Academic Travel Opportunity- "The Price of Freedom: Normandy, 1944"

This post and  photo were provided by Samantha Lewis, a Peer Advisor and junior in CCAS, studying political science and communication. 
Over Spring Break of last year, I stood in the Normandy American Cemetery and Memorial and gave a eulogy for my fallen soldier. I was telling my classmates how Julian “Rex” Buzzett had a history, a family, and a life outside of serving his country. I was recounting the letter he had written home to his family on the night of the invasion, the same letter that his family had sent me a copy of, when I broke down into tears.
If you had asked me whether I thought I’d end up taking an upper level history class at GWU when I came here, I probably would have laughed at you. I’m not a history major– memorizing dates, times, and proper nouns is not my forte. But I found myself interviewing with Dr. Tom Long when I heard about the Price of Freedom in Normandy class. The email had said students would find a soldier from their hometown who died on D-Day to research, and after learning about the war from a bottom-up perspective, we’d trace the Normandy campaign over break.
After visiting Utah, Omaha, Juno, Sword, and Gold beach, I could picture what the invasion might have looked like.  After visiting countless battle sites, various churches, and small towns, I had a better understanding of what happened in the Normandy Invasion than even some history majors. Most importantly, after seeing the expanse of the Normandy American Cemetery, I understood that the price of freedom is never cheap.
The Normandy class is happening again this Spring, and I feel as though I have a responsibility to let people know about it. I almost didn’t end up signing up for the class because I “didn’t do” history, so this is my shout out to everyone saying “THAT’S OKAY”! There are a few info sessions this Tuesday (Sep. 29 1-3pm and 6-8pm in Phillips 329) that I strongly encourage honors students to attend. If you’ve been in the Townhouse recently, I’m sure you’ve heard me obsessing over this class. I promise it’s for good reason, so if you don’t believe me, check it out yourself. And if you have any questions, I’d love to answer them for you.
I recently have been emailing my soldier’s family, including my soldier’s brother who also fought in the war, to make edits to my paper about Rex. By this time next year, it will be sitting in the cemetery’s archives. And that’s amazing because I am not a history major, and I never will be. But after a semester in one of the most academically and emotionally rewarding classes, I can say that there’s more to history than just the battles and commanders. Soldiers fought and soldiers died, and they deserve to be honored.