{"id":5241,"date":"2023-05-23T18:00:31","date_gmt":"2023-05-23T18:00:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.pbs.org\/national-memorial-day-concert\/?page_id=5241"},"modified":"2025-05-21T18:15:53","modified_gmt":"2025-05-21T18:15:53","slug":"d-day-the-75th-anniversary","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.pbs.org\/national-memorial-day-concert\/concert\/featured-stories\/d-day-the-75th-anniversary\/","title":{"rendered":"Ray Lambert&#8217;s Story"},"content":{"rendered":"\n\n<div  class=\" wp-block-pbs-blocks-row no-image\">\n\n            \n    <div class=\"wp-block-pbs-blocks-col no-image has-parallax has-aspect-ratio\" >\n        <div class=\"content\">\n\n                            \n<div class=\"wp-block-pbs-blocks-media-card has-video\" >\n        \n                    <div class=\"responsive_embed\">\n                <div class=\"responsive_embed_inner\">\n                                        <iframe id=\"video_1222\"\n                    width=\"100%\"\n                    allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture\" allowfullscreen\n                            frameborder=\"0\"\n                            src=\"https:\/\/player.pbs.org\/partnerplayer\/YwhXlDwUqVhPHmWbf6YjfQ==\/?start=0&amp;end=0&amp;topbar=false&amp;autoplay=false&amp;endscreen=true\">\n                    <\/iframe>\n                <\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                \n        <\/div>\n                    <\/div>\n    <\/div>\n\n\n\n    <div class=\"wp-block-pbs-blocks-col no-image has-aspect-ratio has-blue-background-color\" style=\"background-color:#1c2838;\">\n        <div class=\"content\">\n\n                            \n<div class=\"wp-block-pbs-blocks-content has-pdt-60 has-pdb-60 has-pdl-60 has-pdr-60\">\n    <div class=\"content\">\n                \n\n<h1 class=\"has-gold-color has-text-color has-text-align-center wp-block-heading\">WWII: D-Day<\/h1>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center\">RAY LAMBERT&#8217;S STORY<\/p>\n\n            <\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n                    <\/div>\n    <\/div>\n\n\n    <\/div>\n\n\n\n\n<div style=\"background-color:#e1e7ec;\" class=\" wp-block-pbs-blocks-row no-image has-light-gray-background-color\">\n\n            \n    <div class=\"wp-block-pbs-blocks-col no-image\" >\n        <div class=\"content\">\n\n                            \n<div class=\"wp-block-pbs-blocks-content has-pdt-60 has-pdb-60 has-pdl-60 has-pdr-60\">\n    <div class=\"content\">\n                \n\n<p class=\"has-text-color has-light-gray-color\">&#8211;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In the early hours of June 6, 1944, Allied forces launched the greatest combination of sea, land and air power in history as they headed for Normandy. Overhead, twelve hundred planes launched an airborne assault, preparing five thousand ships to land on the beaches. It was an all-or-nothing mission. Among those in the first wave to land on that infamous beach was SGT Ray Lambert. As a medic in the 1st Infantry Division, SGT Lambert participated in some of the fiercest battles of World War II, and he had already been awarded two Silver Stars for bravery and three Purple Hearts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-color has-light-gray-color\">&#8211;<\/p>\n\n            <\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n                    <\/div>\n    <\/div>\n\n\n\n    <div class=\"wp-block-pbs-blocks-col has-image has-background-size-small has-background-top-center-position\" style=\"background-image:url('https:\/\/www.pbs.org\/national-memorial-day-concert\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/Ray-Lambert-sepia-sm.jpg');\">\n        <div class=\"content\">\n\n                            \n<div class=\"wp-block-pbs-blocks-content\">\n    <div class=\"content\">\n                \n\n<p style=\"font-size:1px\">.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p style=\"font-size:1px\">.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p style=\"font-size:1px\">.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p style=\"font-size:1px\">.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p style=\"font-size:1px\">.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p style=\"font-size:1px\">.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p style=\"font-size:1px\">.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p style=\"font-size:1px\">.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p style=\"font-size:1px\">.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p style=\"font-size:1px\">.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p style=\"font-size:1px\">.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p style=\"font-size:1px\">.<\/p>\n\n            <\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n                    <\/div>\n    <\/div>\n\n\n    <\/div>\n\n\n\n\n<div  class=\" wp-block-pbs-blocks-row no-image\">\n\n            \n    <div class=\"wp-block-pbs-blocks-col no-image has-parallax has-aspect-ratio\" >\n        <div class=\"content\">\n\n                            \n<div class=\"wp-block-pbs-blocks-media-card has-video\" >\n        \n                    <div class=\"responsive_embed\">\n                <div class=\"responsive_embed_inner\">\n                                        <iframe id=\"video_5251\"\n                    width=\"100%\"\n                    allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture\" allowfullscreen\n                            frameborder=\"0\"\n                            src=\"https:\/\/player.pbs.org\/partnerplayer\/HzXi-OxR7ERk4WorY8_X1Q==\/?start=0&amp;end=0&amp;topbar=false&amp;autoplay=false&amp;muted=false&amp;endscreen=true\">\n                    <\/iframe>\n                <\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                \n        <\/div>\n                    <\/div>\n    <\/div>\n\n\n\n    <div class=\"wp-block-pbs-blocks-col no-image has-aspect-ratio has-blue-background-color\" style=\"background-color:#1c2838;\">\n        <div class=\"content\">\n\n                            \n<div class=\"wp-block-pbs-blocks-content has-pdt-60 has-pdb-60 has-pdl-60 has-pdr-60\">\n    <div class=\"content\">\n                \n\n<h4 class=\"has-gold-color has-text-color has-text-align-center wp-block-heading\">THE NATIONAL SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA PERFORMS &#8220;HONOR&#8221;<\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center\">In Tribute to Ray Lambert and all D-Day Veterans<\/p>\n\n            <\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n                    <\/div>\n    <\/div>\n\n\n    <\/div>\n\n\n\n\n<div style=\"background-color:#a4c8ec;\" class=\" wp-block-pbs-blocks-row no-image has-light-blue-background-color\">\n\n            \n    <div class=\"wp-block-pbs-blocks-col no-image\" >\n        <div class=\"content\">\n\n                            \n<div class=\"wp-block-pbs-blocks-content has-pdt-60 has-pdb-60 has-pdl-60 has-pdr-60\">\n    <div class=\"content\">\n                \n\n<h2 class=\"has-text-align-center wp-block-heading\">RAY LAMBERT&#8217;S STORY<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center has-large-font-size\">Performed by Sam Elliott<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center\"><em>2019 National Memorial Day Concert<br>underscore music from the National Symphony Orchestra<\/em><\/p>\n\n            <\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n                    <\/div>\n    <\/div>\n\n\n    <\/div>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-pbs-blocks-media-card has-video\" >\n        \n                    <div class=\"responsive_embed\">\n                <div class=\"responsive_embed_inner\">\n                                        <iframe id=\"video_307\"\n                    width=\"100%\"\n                    allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture\" allowfullscreen\n                            frameborder=\"0\"\n                            src=\"https:\/\/player.pbs.org\/partnerplayer\/k0M4NxpHrvDGpYjf95JJyw==\/?start=0&amp;end=0&amp;topbar=false&amp;autoplay=false&amp;muted=false&amp;endscreen=true\">\n                    <\/iframe>\n                <\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                \n        <\/div>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"background-color:#1c2838;\" class=\" wp-block-pbs-blocks-row no-image has-blue-background-color\">\n\n            \n    <div class=\"wp-block-pbs-blocks-col no-image\" >\n        <div class=\"content\">\n\n                            \n<div class=\"wp-block-pbs-blocks-content has-pdt-60 has-pdb-60 has-pdl-60 has-pdr-60\">\n    <div class=\"content\">\n                \n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center has-huge-font-size\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.pbs.org\/national-memorial-day-concert\/concert\/past-stories\/\">Return to Past Stories<\/a><\/p>\n\n            <\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n                    <\/div>\n    <\/div>\n\n\n    <\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":0,"parent":6174,"menu_order":103,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-5241","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v25.7 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Ray Lambert&#039;s Story - National Memorial Day Concert - PBS<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"The country was embarking on the Vietnam War. 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