As most of you know, 6-6-2024 was the 80th anniversary of the invasion of Normandy Beach on June 6, 6, 1944, known as D-Day – the greatest land invasion in US History, officially known as operation “Overlord”. D-Day was the start of the liberation of Europe in WW2.

My name is Clinton Bengtson, and I will be 81 years experienced this July. I was born and raised on a small farm south of Battle Lake close to where my grandfather homesteaded from Sweden, which is still a part of our farmland. I was an educator in Henning Public School for 33 years and I taught a variety of subjects while still farming. The farm remains active with the next generations at my side. I am Clitherall Township Historian and The Clitherall Township Veteran’s Park Administrator. My life’s passion is honoring our veterans and preserving history. Building the Clitherall Township Veteran’s Park was my way of honoring all of those who have served in the US Armed Forces dating back to the Civil War. The park is located approximately 2 miles south on St Hwy 78. Three of my uncles served during WW2 and one uncle served in WW1. They, along with so many others, are honored with plaques on the wall of the building. This was the least I could do in my life to honor those who gave so much.

In October of last year, I was listening to a radio station that featured the Fergus Falls Superintendent. I heard the Community Education was organizing a tour to France led by Deb Suitor. I proceeded to contact her and started planning my lifelong dream of visiting Normandy Beach. Before long, plans were underway, and anticipation was growing. 

Setting the stage:  Normandy Beach is 82 miles long. The beaches of Normandy are named Utah, Omaha, Gold, Juno, and Sword. U.S. soldiers landed on Omaha and Utah beach during mid-tide on June 6, 1944, with 150,000 troops and 5,000 watercrafts. Out of the first wave of troops that landed, 95 percent were killed. But the troops kept coming.  They crossed 200 yards of sand to confront Germans and eventually, they overwhelmed the German defenses. A total of 6,000 brave US troops were killed on the first day on Omaha Beach alone.

Before stepping foot on the sands of Normandy, I viewed original footage of soldiers landing. The video stirred an uncontainable mixture of emotions that made me weep with grief and gratitude for those brave men.

We were there at about 2 p.m. and the tide was out revealing about 300 yards of sand. I had the privilege of walking on Omaha beach which was the deadliest. The experience was surreal, to put it mildly. When I was walking on Omaha beach, ironically, 3 original WW2 bombers flew over which were only about 500 ft above us. There are no words to describe the intensity of emotion. 

The German bunkers were not accessible for safety reasons, which was a disappointment, but understood. There was one bunker that was visible that had 3 ft wide concrete walls with a story to tell. There was one cannon sticking out towards the ocean and one pointing to the road off to the side. After the US Troops gained some ground in the invasion, they were able bring a tank up this road. The Germans saw the tank and fired a cannon towards it, which took the tracks off. The US tank returned fire and hit the concrete above the cannon, which resulted in a chunk of concrete landing on the cannon and thus, destroying the cannon and eliminating that danger. 

Point du Hoc was on Utah beach. It was a straight vertical 200 ft cliff which the US Rangers were instructed to climb up. US intelligence showed that the German’s had big cannons on top of this cliff. The mission was to debilitate them. The army came up with a plan: they tied ropes to big hooks that were shot up the cliff with a special cannon. 

The hooks were supposed to grab onto something at the top so the troops could climb up—just like the movies. When the troops reached the top, they discovered that the Germans had tricked the US Intelligence with telephone poles and fake pictures of cannons.  

The US Troops were exhausted, troubled, and morning the loss of their brothers. Unbeknownst to the exhausted soldiers, their sacrifice and efforts would not be in vain. Paris was liberated August 22, 1944 – appx 180 miles of fierce fighting in France. To stand where they stood on that beach to where Hitler walked in front of the Eiffel tower; there are no words for reliving history. 

France dedicated a piece of land as a cemetery to honor US Soldiers that gave the ultimate sacrifice on that fateful but pivotal day in history. The cemetery on Normandy beach was roped off so one so the grounds would remain peaceful. In that sacred piece of land, there are 242 soldiers from Minnesota that lie at rest in this cemetery. The names of which I have a list of. I was fortunate to see 3 names off of that list at the edge of the cemetery. Approximately 40 percent of US soldiers killed there, lay at rest in this area. The other soldiers were brought home at request of their family

  At 5 p.m., the flag at the cemetery was lowered and taps were played – what an emotional event. We were fortunate enough to stay at a hotel on Normandy Beach and watch the tide come in around 10 p.m.

We toured many other locations and attractions throughout France, but Normandy Beach was the highlight of the trip. This was the trip of a lifetime—one I am honored to have the experience to talk about. The survival of our civilization depends on knowledge of our history—the good, the bad, and the ugly. As a former teacher, I am a natural advocate of education and foundation—this includes the history of where came from and how did we get to where we are. Both aspects directly determine the future of humanity.  

Throughout the course of human history, civilizations have conquered nations, been destroyed, had victories, and defeats. Our country is no exception. Our nation has made our share of mistakes; there is no doubt. Unfortunately, the entire truth of our history is not taught with the importance and intensity it requires to honor the fallen and protect the future. Some think that the uncomfortable scenes need to be erased from our history. This will only accomplish the devastation of erasing the lesson learned, the resolution, and restoration thus leaving the mistakes to be forgotten and repeated.  

  As I reflect on my trip to Normandy, my life, and the life of our nations, I am humbled at the sacrifices made throughout history that we all take for granted today. There are things that we can all do to honor those who have given so much of themselves: take the time to thank a veteran, learn history, have a conversation with someone who’s experienced history, read an autobiography, check your sources, and don’t depend on someone else to do it for you. So many have died for freedoms they would never see for people they would never meet; the least we can do for them, is honor their memory and never forget. 

Composed by Kaila Sweazey