May 7, 2010 Meeting

Guests and Make-Ups

No one has been more missed than Donna-Lee Rubin who finally returned after a year's absence. A close second was Deedee O'Brienwho is back after beating back yet another medical crisis. Better half Diane Sollars joined hubby Dave and blonde ingenues Caroline and Kathleen Buck rounded out the young and beautiful set. Kristin Eisenhower does indeed trace her lineage to the man who commanded Americans in the Longest Day and came from Sparks, NV to join us. Real life heros from the invasion included Morley Piper and Frank Symosek. Bob was a guest whose last name is lost to posterity. Guest speaker Joe Balkoski rounded out the estimable guest list.

Announcements

The Leader Cast broadcast, spearheaded by Al Getler, took place immediately following the meeting. It will also be too late to help the Interact Club pack and distribute food on the following Saturday at Neighbors in Need from 3 to 6 PM. You're not too late to help on May 26 with the Early-Act group at West Elementary. They have 20 members so far in the 4th and 5th grades.

Dave Sollars worked with lost Rotarian David Pierre and Katharine Barr. to create a CLEO worthy YouTube video. Send a link to all your friends.

Next week's meeting will be a working one. The District Conference will take place May 20 to 21. On June 3 our own Al Getler will speak at the annual Boy Scout's tribute to our other very own DeeDee O'Brien .

Raffle, Fines and Happy Dollars

WW II hero Morley Piper drew the first card but could only muster a two of diamonds. Bob the guest with no last name trumped with an eight.

Veteran Howard Perkins started the collections by fining his fraternity of fellow vets. That included John Colbert, Paul Mercandetti and Ray Cannon. Donna Lee is only one degree of separation from the war by virtue of her parents meeting in Europe 66 years ago this week. Peter Caruso toasted Donna Lee's return, Joan Johnson and Morley Piper. Peter reminded us that Morley's other historic claim to fame is his two decades as Director of the New England Newspaper Association. Caroline Buck's dreams came true in the form of a puppy. Sister Kathleen's happiness came from a sleep-over with a friend (the ones we encourage for our daughters). Peter also is happy that Kristin trekked all the way from Sparks, Nevada solely to visit the club. Helene Andersen saluted the veterans and friend Marvin Gilmore who fought with the French Legion of Honor. Lastly she is celebrating a $2.6 million dollar job with Avid. Hubby Alan Michel is happy to have both Donna Lee back and his driver's license back after losing the latter in Virginia.

Katharine Barr has sent the seventh and eighth squirrel in her attic to acorn heaven. Jim Greeley gave it up for the Greatest Generation and Donna Lee. Paul Mercandetti followed with gratitude that we are not speaking German or Japanese. For the speaker and his wife's temporary absence Jimmy Snyder is all smiles. Dave Lindsay upped the ante with $100 ($50 for tickets and a video of MV has Talent, and $50 in honor and memory of our veterans). Matt Gold's connection to the great war was his Dad who tended the wounded in the South Pacific. Another tribute to the veterans came from Bob Troiano. Bill Buck thanked the speakers, guests, his World War II veteran Dad. Howard capped off the morning thanking the World War II vets.

Speaker - Joseph Balkoski

Though he's young enough to be the grandson of a World War II veteran, Joe Balkoski has nonetheless earned the reputation as today's leading expert on the D-Day Invasion by virtue of his 5 books on the subject. He is an adjunct professor at the University of Baltimore when he not writing. While his two siblings went on to careers in medicine and law the historian Joe has apparently proven that he can hold his own.

Joe spoke not of details of June 6, 1944 but of the ramifications of the greatest military assault in history. For the first time since the American Revolution the cracked Liberty Bell in Philadelphia rang out. Colin Powell summarized the American contribution to the world then as "We don't go to war to take land."

Though D-Day changed history it started off as a catastrophe on Omaha Beach. Over 8500 Allied soldiers were cut down trying to take the beach. Joseph urged all Americans to visit Normandy-especially the American Cemetery on the bluffs where so many died. The 29th Infantry Division (of which Morley was one) was especially notable for its heavy make-up of men from Virginia and Maryland and for its terrible loss of life. The division suffered 23,000 casualties from a 14,000 man outfit but that apparent paradox results from the constant refreshing of troops to take the place of the fallen.

Joe's two daughters once asked why he had only friends who were old. During and after the conflict about which few surviving veterans talked, post-traumatic stress disorder was still years away from even being coined. Most of them dealt with the horrific memories of the Omaha Beach invasion and other bloody battles privately. When the few remaining ones are gone we will have Joe Balkoski's painstaking research to keep their heroism alive.