The Myers Great American Tour: Days 4/5/6

Hello Everyone!
 Sorry that it has taken so long for me to write these updates! We have been very busy. I have to make this short, as I am tired and are all ready to go to bed.

Day 4:
(Still in Richmond) We visited Tredegar Iron Works, where much of the Confederate's cannon power was manufactured. We also toured the Confederate White House where Jefferson Davis and his family lived during the Civil War. Afterwards, we went to a massive mansion that was nearby Richmond. It was huge and very opulent. Mom and I got to do a tour of the house and grounds.

Day 5:
(Leaving Richmond) We visited Cold Harbor, a battlefield in the Civil War during 1864. 15,000 men were either wounded or killed there, 2/3 of which were Union. We walked 2 1/2 miles through the walking tour. It was one of the coolest battlefields that I have seen. Everywhere we walked were original trenches dug by Union and Confederate soldiers. Some were very visible and others were tucked away in the forest. The Battle of Cold Harbor was the first time that trench warfare was used in the United States. The battle lasted two weeks, and much of the battlefield is still intact.
Afterwards, we drove south to Yorktown Battlefield. This is the place where the final major battle of the Revolutionary War was fought. We got to hear a park ranger speak (One of the best ranger talks that I have ever heard.) as well as do a car tour throughout the battlefield. We saw where the British earthworks, the French Lines, the American Lines, as well as several of the batteries. We also got to see Redoubts #9 and #10, two of the most famous parts of the battlefield. Alexander Hamilton and the Marquis de Lafayette planned and executed attacks on the two small forts. The fall of the forts caused the fall of Yorktown. Finally we got to see the place where the British and German forces surrendered. Afterwards we stayed in Yorktown.



Day 6:
(Leaving Yorktown for North Carolina) Today, we drove from Yorktown to the Outer Banks of North Carolina. We stopped to see Kitty Hawk and the place where Wilbur and Orville Wright flew the first airplane. It is constantly windy here, and you can see why it was a good place to practice flying. After visiting the park, we headed to the northern area of the Outer Banks, to our hotel. It is right on the beach, and it is just a two minute walk over a large dune to the beach. The three boys spent several hours in the water this afternoon, dodging waves. It is really pretty here.

Now I'm caught up! In the future I will try to be more regular in my posting. we are staying here through Wednesday morning, before we head to Washington DC for the convention of the National League of POW/MIA Families. Thanks for reading!
JM

The Myers Great American Tour: Day 3

Hello Everyone!
 Today we traveled six hours to get to Richmond Virginia. Instead of going a few more hours to Fredricksburg, we chose to stay in Richmond.  We spent most of the day driving. When we got to Richmond, most of the museums were closed, but we were able to walk around the riverfront  of Richmond and see many of the sights there. We saw numerous moorings of bridges and buildings that the Confederate Army blew up on their way out of town. We also saw one of the largest cannon foundries that was in use during the Civil War in the south.

The bridge just a few days after it was burned in 1865.

If you look behind us in the picture, you can see the remains of the bridge.
(Look above Jake's head but below the current bridge.)

Tomorrow we will stay in Richmond. The plan is to visit The Confederate White House and the Museum of the Civil War in Richmond, before heading out to the Cold War battlefield. The battlefield is about 15 miles north of Richmond. This week is the 150th Anniversary of the battle, so there will be re-enactors and a ceremony. It will be cool. I promise I will have more pictures tomorrow. Thanks for reading!
JM

The Myers American Tour: Day 2!

Hello Everyone!
 Sorry this is a late post. Yesterday was a loooong day. We got pummeled with storms at the hotel, and even lost electricity for two hours! The storm was moving the same direction we were, so we waited to leave the hotel until 10 AM. We drove through Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Ohio, and West Virginia, where we are staying. We arrived around 8 PM eastern time. (We're now in the eastern time zone.) Just as we started unloading, the storm that had been behind us that we had been out running started pouring on us. It was incredible the amount of water that came down in those 20 minutes. (Omaha, friends, I have a feeling you can relate.....) However, even though Dad and I looked like drenched rats, we managed to get all of the luggage into the hotel.

Today we are not sure what we are doing. The original plan was to go to Fredericksburg Virginia, which is a Civil War battlefield. Unfortunately, most of the park is under renovation. So, it will be interesting to see what happens. We will drive into Virginia and I'm quite confident we will find something interesting to see. Check back later for tomorrow (um, today's) update! Thanks for reading!
JM

The Myers American Tour Day #1

Hello Everyone!
 I am writing this post from Springfield Illinois. We left our house this morning at 7:30 and drove to Springfield Illinois. We drove around 7 hours.

 This afternoon we went to Abraham Lincoln's home and tomb. It was awesome to see the place where Lincoln lived. We saw the place where the Republican Party's delegates officially gave him the Party's nomination, and his bedroom. Much of the furniture was original and it was cool to think of Abraham Lincoln sitting at a desk, writing letters, or shaving with his shaving kit. I don't have many pictures today, but I will try to get some tomorrow.

 We missed most of the severe weather today but we will get hit tonight. Tomorrow we will be driving in the remains of this storm for much of the day. We will drive 12 hours to Charleston, West Virginia. I will try to post some pictures tomorrow.
Thanks for reading!
JM

Major NHD Update/ DC Trip

Hello Everyone!
 Major things have happened since I last blogged about my NHD project. A month ago I told you all that I had received an invite from the National League of POW/MIA Families to present my documentary at their national convention. (There will be around a thousand people there!) I will be able to give a two minute introduction before showing my documentary. I wrote that I knew that God wasn't finished with the film, and the the invitation was him moving. That's not all.

However, two weeks after my Mom got a call from the Pentagon. It was the Assistant Chief of Staff for the Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel. She said that a family member of a missing soldier had gotten a hold of the documentary, and had passed it to someone in the Pentagon. The documentary made its way up the chain of command all the way to Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel. Mr. Hagel, it turns out, was very impressed, and asked to meet the person who made the film. The Assistant Chief of Staff  tracked me down and called Mom. She said that Secretary Hagel wanted to meet me. She offered to give us an hour tour of the Pentagon and then said that the Secretary could meet with us for ten minutes! So, on June 16th, my family is going to get a tour of the Pentagon and meet Secretary Hagel for a few minutes! I am in shock as I write this. God has given me such an awesome opportunity. I hope that my documentary will continue to touch people as I go forward.

All that said, we will leave Omaha on Tuesday, June 2nd. We will go through Illinois and visit Abraham's home. Then, we will go through Virginia and visit numerous Revolutionary War and Civil War sites. Then we will turn south to the Carolina's. After a few days there, we will head to Washington D.C. for the POW/MIA conference, NHD and the Pentagon tour. (To any prospective burglars: We have one of my Dad's college military friend staying at our house. He's a second amendment guy. 'nuff said.)

I would like to blog our adventures as we go. So, like last year, I will do a daily update. Hopefully I will be able to incorporate some video as well. I hope that you enjoy the upcoming posts! Thanks for reading!
JM

All Gave Some, Some Gave All

This year, the 26^th of May is Memorial Day. Many see Memorial Day as the spring version of Veterans' Day. This is far from true. Veterans' Day is the day that we remember those who served our country in the military. Memorial Day is the day we remember those who died while defending the United States and the freedom that it represents. One example of this sacrifice is Stanley Dwyer, who saved hundreds of lives while sacrificing his own.

Stanley Dwyer was born in rural Kansas in 1916. He was an athletic young man who enjoyed playing baseball and doing 4-H. His family moved to Nebraska when he was a teenager.  He joined the Merchant Marines in 1939, and the United States Air Force in 1941, after the bombing of Pearl Harbor. He trained in Nevada to become the pilot of a B-17 bomber. He was then assigned to Florida for a few months before being shipped out to England to begin flying bombing raids.

Every other day, Stan and his nine man crew flew bombing raids over Nazi controlled Europe. These raids were fraught with risk. The B-17's that the Americans flew had only enough fuel to make it to the target and back with no diversions. Many barely made it back to their air bases before running out of fuel. In addition, the Germans were constantly flooding the European sky with flak, or small pieces of metal fired from an anti-aircraft cannon. Some pilots reported that when flying over German military bases, the sky would turn black with all of the flak that was being fired at them. To make things even worse, the B-17s were not bulletproof, and there was very little that the crew could do except hope and pray that they would not get hit. The survival rate for a United States' combat  pilot over Europe during World War II was 50% over twenty five raids. This rate was worse than almost all other combat units during the war.

On May 10^th, 1944 pilot Stanley Dwyer and his nine crew members climbed aboard their plane for what would be their 21^st mission. If they could make it through four more, they would get a few weeks break at home before returning to duty. The raid this day would be on the Austrian city of Wiener Neustadt, the location of most of the Nazi airplane factories. Stanley’s plane was about 100 miles from Wiener Neustadt, near the back of the formation, when its engine was hit by flak. The bomber fell into a dive and quickly caught on fire.

Stan and his co-pilot continued to fly the plane in an attempt to survive. As the plane leveled, Stan ordered all of the flight crew to open the doors and bail. Five of the men bailed out as the B-17 approached the ground. It soon became apparent that the plane was not going to make it. However, the men left inside the plane continued to fly it.

At the last second, it appeared that Stanley might have found a place to land his plane-- a large field of grass next to a village in the Austrian countryside. Unfortunately, there were numerous houses in the clearing, as well as people milling about. With an almost full load of bombs in the bomb bay, there would be a massive secondary explosion once the plane hit the ground.  Stan knew that if he put the plane down there, he might have a chance at surviving, but those in the houses and village were doomed. Stanley chose to save those on the ground.

A boy on the ground watching the burning plane slowly descend, recalled that he could see the pilot as he turned the plane and headed for the forest. The plane was only a few meters from the ground. In a last ditch attempt to put the plane down safely, Stan aimed for a small clearing in the forest. Unfortunately, it appears he lost control and consciousness as the plane fell from the sky crashing into the forest. The following explosion killed all five men aboard.

Almost 65 years later, Stanley’s brother and niece traveled to the site in Austria with the United States government, to search for the fallen heroes and bring them home. They had spent almost a decade searching for the crash site. Unfortunately, the heroes' remains were not found. The secondary explosion had all but obliterated the plane and its contents. However, when the group met those that lived in the nearby village, they found that they remembered Stanley, knew what he had done, and were filled with gratitude toward him and his crew. They credited their lives, and the lives of their children and grandchildren to Stanley, who, instead of trying to save himself, had chosen to save those in the village. Stanley Dwyer's memory lives on in the hearts and minds of his relatives, and also the Austrians whose lives he saved.

On Memorial Day, please stop and remember men like Stanley Dwyer and his crew, who fought bravely and died valiantly for our country and its freedoms. I pray that we never forget these brave men and their sacrifice.

Sources:

Searching for Stanley  By Kay Hughes and Harold Dwyer

Author Interview with Kay Hughes (Stanley’s Niece), January 26^th, 2014

Author Interview with Kay Hughes , February 6^th, 2014

Author Interview with Harold Dwyer (Stanley’s Brother), February 6^th, 2014

Recovering the Missing: Their Right, Our Responsibility, Documentary by Justin Myers

Thanks for reading.

JM

NHD Update

Hello Everyone!
 I just wanted to write a quick update on my National History Day project.

 I have received an extraordinary offer to show my film at the annual meeting of The National League of POW/MIA Families. The League is a group of relatives of those still missing from the Vietnam War. They lobby the government on accounting issues and also are a support network for families still missing relatives. Their national convention is the second week of June in Washington D.C.. The event will be attended by hundreds of family members of men still missing, as well as numerous military officials, many whom I have read about during my research! These are the people who are affected by the work that my documentary's about, and I believe that they will appreciate the documentary more than any National History Day judge ever could. I will be presenting on Thursday night at the memorial and candlelight banquet. The banquet is one of the larger events that they hold during the conference. I will give a brief introduction to my documentary, before showing my documentary to the attendees. I can't say how much of an honor this is. I believe that this is a part  of God's plan for this documentary.

As the conference is in Washington D.C., this means another trip for the Myers! I will give you updates on the trip when we get underway. The conference is from June 11th through the 14th. The candlelight memorial banquet is June 12th. We will also be in Washington while my brother competes in the national competition of NHD, so this will be a long trip. I look forward to blogging about it! Thanks for reading!
JM

National History Day 2014

Hello Everyone!
 Yesterday was the State National History Day competition. I competed with my film "Recovering the Missing: Their Right, Our Responsibility." This was my favorite film that I have produced, and my most professional looking piece of work ever. Unfortunately, I placed third and will not proceed to the national competition in Washington D.C. this June. While this really stinks, I feel that God has another purpose for this film, and that he will prevail. I am currently looking into my options on what to do with the film. In the meantime, I wanted to share the documentary with you, and see what you think of it. Please leave your comments below. If you would like a copy of my bibliography and process paper, I can email you a copy, if you leave a comment. I hope you enjoy the film. Thanks for reading!
JM

WARNING: THIS FILM CONTAINS SOME GRAPHIC CONTENT OF HUMAN REMAINS.

A Beautiful Image

A truly beautiful and sad image.
Taps being played over the graves of Korean war dead.

Also, I found this cool image. It is this same picture but from a different angle.

Note the photographer taking the previous picture.
I am also finished with my National History Day project! District competition is on Wednesday. I will blog the results as soon as I get them! Thanks!
JM


The photos above are from the Official Army FlickR page.

National History Day 2014

Hey there everybody!

I’m sorry that my blog has been silent since Christmas. But that's because I've been working on my National History Day project for 2014. This year I am working alone. (Will decided to take the year off.) This year, the theme is: "Rights and Responsibilities". My topic is 'The Right of Fallen Soldiers to Come Home, and the United States' Responsibility to Bring Home the Fallen.' Below is my thesis paragraph:

The United States has not always held the same respect for its fallen that it has today. Up until the Civil War, soldiers were buried where they fell, and, unless they had some sort of ID on them, they were unidentified. Slowly, our respect for our fallen countryman has grown. Perhaps it is because we understand, that instead of fighting in a royal army, named after a monarch, our soldiers fight as the United States of America. And America is all of us. We the People send our young men off into war to protect us and our liberties. Many give the ultimate sacrifice so that we may stay free. It is their right to come home; they have given the ultimate sacrifice. They have payed for that right with their lives. Now it is our responsibility to ensure that they receive that right. It is our responsibility to give our war dead an honored welcome home. We are one of the only nations in the world that feels this responsibility. The United States follows honors this responsibility in numerous ways. Today, the Joint Mortuary Affairs Command (JMAC) brings home the dead just a day or two after they have fallen. The Joint POW/MIA Accounting Command (JPAC)  brings home the fallen from past wars. It is in this way that our nation honors the dead, and brings them home. It is their right, and our responsibility.

So that is my NHD project for this year! I am wrapping up my research, and will begin making the documentary before long. I have several major interviews coming up that I'm really excited about! Once I finish competition, I will post the documentary here. I will continue to post updates as I continue to work! Thanks for reading everyone!

JM