Ste Mere Eglise (2)

JUNE 2009 NORMANDY - STE MERE EGLISE (2 of 6)
82nd and 101st commemorated on monument on main street, in front of the church	Tree-Lined Approach to SME church is tranquil despite area crowds	Parachutist Effigy is easily seen	Steeply Sloped roof accounts for how he slipped down to become snagged	Three More Stops had Steele dropped further he would have hit two roofs before dropping to the ground	Realistic the effigy has all the paraphernalia that Steele would have had that fateful night
Hotel John Steele is just down the street	March For Peace International effort was held on May 30th with 6-mile walk from Utah Beach to SME center	Church Interior with valuted arches spanned by peace walk banner	Winged Angel girded for battle is surrounded by heraldry of all participating divisions	Ascension of Christ is a beautiful work in stained glass	Mother and Child look over parachutists dropping into SME
Crowds Roared as a C-130 Hercules began to circle SME square	Engines Roared as the aircraft swooped low, its 13 ft 6 in diameter swept-design prop blades were clearly visible (click to enlarge)	Turbo Power 4 turbo-prop engines with over 4,000 horsepower each power the huge transport	Hedge Mowing skimming at treetop level the blades appear to nearly act as giant clippers	Sense of Loss was felt by all when the "Herc" began to leave	Wave Goodbye crewmembers, one casually sitting on the edge of the lowered ramp, wave to the crowd
All Normandy 'D-Day Plus 65' trip photos are a multi-national mixture of work by Hervé Argoud, Hans DeBree, Gene Garren, Fred Hoek, Herbert Lahout, Randy Lewellen, Cyndi Mathews, Bill Nation, Dick O'Donnell, Dominique Potier, Vivian Roger, Zane Schlemmer, Donald van den Bogert and Nelly van Loo-Polley. Individual credits have not been given.