My father, Maurice Berry (Moose) was in the 104th Regiment, 26th ID and fought in the Ardennes Woods where he was injured and the Battle of the Bulge. He has visited and toured some of the battle locations and American Battle Monument Cemeteries with my mother and most recently visited with my husband to photograph all of the grave markers of the men in the 26th who lost their lives in Europe. When he told me in November, 2013 that he wanted to return to Europe, I told him I wanted to go with him and see some of the places where he fought. We decided to plan our visit to coincide with the Memorial Day Ceremony at the Lorraine Cemetery in St. Avold, France.
Several years after Moose photographed the grave markers and posted his story on a Facebook page titled “26th Infantry Division” we were contacted by a young man named Silvano Thiessen, who adopted the graves of several of the men in the 26th. Silvano is from a small town in Belgium and was anxious to connect with us. We developed a “facebook friendship” over the course of time and were lucky that he accepted our invitation to join us on our trip. The adventure begins after landing in Brussels, Belgium on May 21 and meeting Silvano.
We drove to Liege, Belgium where we spent the entire afternoon with Marcelle and Mathilde at the Remember Museum. This museum is unlike anything I’ve ever experienced before. Mathilde shared with us during our individual and personalized tour that the museum stood on the farm land in which Marcelle was raised. He was a young child when World War II was fought and started collecting relics that were left behind to tell the story of the experiences of people in the community; the soldiers who fought in the community and lived to tell about it; and the soldiers who gave their lives for the cause of freedom. They have Army jeeps; artillery; tanks; uniforms; food containers – all which were left when the US Army was given orders to leave Belgium and relocate to other parts of Europe. Marcelle and Mathilde recreated scenes to embody what life looked like 70 years ago – how the women used parachutes to make clothing; what the farm looked like and more. Over the years, the children whose fathers never made it home have also visited the Remember Museum. When these “orphans” of the war visit, Mathilde and Marcelle make a special effort to research and document information about their loved ones so that they can be remembered. Many of those who have visited, sent or left relics to the Remember Museum to display.
Our afternoon ended with a visit to the kitchen which is decorated with thousands of greeting cards thanking the Remember Museum for their work. We were treated to a glass of Belgium beer and homemade Belgium Waffles. This is a different kind of museum from anything you’ll ever see because it focuses on memorializing the people instead of the events! Don’t miss this if you ever get a chance to go to Belgium.
The next adventure started the following morning when we left our hotel and headed to Eschdorf, Luxembourg to see the village in which Moose spent Christmas during the Battle of the Bulge. We managed to find the street on which the house he was bivouac’d was located – but unfortunately we didn’t think the house was still standing. Thanks to Silvano, we met and talked to a man who remembered what it was like when the Germans and Americans were both in his village. Tears came to his eyes when he recalled expressed his gratitude to Moose and shared his memories. Seeing how Eschdorf is perched on the top of a mountain – it’s easy to understand the importance of that village as a way to defend and protect the Sure River.
Next we made our way through Luxembourg to St. Avold, France where we spent time exploring the town, meeting some of the local citizens and attending the Memorial Day ceremony at the Lorraine Cemetery. We were guests of honor and had seats in the first row of the audience along with our new friends. The ceremony was incredible because it was attended by so many. We met people from all parts of France who came to the ceremony on France’s Mother’s Day to honor and show gratitude to the Americans who defended their country during World War II. Moose had the pleasure of meeting Helen Patton who participated in the program and he was interviewed by a reporter who was creating a documentary about the Lorraine campaign. We placed flowers on the graves of some of the men with whom Moose was close and we met someone who agreed to say the memorial prayer each year for them. It was truly an emotional day to witness!
One of the new friends we made in St. Avold is Gerard, who has also adopted the graves of some of the men in the 26th ID. He met us in Luneville (our next stop) and helped us find the location where Moose first saw fighting and was injured. The rolling fields and minimal woods showed how vulnerable our soldiers were during the fighting in the Ardennes Woods. There was no place to hide!
Don’t think that we didn’t have fun while we were in Europe! We ate some amazing food in Belgium, France and Luxembourg. We saw some amazing sites including: Luneville Chateau; Esch-sur-Sure; Market Square in Brussels; Mannequin Piss. I had the chance to take the train to Amsterdam where I spent a cold and rainy day exploring Amsterdam and visiting the Anne Frank House. Moose even got himself a beautiful leather jacket!
In closing, I felt privileged to share this trip with my 90 year old father. I was certainly able to understand more about his experiences as a 19 year old boy during his time in Europe. To see and feel the love and gratitude of the French, Belgium and Luxembourg people we met was incredible. It’s a lesson to teach our children and grandchildren!
Submitted by Susan Miller, daughter of Maurice Berry and VBOB Associate