ABMC Releases “Flanders Field: Remembering Their Sacrifice”
The renovated visitor center at Flanders-Field American Cemetery will be dedicated with a ribbon-cutting ceremony on April 6, 2017 to coincide with the 100th anniversary of the United States entering World War I. The new film featured in the visitor center “Flanders Field: Remembering Their Sacrifice,” is now available online.
This nine minute film serves as an orientation to the Great War, the cemetery, and the American Battle Monuments Commission (ABMC). Through historic and modern-day imagery, and first-person recollections from letters, a clearer perspective of the true cost of war is presented. The film touches on the fighting in the region by the 27th, 30th, 37th, and 91st Divisions during the war in the Ypres-Lys Offensive. It discusses how family members had to select repatriation to the United States for burial, or permanent interment in an American, overseas cemetery. It covers the Gold Start Mother Pilgrimages that gave women the opportunity to visit their son or husband’s burial location overseas. The film also shows the appreciation and friendship of the Belgians through an annual singing tradition during the Memorial Day ceremony, and a gravesite adoption program.
The visitor gains a better understanding of the Great War, the sacrifice of the individuals who perished fighting in the region, and the role of ABMC through this film, and exhibit panels, photographs, personal stories, historic maps, and interactive kiosks.
Attendance is always free, and tickets nor reservations are required.
About ABMC:
Established by Congress in 1923, the American Battle Monuments Commission commemorates the service, achievements, and sacrifice of U.S. armed forces. ABMC administers 26 overseas military cemeteries, and 27 memorials, monuments, and markers.