Media Center

Get the latest news and media resources from
The National D-Day Memorial

First Lady Suzanne S. Youngkin and Governor Glenn Youngkin present the fourth 2025 Spirit of Virginia Award to the National D-Day Memorial Foundation on June 10, 2025. Accepting the award is April Cheek-Messier, Foundation President & CEO. Also pictured is Major General Craig Crenshaw, Secretary of Veterans and Defense Affairs. Official photo by Shealah Craighead. Commonwealth of Virginia Office of First Lady Suzanne S. Youngkin Governor Glenn Youngkin and First Lady Suzanne S. Youngkin presented the fourth 2025 Spirit of Virginia Award to the National D-Day Memorial Foundation at the Memorial site in Bedford, Virginia. The Foundation was recognized for its efforts in...

June 12th, 2025

To mark the 100th anniversary of the birth of our founder, the late John Robert “Bob” Slaughter, the National D-Day Memorial announces the republication of Slaughter’s moving personal memoir, Omaha Beach and Beyond: The Long March of Sgt. Bob Slaughter. The limited number “Centennial Edition” includes a new foreword by April Cheek-Messier, President & CEO of the National D-Day Memorial Foundation, and is currently available exclusively through the National D-Day Memorial gift shop and online store. Born February 3, 1925, in Bristol, Tennessee, Slaughter moved with his family to Roanoke, Virginia in the mid-1930s. He enlisted in the Virginia National Guard...

February 5th, 2025

The National D-Day Memorial’s use of technology to enhance the understanding of D-Day, for both in person and online visitors, earned the recognition of three international creative industry awards. The Memorial’s mobile app is the winner of both a 2024 Communicator Award and a 2024 Davey Award, Silver – both for Best User Experience. The Memorial’s online Artifact Virtual Gallery is a 2024 Telly Award Bronze Winner for Use of Volumetric Capture — Immersive, Interactive, & Mixed. Reston, VA based Frameless Technologies, LLC created both the app and the artifact gallery for the Memorial and submitted for the awards. L - April Cheek-Messier, NDDMF...

November 7th, 2024

A square located in La Besnardière in Vire Normandy now bears the name “Square Bob Slaughter,” in recognition of the late John Robert “Bob” Slaughter, founder of the National D-Day Memorial....

August 14th, 2024

The National D-Day Memorial is pleased to announce that it has been recognized in Tripadivsor’s® Travelers’ Choice® Awards for 2024. The award honors businesses that consistently earn great reviews, placing them among the top 10% of listings around the world on Tripadvisor. As the world’s largest travel guidance platform, Tripadvisor has unparalleled authority with travelers and diners. This award is based on genuine feedback from anyone in the community who has visited and left an authentic, first-hand review on Tripadvisor over a 12-month period, making it a valuable and trustworthy designation of great places to visit. “Congratulations to the National D-Day Memorial...

July 18th, 2024

Eight decades after they gave their lives in the cause of freedom, the National D-Day Memorial recognizes the sacrifice of fifteen men who fell on D-Day with the addition of their names to the Memorial Wall. Private Stanley B. Brumback, Kentucky, US Army, 23rd Infantry Regiment, 2nd Infantry Division, Plaque W-26 Private Lloyd J. Burchfield, Arkansas, US Army, 456th Parachute Field Artillery Battalion, 82nd Airborne Division, Plaque W-27 Flying Officer James Harrison Clark, Royal Canadian Air Force, 299 Squadron, Plaque E-44 Corporal James A. Finn, Arkansas, US Army, 357th Infantry Regiment, 90th Infantry Division, Plaque W-106 Private James R. Hattrick, North Carolina, 508th Parachute Infantry...

June 6th, 2024

With great honor and gratitude, the National D-Day Memorial Foundation announces the Bible carried by Raymond Hoback, found by a soldier on Omaha Beach on June 7, 1944, is now part of the Memorial’s permanent artifact collection. Lucille Hoback Boggess, who lost brothers Raymond and Bedford on D-Day, presented the cherished family heirloom to Foundation President & CEO April Cheek-Messier during a private meeting earlier this month. [caption id="attachment_31193" align="alignleft" width="700"] Lucille Hoback Boggess holding a photo of her brother Raymond and the Bible he carried on D-Day[/caption] “We are so honored that the family has decided to entrust us with this...

November 27th, 2023

The National D-Day Memorial Foundation is proud to announce the launch of our newly re-designed website, dday.org. Designed exclusively for the Memorial by Richmond, VA advertising firm Elevation, the visually stunning website utilizes emerging technology to introduce generations to the D-Day story. "We are very excited about the launch of our new website which has a fresh look with plenty of new additions,” said April Cheek-Messier, National D-Day Memorial Foundation President & CEO. “Creating the new website allowed us to not only update our content, but to make it more accessible, efficient, mobile friendly, and much more intuitive for users. With...

May 2nd, 2023

“I have never forgotten those brave soldiers who died so that I could march in safety up that bluff.   That memory is seared into my head to this day.  It became the defining moment of my life’s path and purpose.  It mapped the challenges and opportunities I chose, and still seek, to carry out meaningful service to my country and to humanity.  I hope that my life’s endeavors have thus far adequately fulfilled that promise.”  ~  Ash Rothlein, Normandy Veteran Ash Rothlein lived his promise, giving back in innumerable ways during his remarkable 97 years.  Sadly, Ash passed away on January...

January 28th, 2022

The National D-Day Memorial remembers with fondness and gratitude Bernard L. Marie who passed away Friday, November 5, 2021.  He will be remembered for his devotion through the years to the WWII veterans who helped liberate his native country of France and the creation of an annual dinner to recognize them. “Bernard worked tirelessly to make sure many Normandy veterans received the French Legion of Honor and recognized those veterans annually at his dinner to highlight their stories,” stated April Cheek-Messier, President of the National D-Day Memorial. [caption id="attachment_27513" align="alignleft" width="300"] Bernard L. Marie, right, places a wreath at the Memorial during...

November 8th, 2021