COLUMBUS, Ohio — It’s an event that changed the course of history, and signaled the beginning of the end of World War II. 

Eighty years after D-Day, veterans and dignitaries visited the beaches of Normandy to honor all who fought for freedom.

On June 6, 1944, nearly 160,000 Allied troops traveled across the English Channel and landed on the shores of Nazi-occupied France, part of the largest land, air and sea invasion ever attempted. Historians estimate between 4,000 and 9,000 Germans were killed on D-Day and more than 4,400 Allied forces also lost their lives in the battle that ensued.

“We knew we had lost a lot of men and women,” said Richard Stewart. “It was that simple.”

Stewart, who lives in Cincinnati, left for a second trip to the former battleground Saturday with the nonprofit Best Defense Foundation. He also joined the group to commemorate the 79th anniversary of D-Day in 2023. 

The 103-year-old is a former Army Air Force corporal who served with the 459th Signal Construction Battalion. He said his unit landed on Omaha Beach in Normandy in July 1944, about a month after the Allied invasion that loosened the Nazi grip on Europe, helping to end what the U.S. military calls the “largest and most violent conflict in human history.” Stewart’s unit was sent to install and repair communications lines.

“I thank the Lord that he took me over and brought me back,” Stewart said. “Safe and sound. All in one piece.”

Stewart said he was drafted while attending embalming school in 1942 and is looking forward to delivering a message to the students of Normandy.

“You can be anything you want to be,” he said. “Don’t let nobody tell you you can’t.”

As part of a packed 12-day schedule of events for the 80th anniversary visit, the veterans will tour sites tied to the war and also visit with local schools. Talking with the students is one of Karl Kammer’s favorite parts of the trip, as well.

“They have an affinity for the American troops that’s unbelievable,” he said.

The Beachwood resident also joined the Best Defense Foundation’s trip commemorating the 79th anniversary of the Normandy invasion. He said he was struck by seeing Normandy American Cemetery in person.

“Thinking about the thousands of American soldiers that got killed during D-Day and the few days after that,” he said.

Kammer was drafted In March 1944, shortly after turning 18 and before earning his high school diploma.

“I was anxious to get there, very frankly,” he said. “You were part of this great army. Greatest army in the world.”

He was eventually assigned to the 396th Field Artillery Battalion, 16th Armored Division. His unit was sent into combat in 1945 to invade Czechoslovakia and liberate the city of Pilsen.

Now at 98 years old, he is opening up more about his wartime experiences, hopeful the world remembers the steep price of freedom.

“Never again,” he said. “That would have been a good lesson from (World War II), but it’s not the way it is.”

The Best Defense Foundation is a nonprofit with a mission to honor veterans. You can learn more at bestdefensefoundation.org.