In the moonlight at Hoeve de Knol in Overloon, we said a deeply moved farewell to Frankie Day (née Fenn) and her daughter Donna. Frankie was born in 1946 and grew up alongside the profound sorrow that had previously stricken the family. On July 28, 1944, her brother Gordon was killed during a bombing in London. Her other brother Edward, known as Ted, had been deployed to Normandy just four days earlier to fight on the mainland. Ted was granted leave to attend the funeral and returned to his regiment in Normandy in August: the 1st Battalion, King’s Own Scottish Borderers. With this regiment, he eventually arrived in St. Hubert in the Netherlands on October 1, 1944, where they stayed until October 12, 1944. Billeted in farms across the surrounding countryside of the small village, they enjoyed a very pleasant stay. There was time for relaxation, music, and film (set up in a barn). They connected closely with the locals and learned about each other’s (culinary) customs. A football match was organized against the St. Hubert team, accompanied by the pipe band of the regiment. In short: it was a warm, pleasant, and wondrous stay for both sides, and the hope was that it would soon lead to the liberation of the Netherlands.

We welcomed relatives of Private Albert Samuel Richmond to Overloon War Cemetery. This fulfilled a long-cherished wish of the granddaughter of Albert’s brother Walt to visit the grave of his beloved brother on her grandfather’s behalf. The grief over Albert’s loss has played a major role in this family’s lives. On this beautiful, sun-drenched autumn day, they paused by his grave and laid flowers in remembrance.

Something very special happened on May 4th. Our esteemed colleague Tonnie Ebben handed over four unique, historical field crosses to the visitors’ center of the War Cemetery in Bergen op Zoom.The story behind these crosses is almost unbelievable: they were discovered in a scrap metal bin in Sint Anthonis! Fortunately, someone recognized their historical significance, and they found their way to Tonnie.

Overloon War Chronicles Foundation recently received a remarkable historical document: the original military ‘paybook’ belonging to British Private Sydney John Gilbert Williamson. Williamson was killed in action on October 14, 1944, during the fierce battles to liberate Overloon.The document came into the foundation's possession following an extraordinary international search. Mr. Malcolm Waterman, the nephew of the fallen soldier, had spent years looking for a worthy home for this personal heirloom.

This week, we had the pleasure of welcoming Year 5 and 6 students (groups 7 and 8) from Sterrenschool De Klimboom (Venray) to the Overloon War Cemetery. As part of their project on ‘War and Peace,’ intern Lise Weerts organized this educational visit for her "Learning Outside the Classroom" assignment.

Over the past few days, we welcomed around 200 students from Mondial College Leuvensbroek in Nijmegen to Overloon War Cemetery. After visiting the Overloon War Museum, we told them about the servicemen buried in the cemetery, about the Battle of Overloon and the long journey most of them had already made before they lost their lives and were buried here.