“Now with our centre in Normandy completed, I feel it will be necessary to sponsor several groups of former Red Army veterans to the battlegrounds of the Western Front with American World War II veterans and spend a week together sharing wartime stories while connecting with a new generation of youth”, Davis said.
The CEO of the non-governmental organization, which supports veterans returning to their former battlegrounds, stressed that people learn from the past to gain a greater influence over the future.
“Together with the American and Russian veterans of World War II, we can provide once-in-a-lifetime experiences for teachers and students to learn timeless lessons on leadership directly from combat veterans of World War II”, he stated.
The property in Normandy where the Soviet and American veterans will be coming together for a week is the former German Headquarters behind Landing beaches and was purchased by Davis some five years ago in order to accommodate returning war heroes.
“As the veterans of World War II continue to fade away, one of the critical issues we faced when traveling overseas with veterans - is identifying appropriate hotels that can provide essential amenities that can accommodate 90+-year-old veterans”, Davis noted. “Then in 2015, I decided to purchase a property in Normandy, France, and build a world-class facility as a permanent legacy to the Heroes of World War II.”
He explained that it is located in the village of Saint Marie du Mont, 3-miles behind Utah Beach, the former German Military Command Garrison Headquarters.
“During the German occupation, the property housed the German commander's office before becoming the headquarters of the American 4th Infantry Division and various other units for the Utah Beach section from 6 June 1944, through to the end of the war”, he said.
Davis noted that through the mission of TGGF, they invested extensively in creating a luxury property to address the urgency of providing returning veterans with five-star amenities, all within a lavish private and peaceful setting.
“Housed within the property grounds is a professional recording studio for documenting returning veterans; we also display a permanent gallery exhibition to perpetuate the heroes that are no longer with us”, he said. “A bonus is the significant history that remains on the building walls. This property contains the original murals designed by the Germans themselves. It is known as the last building on French soil with the original German paintings.”
Davis added that shortly after he acquired the property, the Government of France listed the property as a Monument Historique.
“Since its completion in 2019, we organize and sponsor two programs each month – underwriting over 400 veterans and support staff – year-round”, he said. “During their one-week visit to the property, the veterans are engaged in a comprehensive program to allow the veterans to revisit key-areas to their battles, walk the historic battlegrounds where our heroes served, and pay homage to those who made the ultimate sacrifice in one of the many military cemeteries throughout Europe.”
Davis announced in February that TGGF would sponsor the trip of twelve World War II veterans from the United States to Russia in May to celebrate the anniversary of the Great Patriotic War victory in Moscow, and they will also visit Saint Petersburg and Volgograd.
“To mark the 75th anniversary of the End of WWII in Europe, I felt it was compelling to bring attention to the Eastern Front of World War II and sponsor American World War II veterans to Russia to celebrate Victory Day with the Russian World War II veterans”, Davis noted. “As most American World War II veterans would say, ‘if it weren't for the heroes in the Soviet Red Army, the Allies on the western front wouldn't have defeated the Germans."
When asked about the next visit by the veterans to the centre in Normandy, Davis stressed, “In these unprecedented times, with the coronavirus impacting all of our personal and professional lives, we hope to continue our mission in the coming months”.
Davis revealed that TGGF currently has over 9,000 World War II combat veterans registered to return overseas to pay respects to their dedication and service to our freedom.
“While we recognize that we cannot help them all, we understand we can make a difference by continuing our mission while developing new education programs for generations to come”, he said.
Davis also said that they believe TGGF can continue its programs serving World War II veterans through 2024, which will mark the 80th Anniversary of the End of World War II.
TGGF is a registered public IRS charitable organization and is not part of the Federal Government. TGGF currently operates more than 30 chapters across North America and is in existence because of the generosity of individuals, foundations, private organizations, and corporations that are connected to the mission, according to the TGGF president.
