WHEREAS, in his Order of the Day for June 6, 1944, Supreme Allied Commander Dwight D. Eisenhower gave encouragement to the soldiers, sailors, and airmen of the Allied Expeditionary Forces as they embarked on a Great Crusade to bring about the destruction of the German war machine; and

WHEREAS, the mission was to free the oppressed people of Europe and provide security for the United States, and regarding the mission, General Eisenhower stated, “We will accept nothing less than full victory!”; and

WHEREAS, the Normandy Invasion was the largest land, sea, and air invasion ever attempted, and its success created a path to victory for the Allies in Europe; and

WHEREAS, Virginia seeks to honor those Virginians who served on D-Day and throughout the Normandy Campaign by preserving artifacts, such as Bob Slaughter’s personal copy of the Order of the Day signed by 75 of his comrades who braved the German defense of Omaha Beach; and

WHEREAS, the Order of the Day, preserved at the National D-Day Memorial in Bedford, Virginia, was carried through battle and includes the signatures of 22 men who would not survive the war and continues to remind us of the service and sacrifice of Virginians; and

WHEREAS, the small town and county of Bedford, Virginia was represented by 44 soldiers, sailors, and airmen who supported the D-Day Invasion; and

WHEREAS, in the first wave of the invasion, thirty-one members of Company A, 116th Infantry Regiment, 29th Division, would embark in landing craft for Omaha Beach, and Bedford would lose 20 sons and husbands on that fateful day; and

WHEREAS, Jimmie W. Monteith, Jr. of Richmond, Virginia gave his life in Normandy, France on June 6, 1944, and he received the Congressional Medal of Honor for his heroic actions; and

WHEREAS, 1^st Lt. Monteith was exposed to intense fire as he led American tanks on foot through a minefield into firing positions, and under his direction, several enemy positions were destroyed; and

WHEREAS, Frank D. Peregory of Albemarle County, Virginia received the Congressional Medal of Honor on June 8, 1944, for his heroic actions against enemy positions under withering fire; however, T/Sgt. Peregory would lose his life on June 14, 1944, while fighting in France; and

WHEREAS, at least 633 Virginians sacrificed their lives in the Normandy Campaign between June 6 and August 30, 1944, while striving for what President Franklin Roosevelt called the liberation of Europe; and

WHEREAS, the American Battle Monuments Commission states that 254 Virginians are buried in the Normandy American Cemetery; and

WHEREAS, Virginians are encouraged to observe this day with programs, ceremonies, and activities that honor those who fought and died to open the path to victory and peace;

NOW, THEREFORE, I, Glenn Youngkin, do hereby recognize June 6, 2024, as the 80^TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE D-DAY INVASION in the COMMONWEALTH OF VIRGINIA, and I call this observance to the attention of all our citizens.