The Sandbox Wars - Lest We Forget

Lest We Forget of Southwest Michigan is planning its annual reenactment weekend scheduled for June 21 - 22, 2025. Previous themes have included WWII, Korea, Vietnam, The U.S. Navy, Women in Service, The Cold War, and in 2024 the 80th Anniversary of the D-Day and Saipan Battles. This year Lest We Forget will highlight the United States involvement in the Gulf, Afghanistan, and Iraq conflicts, sometimes called The Sandbox Wars.

In anticipation of this event, the public is invited to attend six Tuesday evening sessions at Lake Michigan College, Benton Harbor Campus, Room D-112, to hear from local veterans who served there. The sessions begin on April 15, 2025.

April 15, 7:00 - 9:00 P.M. SMSgt Scherwitz Desert Storm

April 22, 7:00 - 9:00 P.M. Capt Alsbro Desert Storm

During Operation Desert Storm, which ran from August 2, 1990, to July 31, 1991, approximately 697,000 U.S. service members participated, with the conflict formally ending on February 28, 1991. 299 lost their lives. 

April 29, 7:00 - 9:00 P.M. SSgt McGowan & SFC Jones Iraqi Freedom More than 1.5 million Soldiers, Sailors, and Marines deployed to Iraq between March 20, 2003, and December 18, 2011. Over 32,000 U.S. service members were wounded in action in Iraq and 4,486 made the ultimate sacrifice.

May 6, 7:00 - 9:00 P.M. Col Sawyer Afghanistan

May 13, 7:00 - 9:00 P.M. 1st Sgt Mayer & Lt Col Russell Afghanistan

May 20, 7:00 - 9:00 P.M. SCPO Briseno & Lt Col Deal Afghanistan

Approximately 800,000 American military personnel served in Afghanistan during the 20-year war. Between October 7, 2001, and August 30, 2021, a total of 2,459 U.S. military personnel died in Afghanistan. Over 1.9 million deployed in total including Operation Enduring Freedom and Operation Iraqi Freedom and many have faced significant challenges and costs, both physically and emotionally.