LIFESTYLE

Nation's largest D-Day re-enactment returns to Conneaut, Ohio

Sarah Grabski
sgrabski@timesnews.com
Mock tetrahedrons were assembled and placed on the beaches of Conneaut, Ohio, in preparation for the annual D-Day Conneaut re-enactment, the nation's largest D-Day re-enactment, scheduled for Aug. 21 and 22. SARAH STEMEN/

CONNEAUT, Ohio -- Conneaut Township Park will transport visitors back 71 years this weekend.

D-Day Conneaut, now the United States' largest D-Day re-enactment, is expected to attract more than 30,000 people to the park Friday and Saturday.

The park grounds will be transformed to re-create Allied and Axis World War II camps, which will house the 1,500 re-enactors involved in putting on four main mock battles and a number of small skirmishes. All are free and open to the public, said Betsy Bashore, chief executive of D-Day Ohio, the nonprofit organization that puts on the event, and a re-enactor herself.

The main event, the D-Day landing, will be on the beach at 3 p.m. Saturday.

"We get that question a lot; why here? The beach here looks a lot like a beach in Normandy, Omaha Beach particularly," Bashore said. "I think it's the distance from the waterline and the bluffs resembling the cliffs."

Bashore said there are already more veterans registered to attend the event this year than in 2014.

"Last year, we had between 130 and 140 join us and we have over 150 registered this year as of now," Bashore said. "So we're looking forward to that. And of course, we encourage all veterans to join us this weekend, registered or not."

All veterans are provided with exclusive parking and shuttle services, along with transportation to the veterans' area if requested. As the number of World War II veterans dwindles, the event continues to gain popularity and importance.

"We think it's imperative, while they (World War II veterans) are with us, to be able to pass on what their experiences were like, not only with us but with the public," Bashore said. "We understand that veterans have different levels of comfort, but we love to have them here. It's special for many of them."

It was for John Pfister, 97, of Fairview. He attended D-Day Conneaut in 2014, where he met and talked with re-enactors of the 4th Infantry Division, with which he served 71 years ago.

"It was so neat and such a wonderful time," Pfister said. "They all were fantastic."

The re-enactors attempt to portray the invasion as accurately as possible, but know the mock invasion can't possibly compare to the actual landing.

"It can't be realistic. The horrors of war are not something you want to convey in a public setting," Bashore said. "We have veterans that we have invited who say 'I can't come. It would invoke too many memories for me.' There was a gentleman who came, I believe it was a few years ago, that when the bombers started to fly over, he said 'I need to leave now.' It was the noise of the bombers that brought him back."

SARAH STEMEN can be reached at 870-1776 or by e-mail. Follow her on Twitter at twitter.com/ETNstemen.

D-Day Conneaut highlights FRIDAY - 9 a.m.: Event opens to public. - 10 a.m.: Maquis Attack, Location: Occupied France (Near La Fiere Bridge). - 1 p.m.: British Airborne Attack (Merville Battery), Location: Occupied France (Near La Fiere Bridge). - 5:05 p.m.: Camp closes to public. SATURDAY - 9 a.m.: Camp opens to public. - 11 a.m.: La Fiere, Location: Occupied France (La Fiere Bridge). - 3 p.m.: Normandy Invasion. - 5 p.m.: Camp closes to public. - 7 p.m.: USO dance, Location: Human Resources Center. For full schedule, visit www.ddayohio.us.