OAKVILLE, Mo. — The Oakville High School band is one of only two bands from the United States headed to Normandy, France, next summer for the 75th anniversary of D-Day, and you can help them kick off their celebration.
The Oakville Tiger Band will participate in four official ceremonies in Normandy to honor the American soldiers who lost their lives in France on June 6, 1944. Band members will march in the D-Day Memorial Parade, perform at the International Salute to Liberation and attend wreath laying ceremonies.
With just a little over one year to go before their big trip, the band is already counting the days to the trip — but they're also counting their money. Each of the 150 band members attending the trip will need about $4,000 to attend, calculating a grand total of $600,000 for the entire group. A GoFundMe page has been set up to help offset the cost.
Friday, the band is performing at the St. Bernadette Church Athletic Fields which overlooks Jefferson Barracks National Cemetery in south St. Louis County.
