Did you know you can experience the history of the United States Army from its roots in the French and Indian War through current operations in Iraq and Afghanistan in just one day? Did you know all it would cost you is a tank of gas? As the nation's premier center for Soldier history, the U.S. Army Heritage and Education Center (USAHEC), puts visitors in the boots of Soldiers and is in your backyard!

Every year on Armed Forces weekend (third weekend in May), the grounds of the USAHEC come alive with historical Army equipment, re-enactors, and Soldiers past and present as we celebrate Army Heritage Days, a timeline living history experience. All of this can be seen on USAHEC's one-mile outdoor trail, which is ordinarily filled with helicopters, tanks, buildings, and trenches representing all eras of U.S. Army history. During Army Heritage Days you will see re-enactors outfitting these buildings, setting up camps, and manning additional vehicles, such as Vietnam Gun Trucks and WWII Willy's Jeeps. Of course the best part for many visitors: it's all free! So join us on Saturday, May 21 and Sunday, May 22, 2016 from 9am to 5pm each day to experience this exciting and patriotic event!

As always, the weekend-long event will feature lectures by well-known historians, military equipment displays, tactics and weapons demonstrations, and a meet and greet session with Army veterans. This family-friendly event will have many children's activities including 18th century games and the passport program, which allows children to collect stamps from around the event and claim a prize!

In addition to the impressive outdoor displays, there will also be several highlighted lectures and presentations sprinkled throughout the weekend where you can hear from Veterans in their own words. Among the scheduled Veterans to speak this year is General (Retired) Barry McCaffrey who will give a lecture entitled "Vietnam-- Our Veterans in Perspective." McCaffrey is a retired four-star General who is most recently known as a guest analyst and commentator for NBC.

While Army Heritage Days is a timeline event that features all U.S. Army eras, this year's event will highlight the Vietnam War with an increase in the Vietnam era re-enactors, Veterans relating their experiences, and other events specifically for that time period. There will even be a special display of national importance that we will reveal as we get closer to the event!

Be sure to check back for updates as we begin to reveal our special display via social media! Like us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter via the #countdowntoAHD as we release more information about our special display and guests.

For more information about the USAHEC, the event, or to follow as the schedule is released, please visit www.usahec.org or call 717-245-3972.