This Wednesday he came to Rotary, moving slowly with his cane, moving through the line to get his badge, buy a pot-drawing ticket, get lunch.
One small step after another, he made his way to his table. Just another old man in his 80's who has been a pillar of his community these many decades.
65 years ago, however, he was a volunteer. He was a Jedburgh, though he didn't know it at the time.
64 years ago, he boarded an airplane and flew to France - like a lot of other hardy young men. But instead of jumping into Normandy to help isolate the invasion beaches, he and two others jumped into occupied France, in order to tie down significant German forces so that they never *got* to the beach, and in many cases, never got into the fight in the Cotentin at all.
From the book Operation Jedburgh by Colin Beavan -
“Any questions?” Mockler-Ferryman asked.“Yes, sir,” one of the Jeds piped up. “How many Germans are there in France?”
“Not many over half a million,” came the weary answer.
A tense silence followed. “Oh, that’s all?” shouted one of the brash Americans at the back, and all of the Jeds, even the most austere of the French, laughed hilariously.
I won't tell you that Bill Thompson was that American - but I'm going to ask him next Wednesday, while he's still around to ask.
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