Congressman Bill Johnson, R-6th, visits the gravesite of an Ohioian who lost his life on the shores of Omaha Beach during the D-Day invasion in 1944. (Office of U.S. Rep. Bill Johnson) 

OMAHA BEACH, FRANCE (WJER) - A local congressman has been getting to take in the emotions of honoring D-Day from the actual grounds where so many service members lost their lives.

Sixth District Representative Bill Johnson is part of a Congressional delegation that attended the ceremony at Omaha Beach in northern France for the 75th anniversary of the invasion at Normandy. Johnson says this is an experience he’ll never forget.

"It makes the hair stand up on the back of your neck when you realize that over 9,000 American troops are buried here just off of Omaha Beach where the stands,” he says.  

Johnson says in addition to visiting the cemetery and memorial, he is heading to some of the D-Day museums there. He’s also witnessing a paratrooper demonstration that’ll show what the invasion might have looked like from the ground. 

“We’re getting a good taste of what our troops actually faced when they were here in 1944,” he says.

Johnson believes his military involvement could be why he was invited to go along. He is a 27-year air force veteran.   

WJER RADIO