Currahee Military Weekend Gets Underway Today in Toccoa

The 23rd annual Currahee Military Weekend kicks off today in Toccoa.

The weekend, which runs from October 5th through the 8th this year, will be filled with lots of events for history buffs and veterans to enjoy.

Starting things off today is a special documentary film at the historic Ritz Theater called, The Girl Who Wore Freedom, which will be shown today at 2p and again at 7p.

Both screenings will be followed by a question and answer session with the movie’s director and producer, Christian Taylor.

The movie is about a little French girl during the German occupation and liberation as seen through her eyes.

Tickets for the documentary are $10 and can be purchased at the box office before each show. All proceeds benefit the Stephens County Historical Society.

Friday events include Living Historian Encampments downtown, brunch, book signings, and a USO-style Swing Dance.

Saturday’s events include a Veteran’s Parade, downtown battle reenactment, Banquet, and more.

Sunday concludes the weekend with a memorial and tribute to veterans at Camp Toccoa at Currahee.

Other events will also take place during the weekend.

Toccoa’s Currahee Military Weekend began in 2001 as a way to honor World War II veterans from the 506th who trained at Camp Toccoa as the first-ever military paratroopers and who eventually were part of the troops that jumped into Normandy on D-Day.

In all, 17,000 soldiers from the 501st, 506th, 511th, and 517th Parachute Infantry Division (PID) trained at Camp Toccoa in preparation for combat in the  European Theatre of WWII.

Since 2001, Currahee Military Weekend has grown each year with thousands attending from all over the country.

For more information and an itinerary of events, visit the Toccoa-Stephens County Chamber of Commerce Website at https://www.toccoagachamber.com/currahee-military-weekend.