National D-Day Memorial

Family Day
2026-04-25 10:00 - 15:00 (America/New_York) | National D-Day Memorial, 3 Overlord Circle, Bedford, VA, 24523, United States
Family Day is an exciting, family-friendly event exploring life at home and on the front lines during World War II – featuring children’s activities, living historians, and special tours.
Food available for purchase.

Thank you to our Family Day Sponsor

The Life and Art of Charles M. Schulz Exhibition
2026-05-07 13:00 - 18:00, 2026-05-08 13:00 - 18:00, 2026-05-09 11:00 - 15:00, 2026-05-13 13:00 - 18:00, 2026-05-14 13:00 - 18:00, 2026-05-15 13:00 - 18:00, 2026-05-16 11:00 - 15:00, 2026-05-20 13:00 - 18:00 and 14 more dates | Bower Center for the Arts, 305 N. Bridge Street, Bedford, VA, 24523, United States
Legendary cartoonist Charles M. Schulz’s legacy is one of cultural influence through his beloved Peanuts comic strip and of humble service in World War II. His wartime experience left a lasting impression on him, so much so that he became the Capital Campaign Chair of the National D-Day Memorial Foundation from 1998 until his passing in 2000.
Portrait of Charles M. Schulz in his army Uniform, c. 1945.© SFIPT, courtesy of the Charles M.Schulz Museum, Santa Rosa, CA
“I think any sensible person with a grasp of history would have to admit that D-Day was the most important day of our century. Without D-Day it’s possible that Europe could have remained for another 25 or 50 years in darkness. I’m glad I wasn’t there, and yet my admiration for the people who were knows no bounds.” – Charles M. Schulz, 1999
The National D-Day Memorial is proud to bring The Life and Art of Charles M. Schulz to the Bower Center for the Arts in Bedford, Virginia. The traveling exhibition, curated by the Charles M. Schulz Museum and Research Center in Santa Rosa, California, U.S.A., explores Schulz’s personal history and his role as the sole inspiration and artistic talent behind the most successful comic strip in history.
The exhibition follows Schulz from his Minnesota roots to his life in California and tracks the development of the characters that make up the unique world of Peanuts. Thirty Peanuts comic strips, Schulz quotes, and photographs illuminate the story behind the creation of this most popular and influential cartoon strip. Comic strips by George Herriman (Krazy Kat), Milton Caniff (Terry and the Pirates), and Elzie C. Segar (Thimble Theatre Starring Popeye) shed light on how these prominent cartoonists influenced Schulz as a young artist and reveal the contrast of Schulz’s drawing style to the elaborately illustrated cartoons popular during the early 20th century. Schulz revolutionized the art of the comic strip through his single-handed dedication to the art, wit, and wisdom of Peanuts.
©Peanuts Worldwide LLC

Blue Star Museums
2026-05-16 - 2026-09-07 | National D-Day Memorial, 3 Overlord Circle, Bedford, VA, 24523, United States
The National D-Day Memorial joins museums nationwide in the Blue Star Museums initiative, a program that provides free admission to currently-serving U.S. military personnel and their families. The 2024 season runs Armed Forces Day, Saturday, May 16, 2026 to Labor Day, Monday, September 7, 2026. The Memorial is open daily, 10AM-5PM.
The free admission program is available for those currently serving in the United States Military—Air Force, Army, Coast Guard, Marine Corps, Navy, and Space Force, members of the Reserves, National Guard, U.S. Public Health Commissioned Corps, NOAA Commissioned Corps, and up to five family members.
Qualified members will show their military or dependent identification card (see our Frequently Asked Questions for links to those forms of identification) for entrance into a participating Blue Star Museum.
Blue Star Museums is a partnership between the National Endowment for the Arts and Blue Star Families, in collaboration with the Department of Defense and participating museums across America.

Armed Forces Day Parade
2026-05-16 11:00 - 12:00 | Town of Bedford, VA
In observance of Armed Forces Day, a military parade through downtown Bedford will honor the U.S. Armed Forces’ 250 years of securing and protecting our freedoms.

National Maritime Day
2026-05-22 10:00 - 17:00 | National D-Day Memorial, 3 Overlord Circle, Bedford, VA, 24523, United States
U.S. Merchant Marine veterans receive complimentary admission to the Memorial. (Admission is always free for Active-duty service members.)

HONORING THE FALLEN: MEMORIAL DAY OBSERVANCE 2026
2026-05-25 11:00 - 13:00 | National D-Day Memorial, 3 Overlord Circle, Bedford, VA, 24523, United States
Our annual Memorial Day ceremony pays tribute to the fallen men and women who gave their lives in service to our Nation.

Free admission until noon. Guided tours begin at 1PM. Please bring your own chair. No food in plaza. No pets (service animals welcome).
Thank you to our Memorial Day 2026 commemoration sponsors.

When We Went In: The D-Day Experience in Light and Sound
2026-06-05 19:30 - 21:30, 2026-06-06 19:30 - 21:30 | National D-Day Memorial, 3 Overlord Circle, Bedford, VA, 24523, United States
It’s the immersive experience everyone is still talking about and asking to see again!
When We Went In, the National D-Day Memorial’s exclusive, nighttime masterpiece is back by popular demand with a new prelude to honor America’s 250th anniversary!
Created for the National D-Day Memorial by the Institute for Creativity, Arts, and Technology at Virginia Tech – When We Went In is an immersive nighttime presentation that transforms the Memorial’s grounds into a stunning, multi-media sensory experience. Using the Memorial itself as the dramatic backdrop for the narrative, this outdoor show retells the story of the Normandy invasion through first-hand accounts of the men and women who lived through June 6, 1944, with authentic film footage, archival photographs, and wartime illustrations. The soundscape – from the roar of aircraft and gunfire to moments of solemn silence – delivered in surround-sound makes viewers feel as if they are in the throes of the historical moment and the triumph of eventual victory. The combined light-and-sound storytelling approach creates a vivid re-enactment of D-Day’s pivotal events, aiming to educate and emotionally engage the audience with the experiences of those who were there.
The show’s title comes from the first line of “Omaha Beach,” a poem by World War II veteran Peter Thomas. Thomas’s poetic account of landing at Omaha Beach acts as a thread connecting the entire narrative experience. Throughout the presentation, the words of participants – drawn from letters, oral histories, and diaries – give voice to the soldiers, sailors, airmen, and nurses of D-Day. Grounded in these true stories and memories, rather than fictional dramatization, When We Went In is as close as it gets to having lived D-Day.
When We Went In exceeded attendance estimates during its first run in June 2024, as part of the Memorial’s 80th anniversary of D-Day commemoration events. The intimate, shared experience connected with a modern audience while conveying the hope and fear that young participants felt on D-Day.
Crowd Favorite Letters From Home to Open Show Each Night
Erinn Dearth and Dan Beckmann are Letters From Home
The Memorial is proud to welcome back Letters From Home. Featuring high-energy singing and tap-dancing performances by ​founder Erinn Dearth and self-proclaimed “tall guy” Dan Beckmann, Letters From Home infuses the classic style of war-time music with a witty, modern edge. Funny and heartfelt, harmonic and uplifting, Letters From Home has performed more than 1,000 shows across the world including singing at the 75th anniversary of D-Day commemoration in Normandy, entertaining Battle of the Bulge veterans in Belgium, a 50-states tour in 2023, and at the National D-Day Memorial during the 80th anniversary of D-Day events in 2024.

Tickets required for this event. Ticket link coming soon.
Thank you to our When We Went In sponsors.

Remembering Their Valor, Fidelity, and Sacrifice: The 82nd Anniversary of the Allied Landing in Normandy
2026-06-06 11:00 - 12:00 | National D-Day Memorial, 3 Overlord Circle, Bedford, VA, 24523, United States
The 82nd anniversary of the Allied landing at Normandy and the 25th anniversary of the National D-Day Memorial will be marked with a special ceremony.
Drew Dix, Medal of Honor Recipient
Keynote Speaker
Drew Dix joined the U.S. Army in 1962 in Pueblo, Colorado at the age of seventeen. He was assigned to the 82d Airborne Division where he was deployed to the Dominican Republic for his first combat tour. He remained with the 82d until he met the age requirements for the U.S. Army Special Forces. Following graduation from the operations & intelligence course, Dix attended Spanish language and High-Altitude parachute training courses before being deployed to the Republic of Vietnam, where he was assigned to a highly classified project with the mission of eliminating enemy infrastructure. Assigned as a lone American, he led multiethnic mercenaries on missions throughout the region. After receiving a direct commission, Dix was assigned back to Vietnam as a Company Commander of A co, 2/502,101st Airborne Division. In addition to the 82d, and the 101st, Drew was assigned to the 5th & 6th Special Forces Groups, aide to the CG of the JFK Special Warfare Center, and aide to the CG XVIII Airborne Corps. As a Special Forces Sergeant, during his first tour Dix became the first enlisted man in the U.S. Army Special Forces to receive the Medal of Honor.
Citation

SSgt Drew Dix receives Medal of Honor from President Lyndon B. Johnson, 1969
For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity in action at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty. S/Sgt. Dix distinguished himself by exceptional heroism while serving as a unit adviser. Two heavily armed Viet Cong battalions attacked the Province capital city of Chau Phu resulting in the complete breakdown and fragmentation of the defenses of the city. S/Sgt. Dix, with a patrol of Vietnamese soldiers, was recalled to assist in the defense of Chau Phu. Learning that a nurse was trapped in a house near the center of the city, S/Sgt. Dix organized a relief force, successfully rescued the nurse, and returned her to the safety of the Tactical Operations Center. Being informed of other trapped civilians within the city, S/Sgt. Dix voluntarily led another force to rescue 8 civilian employees located in a building which was under heavy mortar and small-arms fire. S/Sgt. Dix then returned to the center of the city. Upon approaching a building, he was subjected to intense automatic rifle and machine gun fire from an unknown number of Viet Cong. He personally assaulted the building, killing 6 Viet Cong, and rescuing 2 Filipinos. The following day S/Sgt. Dix, still on his own volition, assembled a 20-man force and though under intense enemy fire cleared the Viet Cong out of the hotel, theater, and other adjacent buildings within the city. During this portion of the attack, Army Republic of Vietnam soldiers inspired by the heroism and success of S/Sgt. Dix, rallied and commenced firing upon the Viet Cong. S/Sgt. Dix captured 20 prisoners, including a high ranking Viet Cong official. He then attacked enemy troops who had entered the residence of the Deputy Province Chief and was successful in rescuing the official’s wife and children. S/Sgt. Dix’s personal heroic actions resulted in 14 confirmed Viet Cong killed in action and possibly 25 more, the capture of 20 prisoners, 15 weapons, and the rescue of the 14 United States and free world civilians. The heroism of S/Sgt. Dix was in the highest tradition and reflects great credit upon the U.S. Army.

Dix was instrumental in establishing the Joint Special Operations Support Element (JSOSE) at MacDill AFB in Tampa, FL., and was assigned to the 4th BN, 9th INF at Ft Wainwright, Alaska. Following the attacks of September 11, Dix was asked by the Governor of Alaska to advise him on the strategies that should be used to protect the oil infrastructure in Alaska. He served as Alaska’s first Director of Homeland Security. Dix retired from the State of Alaska as a Deputy Commissioner within the Department of military and Veterans affairs. His early beginning in special operations paved the way for Dix to work in numerous anti- terrorist assignments following his twenty years of service in the U.S. Army. While living in Alaska he worked on a classified contract from 1985 to 1995, with the mission to establish Ice Stations on the Arctic Ocean to track Soviet submarines. Dix also served in the Middle East and Central America. While in Alaska, he owned and operated an air service and flew throughout the northern regions of the state.
He is the C0-Founder of the “Center for American Values” an educational nonprofit in Pueblo, Colorado where he served as the Board Chairman until being elected as President of the Congressional Medal of Honor Society. He is on the board of The Center for American Values. He founded REMUDA, LLC which specializes in providing training to active military and other government entities, speaking to those deploying and/or returning from deployment. He now lives with his wife Patricia on their ranch in Westcliffe, CO.
Free admission until noon. Please bring your own chair. No food in plaza. No pets (service animals welcome).
Thank you to our 82nd Anniversary of D-Day commemoration sponsors.
