Camp Toccoa at Currahee was an important training site during World War II. More than 17,000 paratroopers — then a new type of soldier — spent time at the camp and learned the skills they would use overseas.
Now, a group of veterans and civilians are trying to restore Camp Toccoa at Currahee by holding several fundraisers.
The first is a banquet set for Friday, June 3, and will feature guest speaker retired Col. Ben Malcom, a native of Monroe.
A North Georgia College Distinguished Military Graduate, Malcom was sent to Korea in 1952 and selected to work with a top secret unit conducting combat operations with North Korean partisans more than 125 miles behind enemy lines. By the time the war ended, Malcom and a handful of advisors had recruited and trained more than 22,000 partisans who operated behind enemy lines in various covert activities.
Patrick Hall, who is a board member for the Camp Toccoa at Currahee project, said Malcom’s story is fascinating and was classified until 1990.
“He has a great presentation about things that went on in North Korea,” Hall said. “It’s a little bit of a James Bond-type deal. They were having to rob banks and were working very closely with the CIA to disrupt the economy of North Korea back then and train partisans to fight the North Korea Regime that was in place at that time.”
The banquet begins at 6 p.m. at 160 N. Alexander St. in Toccoa. It features a silent auction, cash bar and music by David Fry.
Tickets are $50 per person and available at the Currahee Museum or from Camp Toccoa at Currahee Board Members.
Call 706-282-5055 for more information.
On day after the banquet, the fifth annual D-Day 10K Run and Memorial Walk will be held.
The Memorial Run and Walk honors the soldiers who trained at Camp Toccoa and all veterans who jumped into Normandy on June 6, 1944.
The run and walk will take participants in the footsteps of the soldiers who trained on Currahee Mountain during WWII. It begins at 8 a.m. Saturday, June 4, with check in starting at 7 a.m.
Cost is $35 and race-day registrations will be accepted.
Proceeds from both events will be used for the Camp Toccoa at Currahee Project to preserve the Legacy of Leadership exemplified by the men who trained there.
For more information and race entry form visit www.camptoccoaatcurrahee.com/events.html.