80th Anniversary of Normandy Invasion – Amazing Stories, Recent Photos

Thursday marked the 80th anniversary of D-Day at Normandy where so many Allied forces, including thousands of Americans lost their lives fighting for the liberation of France and the defeat of Hitler's Germany on June 6, 1944.

WIBX listeners shared stories on Thursday that had been handed down from their parents and grandparents from World War II. One of them, local defense attorney Frank Policelli called in to read a letter that he found from his father, who was there in Normandy for the 1944 invasion.

Policelli said the letter was from his father to his sister, Frank's aunt.

"I got a letter that my father wrote to his sister back part of it. He says I saw plenty of horror the month of June, 1944. Our company was among the first land in France and I saw enough bloodshed and suffering then to last several lifetimes. I landed at Omaha Beach on the morning of June 7th. We were originally scheduled to land on June 6th, but the beach was too hot. What I saw there for those two days I will never forget. Men were killed before getting to shore with hundreds of others were mowed down trying to climb the ridge overlooking the beach. The first few days were a nightmare for everyone. For the next two months we lived in foxholes until our breakthrough at Saint Louis. I think God I made it through safely and pray that I will never witness anything like it again." Francesco Pollicelli

Watch Policelli read his father's letter via YouTube...

Jon Decker, who is the Chief White House Correspondent for Grey TV and a regular contributor to WIBX's Keeler Show, recently interviewed a 102 year old veteran of D-Day, and he filed this amazing report.

Click on the image to watch Jon Decker's special report.

Recently, my family took in the emotional experience of visiting Normandy, France and the location of the 1944 invasion. It was a quiet and emotional experience. Here are some photos from that trip.

Normandy Beach. Photo by Alison Keeler