Williamsport WWII Event 2010

The following report was submitted by correspondent Bill Donegan:

Williamsport 2010 Event

This year’s living history at Williamsport began with Kim sending me an e-mail message telling me that they had a “PACKARD” for me, for the parade. I misread it thinking it said package. I had a big laugh when Linda pointed out my mistake after I had answered the e-mail inquiring what package? Free room? A stipend for an FDR speech? Needless to say, that when I arrived, there was no package and no Packard. I rode in a Chevy instead.

Linda and I arrived Friday October 9^th and checked in to the “Red Roof Inn”, which gave us a discount. We met our friend, Maj. Dave Nowack, USAA and went to see a period movie, which was complete with Donald Duck cartoons, Three Stooges Short, and a Betty Davis Feature show.

Next morning Linda and I donned our FDR suit and “Rosy the Riveter” clothes and went to the park for the reenactor breakfast. There we met several WW2 veterans and posed for pictures and listened to their stories. John Leather, a young 85 year old sergeant, who can still wear his original Ike jacket said, “We had a job to do, we did it, and got the hell out of there”. John still carries a piece of shrapnel in his ankle from a German tank round. We told him that the shrapnel was valuable. He said,” If they ever take it out, I want it.”

The parade was much the same as every other parade except for the presence of so many restored vehicles. The parade left the park and followed a path through the heart of  Williamsport town. It acted as a pied piper drawing people from town into the park where the re-enactors were set up.

Linda and I participated in a fashion show which featured dress wear, play wear, military uniforms from the 1940s. I had one change, from Roosevelt, to Hellmut Heudtlass (German Chaplain).

Following the fashion show the German hospital put on an excellent production of a field surgery. The hospital was set up in an old barn dating back to Washington’s time and really looked authentic.

Since the old expression “1 picture is as good as 1,000 words” holds true I will stop writing so you can look at the photographs.

Bill Donegan