WOODSTOCK – For a moment, Kim Yeck is overcome with emotion as she places a star honoring a World War II veteran on the Wall of Valor.
The wall, a centerpiece of the Shenandoah County Historical Society’s special D-Day 80th anniversary exhibit, vividly recounts the heroic story of D-Day on June 6, 1944, at Omaha Beach in Normandy, France.
“Well, first you should know I’ve said every person's name out loud,” said Yeck, Narrow Passage Chapter historian of the Daughters of the American Revolution. “Because when you say their name, their memory lives on.”
The exhibit, designed by local artist and historian Keith Rocco, opened on Oct. 5 at the National Guard Armory in Woodstock on the heels of the observance of the 80th anniversary of D-Day, where 133,000 Allied troops landed on Omaha Beach and launched a significant offensive against Nazi forces that ultimately contributed to the Allied victory.
Serving as a tribute, the wall honors those who served in World War II, recognizing over 950 individuals from Shenandoah County, said Suzanne Loveland, exhibit chairperson.
“When he (Rocco) presented the idea of the exhibit, he said it would be good to do other things, suggesting a Wall of Valor,” she explained. “Apparently, he had been at an event some 15 years ago and what they did was they took the American Legion book and copied it.”
Thinking the task was simple, Loveland and other members of the local DAR quickly began gathering local World War II names a few months before the exhibit was set to open.
“Cindy (Moody) has the most knowledge about all of the cemeteries because she does Wreaths Across America and she also knows where each plaque is located in the county."
Loveland said memorials are scattered throughout Shenandoah County, including in Mount Jackson and Woodstock, and added that additional volunteers located more veterans unknown to the group.
“He (an unknown volunteer) gave us an additional 250 names,” Loveland said, adding that during the war a DAR member's mother kept a scrapbook that held 60 more names.
“Every time we turn around, there are more names,” she said, briefly looking at the wall.
“Everybody that was a man, 18 to 20 years old, must of gone. To be that brave. When you read their stories, just typing them, I had never really done anything like this. I had no idea what I would expect – mentally or emotionally.”
At last count, 953 names hang on the wall, including U.S. Army Air Corps Staff Sgt. Irvin Madison Proctor, of Mount Jackson, who was killed in action on July 19, 1944, when his plane was shot down on a mission in Europe; Maurertown resident and Purple Heart recipient Everett F Hockman, who served 11 months in the Army before he was killed in action on June 6, 1944, at the Normandy Invasion; 1st Lt. Geraldine Clem Dellinger, who served in the Army Nurse Corps before her discharge in 1946. Awarded the American Theatre Ribbon, Dellinger is one of only a handful of women recognized on the Wall of Valor.
Every town in Shenandoah County is represented on the wall as well as some names from other counties and a few outside of Virginia. Each military branch and the U.S. Merchant Marine are included as well.
“There are a lot of names recognizable on the wall,” Loveland said acknowledging Randolph Ambrose, her Sunday school teacher, and her uncles Charles M Artz Jr. and Harold Artz.
“One just died in 2020, and he (Charles) was on an escort ship, the U.S.S. Fogg, and his ship, he was escorting a carrier, and his ship was torpedoed. Fifteen men died.”
His brother, Harold Artz, Loveland said, also from Strasburg, was honored with the Purple Heart.
“He was shot at the Battle of the Bulge,” she said, adding that neither would return to Strasburg.
Forty-seven Gold Stars, a title reserved for families of military members who died in the line of duty, are affixed to the center of the exhibit.
“We tried really hard to get a photograph and a biography on every one of those,” Loveland explained, mentioning that she is aware of only a few who are still alive across the county. She said she hopes each will visit the exhibit but is uncertain due to health and mobility reasons.
“The project just kept getting bigger and bigger,” Loveland said, expressing her gratitude to Yeck, Moody and other committee members for their ongoing support and assistance. “Kim did all of the computer work as well as going to the Truban Archives.”
In the next week two weeks, Yeck said they’re expecting over 700 students to explore the exhibit. She said she hopes it will make an impression on their young minds.
“We’ve talked about this amongst ourselves,” she said. “But when the kids come in, when they see this exhibit, I hope they’ll realize what they went through. I hope they stand here, say each name – read it out loud, read each branch, how they lost their life.”
Pausing, Yeck added, “Anything that honors our military is emotional.”
Loveland said new residents to the county, who may have had a relative who was a WWII veteran but are from out of state may request to have their name added. We’ll always have extra stars, she said.
A binder will be made available for those in attendance who wish to add to the wall or share notes.
When volunteers remove the wall, Loveland said she has big plans for it. Mum's the word, though.
For now, it will return to the Shenandoah County Historical Society’s museum on North Main Street, where Loveland and other volunteers will continue to locate additional photos and names that may have been overlooked.
“I suspect there will be a lot of emotions while people stand here, recognizing names or faces,” she said, adding that she has experienced the same feelings herself.
The free exhibit is open for visitors from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Fridays, Saturdays and Mondays and from noon to 4 p.m. on Sundays, and runs through Oct. 20 at the armory, 451 Hoover Road, Woodstock.
Special events scheduled to align with the exhibit include a 1940s-style ISO concert and dance from 7 to 9:30 p.m. on Saturday and a D-Day Symposium from 1 to 4 p.m. on Oct. 19 with guest speakers including history professor Dr. Jared Frederick, retired senior Army Special Forces Officer and CEO of The World War II Foundation Col. John Frenzel and retired U.S. Army Lt. Gen Benjamin Freakley.
To learn more, visit shenandoahhistory.org.
