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The Sergeant
John W. Gabersek Jr. Memorial Scholarship
2007 D-Day Commemorative Event - September 15th, 2007
Pictures from Conneaut Ohio
Uncle John joins me in remembering those who gave
their youth for the freedom of those oppressed.
We pay tribute to all those who began the road to victory throughout Europe on
June 6th, 1944
We remember the ones lost...
Great Uncle Amin Isbir was one of them...
In honor of my great uncle Amin's unit, the 6th Naval Beach Battalion,
with the help of some of my buddies and I assembled a Navy
communication bunker
equipped with an authentic signal lamp, radio and all the
comforts of home.
Manned by my great uncle John, he spoke of his wartime experiences
to crowds of youngsters and their parents.
The cold weather did not dampen the spirits of the crowd nor my
great uncle
as he captivated the audience with his remarks, wit and humor.
The bunker was built with the help of my good friends and fellow
reenactors Tim, Mike, and Jonathan. Bags provided by "Doc" Blinky.
Thank you fellas
for helping me!
Pictured above is John manning the bunker using my good friend
Tom's field radio,
standing with Dave Norris who two years ago who met John while singing
the National Anthem
and then with some of the children who made friends with Johnnie.
For some excellent photos of the event,
click
here!
Compliments of David Caldwell. Thank you David!
Also, my friend Jonathon Shapiro sent me a whole series of pictures.
From the re-enactor perspective,
click here!
Thanks Jonathan!
Onto the USO show...
Following the reenactment and a dinner that could not be beat,
John and I hightailed it over to the USO show at the Conneaut VFW
Post.
Thank you fellas for hosting this dance for the reenactors and
our heroes.
The view from the reenactor dinner over Lake Erie. Beautiful!
The day's miserable weather was soon forgotten by all as the
night slipped by.
The music was outstanding and songs from the era filled the room.
I never saw Uncle Johnnie happier.
Shown above John poses with event organizer Lisa Torrey along with
husband Tim.
Band member John with girlfriend Rayanne,
dancing with Sarah Lawrence,
and then pictured with my buddy Ken Bruce.
We later had the pleasure of meeting Loretta and Dave Sawdey
of the 83rd.
Dave and I share a common interest in honoring our veterans
like Great Uncle Johnnie. Thank you Dave!
Again, I had the privilege and honor of adding to this years event
program.
I wrote a three page story of my weekend with members
of the 6th Naval Beach Battalion called "When we were young."
I was also asked to contribute a photo for the cover for the
second year in a row.
Below are a few of my attempts to capture the spirit of this recreation.
The photo in the middle was selected.
Before leaving for Conneaut John and I visited his
mother and fathers
grave in West Newton PA as well as his brother Frank's grave in
Madison PA.
We also visited his boyhood home in Collinsburg PA.
For me, this was the most memorable part of our journey.
I will never forget it.
Great uncle Frankies wife Libby again opened her home
and filled our bellies with some down home cooking.
Thank you Aunt Libby for being our filling station of
love.
For more information regarding this outstanding event,
please visit the web site below.
www.ddayohio.us
Click the tent to go back to front page.