Families from France, US reunite in Veterans Day story 80 years in the making

SALT LAKE CITY — A Veterans Day story more than 80 years in the making brought together two families separated by thousands of miles, but forever connected by a courageous act during World War II.

The journey took Richard Moseley of Kearns, Utah, across the Atlantic to England and France, retracing the footsteps of his father, 2nd Lt. Lonnie Moseley, a Utah WWII fighter pilot whose life was saved by a brave French farmer after his plane crashed behind enemy lines in 1944.

The trip began in Duxford, England, home to the Imperial War Museum and the former base of the 84th Fighter Squadron, where Lonnie Moseley was stationed during the war.

"It's like walking on holy ground," Richard Moseley said with emotion.

It was there that Lonnie lived, slept and flew combat missions as a P-47 fighter pilot.

Senior Museum curator Adrian Kerrison described the story as one of "survival, resilience and belief."

It was July 4, 1944, just one month after Allied forces stormed the beaches of Normandy on D-Day.

Flying a mission over France, Lonnie Moseley's P-47 came under heavy anti-aircraft fire and crashed in the French countryside.

Wounded and stranded behind enemy lines in German-occupied France, the young American pilot awakened to see a French farmer standing over him.

That farmer was Lucien Lestang.

In an extraordinary act of courage, Lestang hid Lonnie in a barn, created false identity papers, and told German soldiers the American pilot was a deaf mute working on the farm.

The risk was enormous.

"The farmer now risked his entire family and even the village could have been executed for harboring an American," Richard Moseley explained. "The Lestangs risked all to save my father ... If he had not done this, we would not be here."

Eighty-two years later, Richard Moseley traveled to France to meet Lucien Lestang's descendants.

Waiting for him was Didier Lestang, Lucien's 66-year-old grandson.

Inside the family's home were reminders of the remarkable connection between the two families.

Photographs of Lonnie. Stories passed down through generations. Even a preserved piece of Lonnie's parachute.

"The message is to not forget," Didier Lestang said through an interpreter.

The reunion was filled with emotion, hugs and gratitude as the families finally met face to face.

Their first stop was the farmhouse where Lucien Lestang hid Lonnie in 1944.

Standing near the property, Richard Moseley pointed toward a line of trees.

"My father's plane crashed just on the other side of those trees," he said.

Nearby still stands the barn where Lonnie lived in secret for about six weeks while German forces occupied the region.

During the visit, Richard Moseley also paid tribute at the gravesite of Lucien Lestang and his wife.

Overcome with emotion, he reflected on the sacrifice that made his family's future possible.

"Because of this man, I had the chance to even be born," Richard Moseley said. "My father called him his savior."

The visit also uncovered new pieces of history.

Family members recently discovered Lonnie Moseley's life vest, the one he was wearing the day his plane went down, hidden away in an attic for decades.

Another treasured artifact remains a communion dress created from Lonnie's parachute and sewn years ago for a young relative. Today, the dress is carefully preserved as a symbol of the bond forged during wartime.

"It feels like I was traveling back in time," said a member of the Lestang family.

Two families. Two countries. One act of extraordinary courage.

When it came time to say goodbye, emotions once again surfaced.

"Hard to say goodbye?" Richard Moseley was asked.

"It is hard to say goodbye," he replied. "In fact, it's until we meet again."