Memorial Day

[wheezal]

Memorial Day was started by former slaves on May, 1, 1865 in Charleston, SC to honor 257 dead Union Soldiers who had been buried in a mass grave in a Confederate prison camp. They dug up the bodies and worked for 2 weeks to give them a proper burial as gratitude for fighting for their freedom. They then held a parade of 10,000 people led by 2,800 Black children where they marched, sang and celebrated.


Today Memorial Day is a testament to all those who have paid the ultimate price in service of their country.

 

[stevegmu]

Probably not at all known in the US, here's the story of a fallen US serviceman-

Virgil Paul Kirkham was born on November 27, 1924 in Troutdale, Oregon. He was the son of William Cory and Mary Elizabeth Rayburn Kirkham.

No records concerning his early life have been located to date; however, there is a brief notation in one article that states "while he was at the University." There is no mention of the name of the institution.

The date of his entry into service can only be speculated on, however; with a birthdate of late 1924, it is doubtful he could have joined the Aviation Cadet program until possibly 1942. The length of most basic and primary training, plus the familiarization flights for the P-47 fighter, would see him commissioned and assigned to an operational unit not much before late 1943.

Kirkham was assigned to the 377th Fighter Squadron of the 362nd Fighter Group of the 9th Air Force. The primary mission of the unit was bomber escort and fighter sweeps, but after D-Day, the P-47s were utilized in ground attack mode as fighter bombers. As a result of the mission change, the 377th Fighter Squadron moved from RAF Headon to Lignvulles, France, and to Illeschaim, Germany.

On April 30, 1945, Lt. Virgil Paul Kirkham took-off on his 82nd combat mission. The targets were German armored stock in Czeckoslavakia. Near the city of Pilsen, Kirkham and his flight were positioning themselves for an attack on a column of armored cars and tanks when they came under intense anti-aircraft fire. In attempting to evade the low-altitude flak, Kirkham swerved his aircraft, and the wing tip hit a tree. The aircraft cartwheeled into the ground, exploded, and burned.

His body was retrieved by local citizens and buried near the crash site just outside Klencin. He was later moved to the Lorraine American Cemetery and Memorial where he lies today.

Lt. Virgil Paul Kirkham was 20 years old, and the last fighter pilot killed in Europe in World War II.

A 14 year-old Czech girl, Zdebky Sladkova, was so impressed by the young American's sacrifice to liberate her country that she has tended a small memorial at the crash site for 65 years. At the age of 79 (2010) she still tends it.

http://www.mophdepartmentpa.org/Memorial Day in the town of Plzen Czech Republic.pdf

 

[Fuzzy Bruce]

Thanks for that link, stevegmu! It is to bad that so many have forgotten the sacrifices the Americans made in the European Theater back then.

A great read and, since it is five years later than the original story, I wonder if there is an update on Zdebky Sladkova?

 

[stevegmu]

You are welcome. I haven't been able to find any information about her...

CR and especially Plzen has never forgotten, nor will they ever. My GF is a Plzen girl, who probably knows more American history than most 24 year old American women. By law the liberation and thank you America festival gets bigger every 5 years. The entire city goes out and there are US flags everywhere. They even re-named the main boulevard in Plzen Amerika Street. They are a city and country who truly appreciates the sacrifices American men and women of the armed forces have made in the name of freedom. It is actually the only place I have been to in Europe where people wear shirts and other clothes with American flags on them...




W. Wilson is also a hero to the Czechs-

Almost a century after his election, Woodrow Wilson may not be the most-remembered former U.S. president in his native land. Sure, there’s a Woodrow Wilson presidential museum in Northwest Washington, and an international center for scholars, and even a bridge, downtown. But ask the average person on the street to tell you something, anything, about Wilson, and you may not get much.

In the Czech Republic, however, Wilson is a rock star.

In Prague on Wednesday, a monument of Wilson, one of the few statues of an American president on foreign soil, was dedicated at the main train station, which is also named after him. The ceremony was part of a week-long series of events in Prague commemorating Wilson.

Two Washingtonians and a D.C.-based organization spurred the rebuilding of the Wilson monument and got the project off the ground for the Czechs.

Why? Wilson was once considered the foster father of Czechoslovakia for championing its independence after World War I. “The admiration of the people for him amounts almost to hero worship,” Tomas Masaryk, Czechoslovakia’s first president, said years later.


The statue was raised Sept. 8, and Wednesday’s unveiling was a major national event, featuring former Czech president Vaclav Havel, former U.S. secretary of state and Prague native Madeleine K. Albright and current Czech President Vaclav Klaus, among others.

“I’m not saying Wilson is omnipresent these days, but the United Sates and the Czech Republic have a very strong bond,” said Petr Gandalovic, the Czech ambassador to the United States. “Of course, this is a landmark of Czech American relations. It’s an opportunity to commemorate the importance of the United States of America in the creation of independent Czechoslovakia.”

During World War I, Wilson, a scholarly son of Staunton, Va., recognized Masaryk’s government in exile. Masaryk had lobbied for the recognition, pointing out to Wilson, a former history professor, the influence of the Declaration of Independence on Czechoslovakia’s founding document. When the war ended, Wilson advocated for the establishment of “small states” from the defeated Austro-Hungarian Empire.


Prague honors Woodrow Wilson - The Washington Post