ST. JOSEPH (WWJ) - Load explosions and bangs are expected to be heard on Lake Michigan today as West Michigan battle reenactors practice with pyrotechnics ahead of a major anniversary.
On June 6, 2024, eight decades will have passed since the largest seaborne invasion in history -- the World War II Allied invasion of Normandy, France, famously known as "D-Day," and one West Michigan group is bringing the battle to the shores of Lake Michigan.
The St. Joseph Department of Public Safety said the nonprofit public charity out of Benton Harbor, Lest We Forget, is scheduled to practice a pyrotechnics display in preparation for their D-Day reenactment next summer.
The practice will be held from noon to 1 p.m. Wednesday Oct. 4, at Tiscornia Beach in St. Joseph. During that time, officials said residents and guests in the area will hear loud bangs and occasional sounds for about an hour due to the pyrotechnics.
Lest We Forget said on their website that they plan to commemorate the 80th Anniversary of D-Day on June 22, 2024 by staging a water invasion off the shores of Lake Michigan at Tiscornia Beach.
The reenactment will feature World War II era planes and Higgins Boats along with American, German and Japanese reenactors. Historian Bill Sheets was named as the Master of Ceremonies.
According to the U.S. Army, more than 160,000 Allied troops landed during D-Day along a 50-mile stretch of heavily-fortified French coastline, to fight Nazi Germany on the beaches of Normandy in France.
Gen. Dwight D. Eisenhower called the operation a crusade in which, "we will accept nothing less than full victory."
"More than 5,000 ships and 13,000 aircraft supported the D-Day invasion, and by day's end, the Allies gained a foot-hold in Continental Europe," Army historians stated. "More than 9,000 Allied Soldiers were killed or wounded, but their sacrifice allowed more than 100,000 Soldiers to begin the slow, hard slog across Europe, to defeat Adolf Hitler's crack troops."
Lest We Forget began as an idea in 2001 after four veterans approached the Berrien County, Michigan ISD and proposed gathering stories from local veterans and putting them into a video format that teachers could use. Four documentaries were made with each chronicling major conflicts-- WWII, the Korean War, the Vietnam War and Modern Wars.
From there, the group went on to become a 501(c)3 non-profit organization with the goal of promoting various veteran events within the community.
For more information, visit Lest We Forget.
