Seventy years ago today 73,000 Americans became, or revealed themselves to truly be, men.

They did so as part of the Allied expeditionary forces landing on the beaches of Normandy under withering enemy fire, fighting and dying to stop the spread of tyranny antithetical to our Constitution, our traditions, and our way of life.

By D-Day’s end (according to the most recent studies), 2,500 of them were dead, another 4,000 seriously wounded, and as many as 2,000 missing. None of the survivors were left unchanged by the experience.

And because of such sacrifices by our fathers, grandfathers, great-grandfathers, uncles and cousins (and the mothers, grandmothers, great-grandmothers, aunts and cousins who supported the effort in non-combat roles), we remain free today – including free to openly discuss and debate local issues, to vote for and elect our local officials, and to determine through sometimes spirited advocacy and by referendum vote, the policies, procedures, practices and projects financed by our tax dollars.

So take just one minute out of your busy day today to stop and give thanks for those brave men and women, especially those who paid the ultimate price so that, 70 years later, we continue to live free.

Robert J. Trizna

Editor and publisher

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