Thank you for the wonderful acknowledgment of the United States led Allied triumph over Nazi Germany. Ike is one of my idols-a truly great and essential man.
One small quibble, I believe Mao and Stalin rank ahead of Hitler as "most evil".

Thanks for educating people about this day, especially in light of current events. It was truly a great day for America and the world!

My dad was an infantryman in the Army and fought the Nazi's from DDay +5 to the Battle of the Bulge. He was in combat for 210 days earning a Purple Heart and ending up in Paris as a MP after suffering from combat fatigue. He recalled VE Day in Paris with great releif and an abundance of celebration. All of Europe was hit hard by the devastation of heavy combat and VE Day marked the beginning of a new era. Thank you for calling attention to a very important anniversary.

Thank you, Pete and Marie... and especially you, Sarah, for enhancing this feature with your father's story. I hope we hear more of these special memories...

Here ya go Charley:

A now deceased uncle was in command of a 12 man team consisting of Army and Navy personnel who had demolition experience. They trained for 6 months in England prior to being tasked with blowing up beach obstacles at Omaha Beach to clear the way for the first wave of landing craft. They completed their objective, but he was the only survivor. His youngest brother was a radio operator on a C47 involved in dropping the 82nd and 101st Airborne behind Utah Beach. My uncle stayed in the Army, and saw action in Korea and Vietnam and retired as a Lieutenant Colonel.

There was a second cousin who was in the 5th (Red Diamond) Division. He was an artillery spotter in a building in France and was directing fire on a German position-the Germans, being no dummies in the art of warfare, soon figured out where the direction was coming from and shelled the building. It collapsed around him as a result, killing his partner and nearly killing him. He wouldn't speak of any of his experiences until well after 30 years later.

He had 2 younger brothers who also served, one 0f whom was in the 7th Armored Division which fought a delaying action during the Battle of the Bulge. He ended up with frostbitten feet, and the convoy behind his was captured by the Germans and were killed by the SS at Malmedy.

The other brother was in the 69th Infantry Division which made the link-up with the Russians at the Elbe in March(?) 1945.

Thank you for reminding us that too many stories are too easily forgotten. I don't know what is taught in schools anymore but I do know that our stories must be told so they can honor those who made sacrifices we can only imagine. With deep respect and gratitude to all our veterans and all those currently serving. Thank you for remembering.