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guns overlooking Normandy beaches.
KEY POINTS
• Commemorates the 75th anniversary of D-Day.
• Previously untold story of heroism on bloody
Omaha Beach.
• Previously unpublished stories about the 2nd
Ranger Battalion from D-Day to the end of WW2.
• No other known contemporaneous record of
Normandy invasion written by a Ranger with Lt.
Kennard’s breadth of perspective.
• None of Kennard’s letters have previously been
published.
D-Day Journal - The THE OPEN BOOK continued
Untold Story of a US
Ranger on Omaha Beach
Anticipating broad interest in the 75th
anniversary of D-day June 6, 2019, Koehler
Books, Virginia Beach, VA publishes a Story
of Sacrifice, Bravery and Strength: D-Day
Journal - The Untold Story of a US Ranger
on Omaha Beach by John V.O. Kennard.
DESCRIPTION
“I wish everyone back in the States could
see an American boy lying cold on the beach of
France, struck down in full stride as he charged
forward . . . I hope the story of what the boys did
is told.”
On the morning of June 6, 1944, twentytwo
year-old Lieutenant Frank L. Kennard
led his Ranger cannon platoon onto Omaha
Beach, losing his equipment and half his men.
Kennard and his seven remaining men went on
to overcome enormous odds to achieve their
objective at Pointe du Hoc. One month later,
Kennard became the battalion adjutant and
served in that role through every battle until the
end of the war.
Lieutenant Kennard’s journal of the
legendary 2nd Ranger Battalion in World War II
is the first record of vivid wartime experiences
written by a Ranger with Kennard’s perspective.
D-Day Journal also includes rare oral histories
of four other members of the 2nd Ranger
Battalion, the first American unit to achieve its
mission on D-Day: to take out the big German
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
John V.O. Kennard is the son of 2nd Ranger
Battalion Lt. Frank L. Kennard. Commissioned
a Lieutenant in the US Army Armor Corps, he
rose to Captain and went to Vietnam in 1970
where he was a Special Security Officer (SSO)
working for five General Officers managing their
backchannel messages also known as “Eyes
Only” messages. Kennard earned two degrees
from the University of Virginia.
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Kennard is retired from Brown-Forman
Corporation where he was Senior Vice
President and global brand director for Jack
Daniel’s Tennessee Whiskey. Kennard has
been Adjunct Assistant Professor at the Owen
School of Business at Vanderbilt University and
Distinguished Executive in Residence at the
McIntire School of Commerce at the University
of Virginia. He has co-authored case studies and
contributed to a leading marketing textbook.
Kennard lives on Amelia Island, FL and in
Southern Pines, NC with his wife, Linda.
ADVANCE PRAISE FOR D-DAY JOURNAL
“It is a great read. You won’t be able to
put it down. Very simply ... it is a terrific
book on one of the most critical moments
in our Country’s history.” ~ C. Roland
(Rollie) Stichweh, West Point graduate; twice
Most Valuable Player in the Army-Navy game;
Decorated Combat Veteran.
“Rare insights into one of the most
famous fighting formations in our history...
the US Army Rangers…we get the candid
views of a combat soldier... The story should
be told and retold lest we forget, thus
causing our children and grandchildren to
re-learn.” ~General Peter J. Schoomaker, USA
Ret. 35th Chief of Staff, United States Army.
“A vivid firsthand account of American
Ranger actions in the invasion of
Normandy, June 6, 1944…a story of battle,
hardship, valor and victory.” ~Col. Robert
W. Black, author "The Battalion,” “The
Ranger Force” and “Rangers in World War II.”
“Just when readers think they have seen
the last of authentic first-hand accounts
about the D-Day assault on Omaha
Beach, along comes a new book based on
previously unpublished letters written by a
soldier who was there.” ~Thomas M. Hatfield,
Ph.D. author “Rudder: From Leader to Legend,”
Texas A&M University 2011. ☐
Available Through Amazon.com,
On Line Retailers & Book Stores
www.ddayjournal.com
SOURCE D-Day Journal
John V.O. Kennard, Author.
By L.S. Crain, Sou.Pines resident 1989-2017.
No. 134 The Pinehurst Gazette, Inc. p.31
/Amazon.com
/www.ddayjournal.com