Beverly Warrior Weekend Brings U.S. Military History Into Proper Focus

BEVERLY, MA — As military history comes alive in Beverly in May for the second annual Warrior Weekend, Mel Bloom is looking to make sure the thousands who come to check out the artifacts, artillery, reenactments, displays, and other entertaining programs understand the full history of the often-overlooked roles of women in defending freedom across the globe.

"It's a big surprise for a lot of people when they come to an event like this and see a dedicated women's display," Bloom, a U.S. Air Force veteran and executive director of the 3-5-0 Girls, dedicated to highlighting the role of women warfighters in World War II, told Patch. "It's not commonly done, which is why we launched the group we did. We'll go to events and it's usually a lot of men both at the recruiting tables and with the reenactors. I'm often the sole woman around representing women in the military.

"The history of the U.S. military is not just a men's history. It's not just a men's world. We belong in that history."

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The 3-5-0 Girls and The Baker Company World War II reenactors, who focus on the U.S. Marines of the Pacific theater during the war, will be among several groups representing different eras of military action across history on May 18 and May 19 in the second annual event at Beverly High School.

"It's a whole timeline of history and a very personal event for me since I am a veteran," Bloom said. "This is a really great opportunity for people to come out and engage with a veteran and pay tribute.

"Looking across the field, you will see veterans and reenactors representing the Revolutionary War all the way to Korea. That will give you chills to see every generation represented."

Richard Tucker, a U.S. Marine veteran and commanding officer at The Baker Group, called Warrior Weekend "a bridge between every generation" of military service. As is the case with Bloom and the 350,000 women who served during World War II, Tucker said his goal at these types of events is to showcase a part of the war that is occasionally lost in history — perhaps especially in New England and on the East Coast where much of WWII culture centers around the European theater.

"With 'Band of Brothers' and 'Saving Private Ryan' what happened in Europe is a lot more visible than the Pacific theater these days," he told Patch. "Most people don't know that there was just as much, if not more, brutal fighting that went on on (the Pacific) islands as there was in Europe.

"At the end of the day, it's about honoring the entire WWII era, and it's about honoring the veterans that are with us today."

Bloom said the 3-5-0 Girls will work with The Baker Company to show how U.S. servicewomen worked on the Jeeps in Hawaii that Marines used in battle across the region.

"Women weren't just in an office somewhere banging around on a typewriter," she said. "It will be a much more complete picture of how women were involved in World War II."

Tucker said that while The Baker Group will perform battle reenactments, the group is evolving to include more interactive programs to give those in attendance a hands-on sense of the experience of a Marine at war in the 1940s.

"We want to engage more," he said. "The 21st century is much more of the 'I want to be involved' generation as opposed to 'tell me about it.' They want to do stuff. They want to wear the helmets. They want the photographs and all the Instagram stuff."

Warrior Weekend will also include tables that help veterans learn more about the support resources they've earned through their service and how to access them, as well as activities that teach younger attendees about the sacrifices those veterans made for their country and the generations to follow.

"We're connecting those dots and bringing that history forward," Bloom said.

(Scott Souza is a Patch field editor covering Beverly, Danvers, Marblehead, Peabody, Salem and Swampscott. He can be reached at Scott.Souza@Patch.com. Twitter: @Scott_Souza.)