Personal Letter From André Rieu To Dutch Veterans

PERSONAL LETTER FROM ANDRÉ RIEU TO THE DUTCH VETERANS

André Rieu and the Royal Army invite veterans of all military forces to attend the traditional concert he gives on the Vrijthof in Maastricht on Dutch Veterans’ Day, 29 June at 21:00. In this personal letter, André Rieu explains why he is giving a concert specially for veterans. 

"For as long as I can remember, veterans have played a role in my life. As a post-war child I heard the stories from my parents, many about the war but even more about the liberation. 

 My wife Marjorie, whom I’ve known for 50 years, was also born just after the war and grew up with stories about the occupation and liberation. Her Jewish father, grand parents and family had to go into hiding, and her mother (my mother-in-law) worked for the resistance movement. Since her earliest childhood she also experienced the great gratitude that her parents felt towards the liberators. 

Veterans had a special place in the family; both in hers as well as ours. They were always spoken about with great respect and the annual commemorative days were consciously honored. 

Fortunately, we were also able to pass that feeling of gratitude on to our own children. We often visited the cemeteries at Margraten and Henri Chapelle with them and that stirred their interest. They too are well aware what war and liberation have meant for their families. Our youngest son, Pierre, in particular, spends much of his time maintaining the memory because he feels that we should never forget what the veterans have done for us. He collects vehicles of the Allied Forces and other military artifacts from the Second World War, and would like to establish a "WW2 experience center" somewhere in the future. Of course, I whole heartedly support these plans. 

I am very pleased to have the opportunity this year on the Vrijthof to do something in return for all those people who have put their lives on the line to free others".

André Rieu

Thank you to Ineke for sending this and Entia for Translating it.

►Click HERE For a Nice Article With André and Pierre With Veterans Awhile Back