27 men were taken prisoner. One company of 90 men had only four men present and fit for duty the next day. 

In my research for this post I found a website called "Faces to Graves" the purpose is this:

Names, faces, stories
Every name on our cemetery has a face and a story.
Every name stands for a young man who left his home, his family, parents, wife, children, and started an unknown and dangerous journey.
That journey ended here in the Netherlands. 

For our freedom.
We owe it to them to remember their name and their story.
That we will not forget 

I zoomed in on a number of graves and found their names on the website.  Aaron George Bittorf was 30 when he was killed on Black Friday.  He left behind a wife and son.

 

David Farrall was 28.  Randall Holmes and Willard Zaste were both 23.  Keith Bardwell was 20.  Some like Leo Lederhaus and John Bartelotte didn't even have their age listed, just the date they were killed. Our modern Black Friday on the day after Thanksgiving is completely selfish in comparison.  Men from across the ocean joined in battle for the cause of freedom.  

 

I'm posting this on the eve of America's 250th Birthday.  The saying that "Freedom isn't Free" rings the loudest in a somber place like this.

Memorial Day

I have never been able to think of the day as one of mourning; 
I have never quite been able to feel that half-masted flags were appropriate on Decoration Day.  
I have rather felt that the flag should be at the peak, because those whose dying we commemorate rejoiced in seeing it where their valor placed it.  
We honor them in a joyous, thankful, triumphant commemoration of what they did.  
~Benjamin Harrison

 

They saw their injured country's woe;
The flaming town, the wasted field;
Then rushed to meet the insulting foe;
They took the spear, - but left the shield.
~Philip Freneau

Memorial Day

It is the
VETERAN,
not the preacher,
who has given us freedom of religion.



It is
the VETERAN,
not the reporter,
who has given us freedom of the press.


It is
the VETERAN,
not the poet,
who has given us freedom of speech.


It is
the VETERAN,
not the campus organizer,
who has given us freedom to assemble.



It is
the VETERAN,
not the lawyer,
who has given us the right to a fair trial.



It is
the VETERAN,
not the politician,
Who has given us the right to vote.


It is the
VETERAN who
salutes the Flag.


It is
the
VETERAN
who serves
under the Flag.


Pictured above are my Great Uncle Lewis Ganaway who served in WW II,
my uncle Ron Fultz who served during peace time,
and my father-in-law Bill McElhaney who also served during peace time.

I'm thankful to them and all soldiers who have served for our freedom.

Now That's Cold

The Mid-Atlantic has been paralyzed by a winter storm. More than two feet of snow has fallen in the past two days, with more expected. This picture made me shiver!


We were in Washington, DC a few summers ago and I was fascinated by all the war memorials, but this one really caught my attention. It is the Korean War Veterans Memorial. There are 19 statues depicting a squad on patrol, their windblown ponchos recalling the harsh weather. This symbolic patrol brings together members of the U.S. Air Force, Army, Marines, and Navy; the men portrayed are from a variety of ethnic backgrounds. As we walked the area, I felt the eyes of the soldiers were always on me.

I think this picture, with snow covering our brave men, is what war is really like. They may be serving in 100+ degree temps, but the reality is, it is difficult and the load they carry is heavy. Since it's not Veterans Day or Memorial Day it's easy to forget that there are soldiers serving TODAY, but they are and they need our support and prayers wherever they go.