CABOURG – French student Marion Nivard starting writing last year to a World War II veteran in Britain, thanking him for taking part in the Normandy invasion that freed her country from the Nazis.
As VE Day approached, Nivard and her classmates in the Normandy region thought of 94-year-old Bill Ridgewell and other vets living in isolation because of the COVID-19 pandemic — just as they were.
The teens decided to swap stories with the men about their lives under lockdown. “I think we need to be with them even if we’re not with them — if that makes sense!’’ said Nivard, 15. “It’s already something to be there in thoughts and sending them messages.