Memorial Day Visit of the Sorensen Family

sorensen family visit picture

During Memorial Day weekend 2014, seventeen members of Gerald E. Sorensen's family visited Belgium. The day before Sorensen’s ceremony, the family attended the Memorial Day ceremony at the Flanders Field American Cemetery, where they had the opportunity to meet the then Supreme Allied Commander Europe General Philip M. Breedlove. On the day of the ceremony, the Chargé d'Affairs (acting Ambassador) of the US Embassy in Belgium welcomed them at the ambassador's residence in the morning. They then traveled to the cemetery at Ganshoren for the ceremony for Gerald Sorensen and Roger Abeels. Evelyn (Sorensen) Whyte gave a moving tribute at the ceremony that will never be forgotten. (Evelyn was a childhood of Gerald Sorensen, and the maid of honor at his wedding.) Following the ceremony, the City of Ganshoren hosted a reception in honor of the family. On Tuesday, the family took a tour of the places where Sorensen fought as a member of the Secret Army. This tour ended at the location of his death, where the members of the Secret Army who served with Sorensen conducted a ceremony in his honor. Along the way, they met a member of the Lepoivre family who had sheltered Sorensen from the Nazis for a few days immediately after he had been shot down. We are looking forward to welcoming more members of Gerald Sorensen’s family on future visits to Belgium!