1-507th PIR, 29th ID Soldiers commemorate Battle of Graignes in Normandy

U.S. Army Lt. Col. Michael Venafro and Command Sgt. Maj. Richard Couturier, battalion commander and command sergeant major for the 1st Battalion, 507th Parachute Infantry Regiment, place a wreath at the Franco-American Memorial in Graignes, France, to commemorate the Battle of Graignes, June 5, 2025. On June 6, 1944, paratroopers from the 507th PIR, originally scheduled to land near Amfreville, landed near Graignes where town residents made the unanimous decision to feed the paratroopers. In the days that followed, fierce fighting and executions by Nazi forces led to the deaths of 60 U.S. Soldiers and Graignes residents. Still, of the 182 paratroopers involved in defense of Graignes, 150 survived, largely due to the efforts of the town’s citizens. More than 600 U.S. service members, including 30 from the 29th ID, are in Normandy to commemorate the 81st anniversary of the D-Day landings. (U.S. Army National Guard photo by Sgt. 1st Class Terra C. Gatti)

 

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