One Great Time Last Weekend-- Part 3: Parish Fest and Keep the Spirit of '45 Alive

SUNDAY, AUGUST 11

We went to Parish Fest at St. John the Baptist Church in Johnsburg, Illinois, something we have done for the last 13 years.  However this time it was the first time that the band New Odyssey had not played in it.  Their guitarist was one of Liz's elementary friends back in Chicago.  This year the band Cirrus Falcon played and did a great job.  They are well known in the Chicagoland area.

As usual, we availed ourselves of the brats, corn on the cob and beer.

Then we drove to McHenry, Illinois, and went to the American Legion on Riverside Drive where our friend Mark was bartending and the members were getting ready for the Keep the Spirit of '45 Alive commemoration where the members of the Greatest Generation are honored for their service in World War II and the Korean War.

That is always a moving ceremony complete with Bill's Little Big Band playing the music of the era, a radio program, speeches, introductions, 21-gun salute, rolling taps and the release of 21 white doves.

Quite A Fitting Honor.  Thanks Greatest Generation.  --RoadDog

World Leaders Honor D-Day Veterans-- Part 1: "The Wartime Generation - My Generation - Is Resilient"

From the June 6, 2019, Chicago Tribune by Danica Kirka and Jill Lawless, AP.

Queen Elizabeth II and world leaders, including President Trump gathered Wednesday on the south coast of England to honor the troops who risked and sacrificed their lives 75 years ago on D-Day.  It was a triumphant turning point of World War II

Across the English Channel, Allied paratroopers dropped into northwestern France, scaled cliffs by Normandy beaches and charged ashore this day.

It is exceedingly sad that the number of veterans who were there and who fought in the war is dwindling so fast.  Several hundred men who took part in D-Day were there.  All are now in their nineties.  The Queen herself is now 93 years old and a member of that Greatest Generation.

She served as an army mechanic during the war and said that when she attended the 60th anniversary event many thought it might be the last time it was held  "But the wartime generation -- my generation -- is resilient,"  she said.