National D-Day Memorial

Bedford sent thirty-four National Guard soldiers to Normandy on June 6, 1944 — Company A, 116th Infantry Regiment, 29th Infantry Division. Nineteen were killed during the first day of the invasion. The town's population in 1944 was 3,200. No American community suffered greater proportional D-Day losses, and in 2001, Congress chose Bedford for the national memorial. Company A included three sets of brothers. Ray Stevens died in the landing; his twin Roy survived. Jack Powers was killed; his brother Clyde was wounded but survived. Bedford and Raymond Hoback were both killed. Alex Kershaw chronicled the losses in *The Bedford Boys*, and the story helped inspire *Saving Private Ryan*. Steven Spielberg funded portions of the memorial, including the Arnold M. Spielberg Theater, named for his father, a World War II veteran. The memorial opened June 6, 2001, with President George W. Bush present and 15,000 people in attendance. Fundraising and construction took approximately seven years and approximately $25 million. In 1994, Bedford donated 11 acres; the foundation purchased additional land, bringing the site to over 50 acres bordering the Blue Ridge Mountains. Three plazas follow a timeline. Reynolds Garden, shaped like the Supreme Headquarters Allied Expeditionary Force combat patch, represents planning and preparation. Gray Plaza includes an invasion pool with beach obstacles, sculptures of soldiers struggling ashore, and a representation of the Higgins craft. Intermittent jets of water spurt from the pool. The names of the 4,427 Allied soldiers who died in the invasion appear on necrology walls — the most complete list of its kind anywhere in the world. Estes Plaza includes the Overlord Arch, 44 feet 6 inches tall, marking the invasion date in its height. The memorial is open daily. The invasion pool drains for maintenance during January, February, and part of March. Bedford is 30 minutes east of Roanoke.