D-Day memorial gets finishing touches by Navy vets

Published 12:51 pm Friday, June 6, 2008

Jim Gaff is a lucky man.

During World War II, Gaff served as a boat coxswain in the U.S. Navy, carting soldiers, munitions and cigarettes between England and France.

On D-Day, when Gaff was 18, he was stationed off Utah Beach, one of the five code-named Normandy beaches that served as the site for Allied forces to enter France and fight the Nazis.

The D-Day operation — marked Friday by its 64th anniversary — was believed to be the largest invasion in human history, and Gaff was in the thick of it.

The ship ahead of Gaff hit a mine, he said. And the ship behind him did, too.

“We were just fortunate that we didn’t hit a mine,” said Gaff, who now lives in Jacksonville, Fla. “It was probably a matter of luck.”

For all the sacrifices Gaff and other members of the Navy made 64 years ago today during the D-Day invasion, they still have not yet been officially recognized.

That’s about to change.

This September, the Naval Order of the United States, a fraternal group, unveils a statue commemorating the Navy’s effort in the invasion, retired Capt. Gregory Streeter said.

Organizers had hoped to complete the statue to have a ceremony on this anniversary. “Because of delays of getting funds, we couldn’t make it this year,” Streeter said.

They considered delaying a dedication ceremony until next year’s anniversary but decided to forge ahead for the sake of the fast-falling World War II generation.

“Since the veterans are passing from us at such a high rate, we wanted to get it done as soon as possible,” Streeter said.

The $500,000 monument’s dedication will take place Sept. 27 at Utah Beach.

The Navy played an essential role in D-Day. Sailors provided cover, directed landings on Normandy and helped transport massive equipment so Allied forces could begin a pushback against the Nazi forces, Streeter said.

The service suffered major losses. About 1,100 in the U.S. Navy were killed, Streeter said. Allied forces suffered about 10,300 casualties in all, according to the Eisenhower Presidential Library.

Overall, 3,500 Naval landing craft took part in D-Day, Streeter said.

To honor the service’s D-Day efforts, Fair Hope, Ala.-based sculptor Stephen Spears designed the statue. It shows three men that symbolize different aspects of the operation — planning, implementation and aftermath.

Including transportation to Europe, the monument will cost about $500,000. The Naval Order has so far raised about $350,000. It’s also commissioning a film about the monument, to be produced by Tim Gray Media.

During the war, Gaff helped move supplies and troops from England to France, traveling into mainland Europe to help transport goods.

In recent years, he has begun planning golf tournaments to welcome soldiers returning home from Iraq and Afghanistan.

Gaff, now 82, plans to attend the ceremony and serves as honorary chairman of the monument project.

“It’s been a long time — 64 years,” Gaff said. “It’s very stirring, touching.”

The French government will take care of the memorial site for perpetuity, Gaff said.

“It’s going to be nice for the rest of the world to see, “Gaff said. “It’s something that will be there for years or centuries. It’s very self-gratifying.”

On the Web:

http://normandymonument.org

E-mail Isaac Wolf at wolfi(at)shns.com)

(Distributed by Scripps Howard News Service, http://www.scrippsnews.com)