Past national commander joins military dignitaries and allies in Statues of Liberation remembrance ceremonies.
Two American Legion-sponsored bronze figures stand eternal watch from different positions of the first town liberated by the Allies in the D-Day invasion of Normandy, France, which began the end for Nazi Germany in World War II.
One figure depicts Brig. Gen. Theodore Roosevelt Jr., a founder of The American Legion. The other portrays Gen. Dwight D. Eisenhower, Supreme Allied Commander Europe, who led the deadly mission known as Operation Overlord that broke through Germany’s stranglehold of France on June 6, 1944.
The two icons of American military history had one thing irrefutably in common. They both “epitomized servant leadership,” American Legion Past National Commander Daniel J. Seehafer told crowds June 3-4 in ceremonies at the “Statues of Liberation” in Ste. Mere-Eglise. Active-duty military personnel from multiple nations, three-star generals, high school students, educators, elected officials and others gathered less than 24 hours and a half-kilometer apart and listened to lessons of bravery, accountability and leadership demonstrated by Eisenhower and Roosevelt 81 years ago.
“Gen. Eisenhower epitomized what it means to be a servant leader – one who takes full responsibility in the most perilous of times and serves not only to fulfill a mission but also to lead others – in those most perilous of times,” Seehafer told hundreds Tuesday on the Ste. Mere-Eglise town square, made famous by the epic 1962 blockbuster film “The Longest Day.” A mannequin of U.S. paratrooper Pvt. John Steele today dangles from the steeple of the ancient church that rises up from the square. “Just as George Washington was described as the ‘indispensable man’ 250 years ago when America began its long struggle for freedom and independence, so too was Dwight Eisenhower at the pivotal moment in World War II.”
Of Roosevelt, highest-ranking officer and oldest man to storm the beaches of Normandy in the first wave of D-Day, Seehafer asked the crowd Wednesday to gaze upon the statue at the town’s entrance and recognize its symbolism today. “We are humbled by him, and all who followed his lead – his servant leadership – that brings us together 81 years later, in awe of what it takes to change a world.”
Roosevelt Jr., eldest son of the 26th U.S. president, had fought on the front lines of World War I and World War II alike, against the wishes of higher command. Wounded by machine gun fire and gassed in World War I, he returned to military action in World War II and received the Medal of Honor for helping his men cross the sands of Utah Beach in the face of enemy fire. He died of a heart attack five weeks after the invasion and was initially buried in a temporary cemetery near Ste. Mere-Eglise.
“It’s important to understand that this statue … does not portray a rock-ribbed, young American soldier charging into battle,” Seehafer said. “It depicts something different, something perhaps deeper than that – a thoughtful 56-year-old man. He clutches his cane. That same cane steadied him as he stormed Utah Beach. His portrayal here is not that of Hollywood movies. Symbolized here is hope … hope for a future Theodore Roosevelt Jr. would not live to see.”
A group of students from Cold Spring Harbor High School in New York – near the Oyster Bay home where Roosevelt Jr. grew up – attended the ceremonies, along with other events, inspired by Operation Democracy of Locust Valley, N.Y., which for many years has collaborated with The American Legion on remembrance and civics-education initiatives in the United States and France. The American Legion, Operation Democracy, Amis des Veterans Americains (Friends of American Veterans), the City of Ste. Mere-Eglise and the Airborne Museum there worked together to bring to life the Statues of Liberation, unveiling the Roosevelt monument in 2022 and Eisenhower in 2024.
“Thirteen students from Cold Spring Harbor have journeyed across the ocean not merely to witness history but to feel its weight, to carry its meaning home,” explained Cold Spring Harbor Schools Superintendent Joseph Monastero, who accompanied the teens. “They come from a community that believes deeply in the values that were fought for here – democracy, courage and preparation, and above all, a love of freedom.”
He explained at the Roosevelt Jr. ceremony that the students are learning more than a war story. “We are not only remembering a battle. We are reaffirming a promise. That promise is renewed each time someone has the courage to stand up when standing up is hard … each time communities come together in the face of fear, each time students like those with us today take the lesson of history and apply it to the future. We do not glorify war. We glorify what it preserves … liberty, dignity and the right to live free from oppression. Those ideals remain under threat in many corners of the world. But as long as there are people who are willing to stand, as those who once did here, freedom will endure. These students have seen firsthand the power of brotherhood, the strength of sacrifice and the beauty of unity. May they return to Cold Spring Habor carrying more than memories. May they carry a mission to protect what was fought for here.”
Lt. Gen. Charles Costanza, commander of the Army’s V Corps, described to Tuesday’s crowd before the Eisenhower statue was formally dedicated that June 6, 1944, is “a date etched into the soul of freedom.
“In the darkest hours of the Second World War, it was Eisenhower who was solely responsible for the largest amphibious invasion in military history. He wasn’t simply a strategist or a soldier. He was the leader of an alliance, united by a single, uncompromising principle: that tyranny must not be allowed to stand unchallenged. Gen. Eisenhower’s leadership was marked not by ego but by responsibility, humility and resolve.”
His words aligned with those of Past National Commander Seehafer, who unveiled the Eisenhower statue in 2024 and returned this year for its formal dedication. “We reflect today on (a) brand of leadership, forged at the birth of America and vigorously adopted by American leaders who came to Europe’s aid in two world wars. Dwight Eisenhower. Theodore Roosevelt Jr. Their goals were not to advance themselves, in their time. Their mission was to advance freedom, justice and democracy that our nations enjoy today – and for generations to come.”
Lt. Gen. Costanza made the point that in the hours before D-Day, Eisenhower wrote a note that he carried with him throughout the operation – that if it should fail, the responsibility was all his. “He knew the success or failure of liberating Europe rested solely on his shoulders.”
Seehafer told the Tuesday crowd that The American Legion is proud to have played a major role in the installation of the Statues of Liberation, as a lasting testament to the kind of servant leadership demonstrated by Eisenhower, a life member of The American Legion, and Roosevelt Jr., the organization’s most prominent founder.
“It is our collective goal that all who gaze upon these immortal figures and faces will understand the resolve it takes to fight for something bigger than oneself,” Seehafer said. “Something bigger is the right and privilege we have to gather here today to celebrate, honor and remember the power of servant leadership.”
First Army Commanding General Lt. Gen. Mark Landes thanked the people of France for never forgetting their American liberators, so few of whom still walk the earth.
“It is heartbreaking to think of a world without our greatest generation,” he said. “Ceremonies like this leave soldiers like me almost at a loss for words.”
- Honor & Remembrance