This group photo shows the students in Luxembourg. In the background in what looks like a "castle" to the casual observer is really a bank building with a WWII connection. General Bradley and General Patton had their headquarters for a time in this complex of office buildings.
This photo shows the students entering the U.S. Military Cemetery near Luxembourg City.
Students enter the Memorial Chapel in Luxembourg American Cemetery.
- Students write down the inscriptions on several memorials at the Luxembourg American Cemetery. In the background, one student examines a large wall map tracing the route of the Allies in the Liberation of Europe from England to Normandy to Luxembourg and on into Germany. This study abroad program basically follows the path outlined on this map.
At this web location below, one can find a copy of the cemetery’s informational brochure:
http://www.abmc.gov/cemeteries/cemeteries/lx_pict.pdf
ALL WHO SHALL HEREAFTER LIVE IN FREEDOM
WILL BE HERE REMINDED THAT TO THESE MEN
AND THEIR COMRADES WE OWE A DEBT TO
BE PAID WITH GRATEFUL REMEMBRANCE OF THEIR SACRIFICE AND
WITH THE HIGH RESOLVE THAT
THE CAUSE FOR WHICH THEY DIED SHALL LIVE ETERNALLY.
Students at the grave of General Patton
The students studied the HBO series, "The Band of Brothers" and were interested in finding the grave of one of the Easy Co. 506th PIR, 101st Airborne Division who was killed in an artillery barrage in the woods near Bastogne in Belgium. The series showed the death of Alex Pinkala, Jr. and his friend, Warren (Skip) Muck who is also buried nearby. Several students met with the American Superintendent of the Luxembourg American Cemetery and he told them of the names and locations of the graves of three other Easy Company soldiers who were buried there.
Students at Sandweiler, a German Military Cemetery in Luxembourg
At the head of the German Cemetery in Sandweiler was a large mass grave and on a bronze memorial there were listed the names of those who could be identified and who were buried there. Almost all the students with a German surname of an ancestor could find their family name.
Dr Charnley: This blog is a joy to follow!. Thank you for all your hard work. Not all professors let us watch the students travels such as you do. The student pointing to the bronze memorial in the German cemetery is my daughter. Her great grandmother’s name was ‘Bouwer’. George and Hermina Bouwer were immigrants from Germany. They fled Germany for work and freedom of religion and landed in Holland, MI. Hermina’s cousin fought for Hitler and there is/was a picture of him in his Nazi uniform. Her dad and I saw it in the early 1980’s. Even though Kate hails from North Dakota, she does have roots her in West Michigan. I was born and raised in Holland with Dutch/German ancestry and returned here after 22 years of living outside of Michigan. Thanks again for the extensive blog. Vicki Lowing