Der Gemsenjäger
Frontblatt der 5. Gebirgsjäger division 2. /GJR 100
F.P.Nr.24971c 20 Oktober, 2007
Kameraden,
This summer has been a very good time for our unit. Not only have the events been very good, but we even picked up two new quality recruits Dave S. and Will H. Dave we met at the Brunswick event and was so excited about joining I had his application within three days. I believe we also set a record in outfitting a new recruit; Dave was ready to go the very next event only three weeks later! He fits in with our unit so well it’s as if we’ve known him for years. Welcome aboard Dave!
Will contacted us through the Grossdeutschland reenactment unit out of the East coast U.S. It seems he was looking for a authentic unit to join and the CO of Grossdeutschland recommended our unit to him since Will lives here in Ohio. I’d like to thank Bob L. of G.D. for recommending us. Will is a licensed German teacher and also speaks Polish and Russian. He lived in Europe for seven years and served in the US military. I hope to have Will squared away for the upcoming tactical events in early November. Lets all give Will a Gebirgsjager welcome!
One thing I would like to stress to all unit members is quality over quantity!! Let’s all be sure that anyone wanting to join our unit meets our unit standards and can contribute to our units reputation and not take away from it.
We have also received some bad news about the Akron air show in June. For some unknown reason the people running the air show is no longer allowing any re-enactors to be apart of their show. They want aircraft only. I believe this will be a mistake and I’ll bet their attendance will suffer for it. We received dozens of comments last year about how many people come to the show to see not just the aircraft but also the re-enactor displays. We’ll see!
The fall tacticals are right around the corner starting the first weekend of November so be sure to get your blanks ordered and your cold weather gear ready. Also don’t forget to get those registration forms sent in for Torrance and FIG. Two events you don’t want to miss!
Now I’ll try to catch us up on this summers events.
Brunswick
21 Juli 2007
Brunswick was a new event at the Heritage Farms Museum on Laurel Road just South of Brunswick Oh. First off I would like to thank Johann K. for organizing and making this event happen. And also the Heritage Farm committee for allowing us the use of their property. This turned out to be a very nice event and we had good crowds all day. We put on two public battles and both went off very well for a first time event. It really helps when the units that were in attendance where all quality units. A special mention goes out to the US 90th Infantry with the very realistic manner in which they ended the battle and rounded up the prisoners. It was better then the battle itself.
The Ohio National Guard sponsored this event and I understand it went over bigger than the Heritage Farm committee thought it would, so next year’s event is already in the works and I’m sure it will be bigger than this years. I would like to issue a challenge to the guys in the unit to come up with a workable plan for some fortifications that we could add to this event. I’m open to suggestions. And once again thanks Johann for a great event!
This was also a new public event this year, and what a great time it was. The Depot group really went all out in making this event a success. And their hospitality they put forth for all the re-enactors was second to none. We have never attended an event where the whole town has shown such hospitality. They started things off with a parade to honor the veterans in attendance, which kicked off a two-day festival around the Depot Museum. The Depot Museum is well worth touring also. The Depot has been restored to what it was like during the war years and the museum part is quite extensive, focusing on the home front during the war.
It was an honor for our unit to be the host unit, and we helped out the Depot group makeing sure the re-enactor side of things as well as the battles went smoothly. The battle area is very good for a public battle site with lots of trees and cover. Yet the public has a very good view looking down on the battle site. This site has great potential at becoming one of the best public battle sites we know of. The Depot group provided all the re-enactors a Friday evening cookout and Saturday we had two public battles, which included allied aircraft making bombing runs setting off explosions in the battle area. Our mortar crew was dead on with their rounds taking out large numbers of Allied troops as they advanced on our positions. This area would also be a great place for armor to make a showing; there is a lot of acreage for them to maneuver around and be part of the battle.
Saturday evening was one of those times that will be remembered for years to come. We rode the motorcycles to the festival in uniform and as soon as we stopped a crowd gathered around and wanted pictures and were asking questions. All the re-enactors that went to the festival that night had a great time and were treated like celebrities. Once again I must say that I can’t get over the hospitality that was shown by the whole town to all of us. In closing I would like to see this become a yearly event.
During the war, Taylorcraft field produced the U.S. reconnaissance aircraft for the Army. Now it is an abandoned airstrip in the process of being turned into a ride through history thanks to the Marlboro Volunteers. This may one day be the ultimate place for public viewing of living history. The thing that sets this site apart from all other sites is that we can build permanent emplacements and bunkers, and keep improving and expanding our area. In conjunction with the US 90th Infantry our two units should eventually have the ultimate battle area. For this event some of us and guys from the 90th spent a few days constructing mortar pits and trenches. They turned out so well that we are now planning to expand over a much larger area and even build a couple of bunkers. Our command bunker has already been started. Our first mortar and MG prototype pits with connecting trenches have been constructed and look just awesome! Everyone that has seen our construction is just amazed at the amount of work we have put into this project so far. I must say that this project is the brainchild of Friedrich Schmölzen and he more than anyone has put in the most time and effort. We all owe a big thanks for all his efforts and making this event something special for our two units. I would also like to thank Chris and Squirrley of the 90th for their time and effort.
Another great thing about this site is the Marlboro Volunteers will allow us to use the site anytime we want. Which may really come in handy for training and small tacticals. This site will be a work in progress, so over time Friedrich and I will be organizing work parties every so often to improve the site.
2./GJR 100