CAZENOVIA— Frank T. Stritter, Ph.D., of the Cazenovia American Legion Post 88, will present his annual military history lecture at the Cazenovia Public Library on Tuesday, Sept. 17 at 7 p.m. in the Betsy Kennedy Community Room.
His presentation, titled “D-Day was 6 June 1944,” will explore the Allied invasion of Normandy, France during World War II.
“2024 marks the 80th year since American, British, and Canadian forces landed at Normandy, France in the largest recorded invasion in history,” said Stritter. “D-Day, or its codename Operation Overlord, marked the beginning of the end for Nazi Germany and Hitler’s Third Reich.”
During his talk, Stritter will briefly review the invasion and its results.
He will also “interview” 10 people who participated in the invasion in different ways.
“I have organized [my presentation] so that I simulate a walk down the various assault beaches — Omaha, Utah, Sword — and talk to [the individuals] I meet, each of whom has a completely different role,” Stritter said. “I ask them to describe what they are doing and have quotes from as many as possible in return.”
Stritter added that he aims to depict the horrors of the invasion as well as its critical role in the eventual defeat of Nazi Germany.
The program is free and open to the public.
Stritter is a Cazenovia native and a professor emeritus at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. He retired in 2003 after 32 years.
He holds an undergraduate degree from St. Lawrence University, a master’s from Colgate University, and a doctorate in education from Syracuse University.
Stritter served in the United States Army active reserve from 1959 to 1961 and from 1963 to 1968. He served on active duty in the US Army, US Seventh Army in Germany from 1961 to 1963. He separated from the active reserve as a captain.
Today, Stritter is an active member of the Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 8866 in North Carolina, where he lives for part of the year, and the American Legion Post 88 in Cazenovia.
“In North Carolina, I generally organize and am master of ceremonies of the Veterans Day program every Nov. 11,” he said. “I also organize a Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day program every Dec. 7 and a Vietnam Welcome Home Day on March 29. In Cazenovia, I was the master of ceremonies for the Memorial Day program in Memorial Park on May 27. [These] are a few of the things that I do to try [to] help veterans and their important days be recognized. I believe that [their service] to our nation is important to recognize.”
Stritter became an amateur military historian after retiring from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
He delivered his first presentation on the controversial figure General George Armstrong Custer and then gradually developed a library of other lecture topics.
He now presents to audiences ranging from veterans’ organizations and history discussion groups to senior organizations and high school students.
Cazenovia American Legion Post 88 has sponsored his military history presentations at the Cazenovia Public Library since 2017.
For more information on Stritter’s upcoming presentation, visit cazenoviapubliclibrary.org or call 315-655-9322.
