The 75th anniversary of D-Day was celebrated at the Tug Ludington in Kewaunee on Saturday. Thursday was the 75th anniversary of Allied Forces landing on the beaches of France in World War II. The Tug Ludington was built back in 1943 back when it was called the Major William F. Browder (LT-4) and was used to carry ammo barges during the invasion. Dennis Shimanek is on the Tug Ludington Committee and he emceed the remembrance. He talked about the tug’s history which was renamed the Tug Ludington when it was bought by the Corps of Engineers in 1947. It was used by the Corps until 1996 when they sold it to the City of Kewaunee where it’s been in the Kewaunee Harbor ever since.
Remington Schleis is a 17-year old who just graduated from Kewaunee High School and he spoke as well. He has a long family history of fighting in wars. He talked about the importance of remembering history.
Major Brandon Sivret of the US Air Force spoke as well about the sacrifices that were made on those beaches and that soldiers still continue to do to this day.
Captain Glenn Brunner who has retired from the US Navy also spoke more specifically of how D-Day went down and how many lives were lost. The ceremony ended with a 21 gun salute. Video of the ceremony can be found below.
