Update on Bud’s Return

UPDATE ON BUD’S RETURN TO HIS BATTLEFIELDS:

It’s time to write an update on our project. COVID-19 has caused us all to pause and reset, and our film with Bud has been no exception. As you may have guessed, due to travel restrictions and general concern for safety, we are not able to bring Bud to Europe at this time. We are crossing fingers that we will resume our original plan in the Spring.

Below is a summary of what we have been doing behind the scenes these last months. It’s a bit lengthy, because we have been busy!

- The most notable moments of our work have been Zoom video calls between Bud and the family members of the two men KIA in the fierce firefight at Schweighausen:

- Lanny lost her father PFC Barney Parrish just a few months before she was born. PFC Parrish was Bud’s assistant truck driver, and he was able to provide Lanny with some personal insights into her father. 

- The Cruse family lost PFC Wayne Cruse in the same battle. PFC Cruse is the soldier Bud speaks of in our film trailer. Bud was able to bring peace and closure to his family, who still honor PFC Cruse’s memory. 

- We are contacting all the family members of the men in Bud’s platoon and company. The response has been nothing short of amazing, and we have been blessed with enthusiastic family members who are willing to share the stories of their loved ones.

- Through this effort, we have received generous access to family wartime archives - a priceless contribution to piecing together the company history, one personal story at a time. Drawing on these archives, we are able to share new photographs and information with many families - it is very exciting and rewarding work.

- Bud’s story inspired Ronan Finnegan, an 11 year old from New Jersey. They spent time together on Zoom, and Ronan asked Bud questions about his wartime experience. It was heartwarming to participate in the generous response and education that Bud offered to this avid historian in the making.

- We have been working to discover the identities of Germans who were key figures in the company’s encounters.

- Last but most certainly not least, we are in the process of securing the prestigious French Legion of Honor medal for Bud. 

As a team we remain devoted to our passion for history, the honoring of our heroes, and the preservation of their legacies for all of time.

We hold great hopes that we will resume with Bud’s journey back to his battlefields in the Spring.