The Bedford Boys

Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.
—George Santayana

As we face the election of a new president tomorrow it is very fitting that we take a look at the past. This past weekend we went to the National D-Day Memorial and found a memorial to the men and women of not only our nation, but of many nations that we fought with against evil. The people who fought this war and the people who supported them paid a very heavy price for freedom, perhaps higher that what our soldiers have paid in our war against terrorism.

"The Final Tribute"

The decisive battle that would end Hitler's dream of Nazi domination came at a great cost. The war turned on D-Day, June 6, 1944. The military operation was named Overlord and would entail more than 5,000 ships, 11,000 airplanes and more than 150,000 service men. The men would have to disembark from plywood boats holding 30–50 soldiers and then cross beaches with no cover for 200 yards before receiving any protection, while carrying up to eighty pounds of equipment. When it was over, the Allied Forces had suffered nearly 10,000 casualties; more than 4,000 were dead. But, the cost could have been so much greater.

First, if nothing had been done due to fear of the cost (both financially or in terms of human cost), and second, if our military leaders had not planned properly or not worked together.

Fallen Bedford soldier
with his Bible

The Nazis had prepared for an invasion on these very beaches by building metal structures (called hedgehogs)that at high tide would be unseen and would rip through the hull of the allied ships preventing them from reaching the beach. However, the allies had seen these booby traps from the air and instead landed at low tide in order to avoid the traps.

The memorial is so well thought out and so visually impactful that it sent chills up my spine. The bronze statues have a symbolic purpose. One was of a Bedford soldier who had died on the beach with his Bible by his side. The Bible had slipped out of his pack and was found on the beach some time later.

"Sacrifice" falling from the wall

"Scaling the Wall" is so lifelike that you feel that by touching the soldiers they will come to life. You can look right into the eyes of one of the soldiers as he scales the top of the wall (symbolizing Valor). One soldier on the wall has made the ultimate sacrifice (symbolizing Sacrifice, as he falls from the wall), and there are two others who are helping each other to make it over the wall (symbolizing Fidelity). There is a garden that pays tribute to the generals who worked together and planned this monumental military maneuver.

We took advantange of the memorial's cart tours in order to get a grasp on the events that occured that day long ago. I think our guide, Michael, thought the goal was to get us through as quickly as possible. We passed one other tour and a few times we thought we were going to tip over when taking a sharp corner. But we were able to learn and David's interest was maintained.

Even though the memorial is called the National D-Day memorial it receives no federal funding. Ok, I know that sounds amazing since everything and everyone else gets funded my our tax dollars. The memorial is built and maintained by admission prices, tours, the gift shop and private donations. I was pleasantly surprised that the admission price was just $5.00 per person, most private museums are much more pricey.

Bedford, Virginia, seems like a very unlikely place to build a National Memorial. It is not located on any major highway in the area, so it is not likely to get the normal vacation stop-off. But there is a very good reason that Bedford was chosen as the location for the memorial. You see, at the end of the day on June 6, 1944, nineteen of the soldiers from Bedford were dead and two more would die later in the Normandy campaign. Since the population of Bedford was just 3,200 they received proportionally more losses then any other community in our nation.

A man's feet should be planted in his country, but his eyes should survey the world.
—George Santayana

This memorial is a reminder that even today we must fight evil that threatens the world. We have neighbors and loved ones who are in harms way as we enjoy the freedoms that are maintained at a high cost.

One Nation, Indivisible

Just seven years ago today a tragedy brought our nation together. People all across this country came together to help each other. It didn't matter weather you were from the North, the South, a city dweller, a country person, a Liberal or a Conservative—we were all Americans. We stood together.

The tearing apart of this same nation due to the upcoming elections is upsetting. For this one day I am glad that both candidates want to put politics aside in order to remember those who lost their lives that day.

One of the most upsetting aspects of this election to me is the interference of outside nations. On many blogs and in the entertainment industry many British citizens have been pushing their views on who we should elect as our next president. My question to them is "Why should you have a say when you don't pay taxes? There was a little thing called the Revolutionary War when we kicked your butt since you taxed us and allowed us no say in the government." Yes, I have traced my ancestors that fought against the British.

This is a very emotional day for me. As I watch the events on the news this morning I am thrown back to that day seven years ago. I was working as a secretary at a Chrisitan day school within four miles of Quantico Marine Corp base on that bright and clear day. One of the church members called to let us know about the first plane. After that it was very difficult to get news because the phone lines, cells and internet kept cutting in and out. Many of the children's parents were calling in to ask what steps we were taking to make sure their children were safe. Others were asking if we had heard from their spouse, many worked at the Pentagon or at the military base. We had to maintain an air of calm and certainty for the children in our care.

My own father was in the Pentagon when the planes hit the twin towers. He had gone to his old office at the far side of the building when the plane hit his side of the Pentagon. As reports came in about the Pentagon I was able to get a call out to my mother. She had not heard from him. In fact it would not be until late afternoon that we heard from a co-worker of his that he was fine. It wasn't until late evening that he arrived home safe.

My husband had been sent home from his office in a sky-rise building in Northern Virginia. As he tried to get to us he watched as the tanks and military trucks headed up I-95 to respond to the attack.

We knew and worshiped with people who would work as firefighters and in the military that would not return home for a week in order to dig among the rubble of the Pentagon.

My father had planned to work for several more years after the tragedy, but within the year, he left his job to retire. He hasn't spoken much about that day. The only time he does talk about it is when someone speaks ill of Don Rumsfeld. My father saw first hand how when Mr. Rumsfeld was running the opposite direction from all the others that were evacuating. Even when he was encouraged to leave he remained—leave no man behind. My father did lose friends in the attack.

David was a first grader and had a hard time understanding the events (didn't we all.) He couldn't understand why we were so sad because Grandpa was fine. I explained that those who did die were other American's fathers, mothers, sons, daughters, brothers and sisters. So the following Saturday we took David to see the aftermath of the attack. A Washington Monument with only a handful of tourist with the flags at half mast. We also showed him the Pentagon with smoke still coming out of the gaping hole.

I'm proud to be an American!

A Piece of The Past

When David was born we decided to name him David Schuyler (pronounced Sky-ler) after my five times great grandfather. Many people have found this strange since David is adopted and don't feel he has any legacy through our family histories. But we felt at the time, and even more so now that he does have a heritage that is passed down from our ancestors.

David received his physical characteristics from his birthparents. But as his adoptive parents, the values and history that built our character are what we have been instilling him since he was one day old.

My family history was not passed down to me from my parents. I have done research to find out about the men and women of my family history. This journey has led me to many dead ends, but I have made some discoveries that led me to the very beginning of our nation.

One of the interesting stories from my grandmother (who just passed away a few years ago) had never been told to any of the members of my family until I began my research.

She had been raised mostly by stepfathers because her father had died when she was young. When I questioned her about the death of her father she stated he had been working at the local grocery store and while taking a break had grabbed a Coke and died of a heart attack. She said the cocaine in Coke was the cause of his death. His death certificate states "unknown" as reason of death. (Can you imagine that being allowed on a death certificate today?) However, this was a possibility since he died in February of 1922 and Coke was not cocaine-free until 1929.

Schuyler Hamilton, my ancestor that we took David's middle name from, was born in either 1787 or 1789. He served in the War of 1812. Schuyler and his wife Susanna were parents to 17 children, 15 who lived to adulthood. They owned 900 acres in southwest Virginia where the couple raised their family. Schuyler was a hatmaker, miller and farmer. He also was a judge in the first election held in Wise County, Virginia. In his spare time he was a fife player Susanna and Schuyler were members of the Primitive Baptist Church. He is also listed in court records as requesting the building of the first road between Ramsey and Coeburn, Virginia.

Schuyler died in 1861 and is buried atop a mountain. And we have been able to visit it. The tombstone has been replaced with a modern one to stand for future generations.

Click on the document to see full-size

I have found the marriage record for Susanna's parents in the Virginia Historical Library (shown to the left). Though they married in March 1794, after American independence, the document is very British in tone and the payment required for the license is fifty pounds. I think so much in "American" terms that I had not considered how long it would have taken to set up an entire government and monetary system and then to put into place.

I have taken Rich to the area that the Hamilton's lived and shown him a very different way of life, the coal mines that now stand empty and the company house my father grew up in. The land that has been destroyed by strip mining now lays bared and scarred.

I am so glad my research began before my grandparents died so their stories and memories didn't die with them. The information I obtained from them is invaluable and has led to more then just names and dates.

David has a part of this history and it is fitting that his name reflects that.