BEDFORD, VA – 81 years after D-Day, the veterans are fewer, but the purpose remains.
“Fewer and fewer of these heroic men are here to receive our thanks and to tell their story of a day that changed the world,” Governor Glenn Youngkin said.
In Bedford, remembering D-Day isn’t just tradition — it’s personal.
Gerald Willis didn’t realize just how close D-Day was to home until later in life, when he found out his dad was one of the many storming the beaches.
“At that time, I didn’t know my dad landed at D-Day. I found out later that day, when another soldier came up to him, and asked him how he got off the beach alive,” Willis said.
For Willis, the memorial is more than a place—it’s a living connection to a past that shaped his family and his life.
“It means that my dad was there, and I’m lucky to be alive,” he said.
He’s dedicated his life to remembering those who served, by volunteering at the memorial and making sure their stories aren’t forgotten.
“It’s my second home,” he said.
As the memorial marks the 81st anniversary of D-Day, it honors the few remaining World War II veterans keeping their stories alive.
Those like Navy veteran Bill Wenzel.
“I didn’t like being drafted to go to war because I was raised by a pastor. My father was a pastor. I was taught to love everybody, and here I am being trained to kill another human,” Wenzel said.
Even with doubts about going to war, Wenzel stepped up - following in the footsteps of his older sister, a trailblazer in her own right.
She was a WASP — one of the Women Airforce Service Pilots — and her courage led Wenzel to the skies at just 17 years old.
“They promised me when I joined, ‘we’ll make a pilot out of you.’ She told me a lot about her experiences. And she said, ‘Would you like to have a ride in an airplane?’ And I said, ‘Would I ever!’” Wenzel said.
More than eight decades later, that teenage boy with a dream of flight is now a 99-year-old veteran, standing tall as his name is called
A moment of recognition, not just for Wenzel’s service, but for a generation that gave everything, and a nation that still remembers.