They got to cognize their gramps connected the beaches of Normandy, 70 years later.
James Baugh, a charter subordinate successful the 325th Glider Infantry Regiment of the 82nd Airborne Division, participated successful the D-Day penetration of France successful 1944.
He was 1 of the fortunate ones who survived World War II and came location — location to his beloved hometown of Milledgeville.
Baugh went to aesculapian schoolhouse and became a pillar of Milledgeville, arsenic a physician, mayor, civic person — arsenic good arsenic husband, begetter and grandfather.
Dr. Baugh met his aboriginal woman — Betty George (Beegee) Clark — good aft the warfare was over. He had conscionable finished aesculapian schoolhouse successful Augusta, and she had conscionable finished her grade astatine Georgia State College for Women successful Milledgeville.
Jimmy and Beegee went backmost to Normandy for the 40th and 50th anniversary celebrations.
“I didn’t cognize overmuch astir the war,” Beegee said. “I conscionable knew astir the stories Jimmy told, the things they did and however helium loved being progressive with his chap soldiers.
“He loved each spot of it (going backmost to Normandy). That’s wherefore I wanted the grandchildren to go. To get an thought of what their gramps went through. Normandy was truthful important to him.”
Dr. Baugh’s wellness had started declining astir the clip of the 60th reunion, truthful the mates did not attend.
It besides meant that grandchildren Ellie Thompson (now Waddell) and her member Nathan Thompson, who were inactive youngsters then, got to walk little clip with their Papa. Their mother, Patricia Baugh Thompson, is the Baugh’s lone child.
Dr. Baugh passed distant successful 2010.
So arsenic the 70th anniversary of D-Day rolled around, Beegee (Nana to her grandchildren) arranged a travel to Normandy for the 3 of them.
She wanted them to locomotion wherever their gramps had walked.
“Knowing Papa’s communicative and however overmuch Normandy shaped his future, it was astonishing walking connected those aforesaid beaches,” said Ellie, present 29 and a CPA with the Deloitte consulting and accounting firm. “Instead of speechmaking astir it oregon seeing it successful the movies, it was a wholly antithetic script to spot it successful person. This is thing that truly happened. It was precise surreal.”
Ellie said she is simply a batch similar her grandma successful that she’s not usually an affectional person.
“But the question of emotion that came implicit maine … the tears flowed,” she said. “It was conscionable astonishing that my grandfather, convey God, helium was 1 who made it retired alive.”
Beegee said that David Eisenhower, grandson of Gen. (and aboriginal president) Dwight Eisenhower, and 1 of British premier curate Winston Churchill’s granddaughters were among the speakers astatine Normandy.
They talked astir the soldiers who stormed the formation and the soldiers who arrived successful gliders.
“It truly brought things to life,” Ellie said, arsenic did the flags, vintage subject vehicles and planes flying overhead during the 70th anniversary celebration.
Another large happening astatine the Normandy solemnisation was however welcoming the French radical were. Sometimes successful Europe, tourists are considered “ugly Americans.”
“But determination was a implicit alteration of cognition astatine Normandy,” Ellie said. “There was a batch of grateful behavior. It was bully to spot however they appreciated the sacrifice.”
Many of Dr. Baugh’s friends and classmates were not arsenic fortunate during the war.
Baugh’s publication “From Skies of Blue” was dedicated to the representation of his person Lt. Jasper Booth, who was killed successful enactment astatine Normandy. A Georgia Military College classmate of Baugh’s named Dennis Turner and Turner’s older brother, Billy, were killed not acold from each different astatine Normandy.
Baugh had his 23rd birthday the period earlier Normandy, and helium wrote that helium felt it would apt beryllium his last.
“I knew, whenever our troops landed and immoderate ngo was given, we would beryllium successful,” Baugh wrote successful his book. “The tone de corps was simply amazing. This radical therapy, oregon conditioning the quality to bash the impossible, to spot beingness and limb successful jeopardy erstwhile ordered, undoubtedly represented the highest grade of grooming that an service could attain.”
Baugh’s work successful World War II carried him done enactment successful North Africa, Sicily, Italy, France, Belgium and Holland. He earned a Bronze Star Medal for his bravery. One of his proudest moments successful combat came erstwhile 1 of his gilder pilots was killed. He landed the gilder, ensuring the information of others successful the glider unit.
Baugh had seen the satellite and astatine the extremity of the warfare helium was acceptable to spot his family, which included 4 brothers and 4 sisters. Three of his brothers and 1 sister besides served successful WWII, giving their parent a five-star designation.
He came location to Baldwin County a changed man.
“During my assemblage days and before, I had been a precise shy individual,” Baugh wrote successful his book. “Becoming a portion of an assertive enactment had rubbed disconnected connected me. The assurance instilled successful those who received the airborne grooming and the thought of being thing peculiar began to permeate my property successful ways I could bespeak and see.
“In crowds, I would find myself walking much alertly, proudly and with my caput held high.”
Baugh was a doc successful Milledgeville for implicit 50 years. He served arsenic politician for 18 years. He was president of the Sons of the American Revolution. He was a Mason, an honorary subordinate of the Kappa Alpha Fraternity and a subordinate of the First United Methodist Church.
This past April, Baugh was inducted into the GMC Hall of Heroes, an grant that pays tribute to an alumnus of the GMC Corps of Cadets who has demonstrated bonzer work to the federation portion bringing grant to GMC.
Ellie and Nathan walked wherever their gramps had walked -- wherever Dr. James Baugh learned lessons that made him an bonzer seasoned and man.
“I americium grateful to person had that acquisition with my Nana and my brother,” Ellie said. “It is thing that I volition ne'er again instrumentality for granted. It helps maine retrieve my gramps successful much ways than tin beryllium counted.”
Reach Rick Millians at rdmillians@aol.com .
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