Hallowed Grounds...

[moosmom]

I was watching a program on PBS on the U.S. Cemeteries overseas. I was blown away at the beauty of these places!!!

That's when I got out my Dad's "lockbox" and looked over the papers of my Uncle Donald, who died in WWII in the "Battle of the Bulge" at the age of 20.

These cemeteries are a wonderful tribute to all of our fallen heroes. I sat there very somber, waiting to see the very site where my uncle is interred.

I'm a little confused, though. His military paperwork is very confusing. Some letters say he's buried in one place and some say different, which definitely piqued my curiosity. Because he's interred so far away (supposedly in France) it may take me a little while to figure this out. Why I start these projects so close to important dates (my daughter's wedding, the dog stabbing case, etc.) is beyond me. But it got my adrenalin going.

They have programs in the cemeteries where the villagers and residents "adopt" a soldier's burial site and puts flowers on them. What really got to me was when a French resident said that, "Most of these graves have never had anyone visit or had flowers placed on them." I'm sure my uncle is one of them.

What I would like to do, is get hold of either the U.S. Army or the Department of Defense to put the confusion to rest. I would also like to possibly (if at all feasible) contact a resident near where the cemetery is, to see if they'd be willing to "adopt" my uncle's site and be willing to put flowers on it for me!!! It will be the first time his grave has seen any kind of tribute from any family.

I'll post more details later on today, like his information. I'm heading off to the dentist for a good cleaning before my daughter's wedding on Saturday.

I'll keep you all posted. Maybe one of my PT friends overseas can help.

I'd like to keep my uncle's memory alive, if for only a while. I never met him, but I was named after him, Donna Ellen Ploss (Donald Edward Ploss) and feel a need to pay tribute to him even if it's from across the ocean.

[pomtzu]

It must be sad to have a loved one buried in a foreign country, thru no fault of their own. Hope you can track down the actual burial site, and have someone who is willing to adopt your uncle.
Good luck!

[moosmom]

Thanks Ellie!!

[Freedom]

I've not seen that specific program, but I have seen photos of the cemeteries overseas, especially the ones in France for WWII for our vets. You are right, they are so beautiful!

Hope that you get things sorted re your uncle!

[wombat2u2004]

It shouldn't be too hard to find out where he is actually buried if his name is on the grave. I'm sure there are links all over the internet of the war cemetaries you are confused about.
Try contacting some of them and ask the caretakers if your uncle is buried at their cemetary.
Best of luck with that mate
It's great to see that his memory is alive and well.