American World War II veterans boarded a transatlantic flight bound for Belgium. Their destination: the Ardennes region, where they had fought during the Battle of the Bulge some 80 years earlier. This was not a vacation. It was a homecoming of sorts, a final chance to walk the ground where they nearly lost their lives and to honor the brothers they left behind.
What made this emotionally charged journey possible was a combination of grassroots fundraising, private donations, and the committed involvement of sponsors who understood the weight of the moment. Among those sponsors, Michael Kelly Injury Lawyers played a meaningful role by providing financial and personal support that helped bring these aging heroes back to the soil where they once fought for the free world.
The Story Behind Back to the Battlefield
How a Marine and an M1 Garand Started a Movement
The initiative known as Back to the Battlefield grew out of a deeply personal project by Andrew “Andy” Biggio, a Boston police officer and Marine Corps veteran who served in Iraq and Afghanistan. After returning home, Biggio began visiting WWII veterans in their homes and at VFW halls, carrying with him a 1945 M1 Garand rifle — the standard-issue weapon of American soldiers during the war. The rifle served as more than a prop. When veterans held it, decades of silence gave way to vivid, often painful memories they had never shared with their families.
Biggio asked each veteran to sign the rifle and tell their story. What started as neighborhood conversations eventually turned into a nationwide mission and two bestselling books: The Rifle and The Rifle 2: Back to the Battlefield. Along the way, Biggio discovered that more than half of the veterans he interviewed had never returned to the battlefields where they served. That realization sparked a new purpose.
From Interviews to International Pilgrimages
Beginning in 2016, Biggio launched fundraising campaigns to take surviving WWII veterans back to Europe — entirely free of charge for the veterans and one accompanying family member. Over the course of more than 20 trips, the program has returned over 60 veterans to hallowed sites across France, Germany, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, and Belgium.
Each trip is carefully curated to include:
- Visits to former foxholes, villages, and landing zones
- Ceremonies at American military cemeteries
- Meetings with local communities that still honor their liberators
- Moments of quiet reflection at memorials and concentration camp sites.
For many of these men, the journeys offered something they had been unable to find for eight decades: closure.
Why Michael Kelly Injury Lawyers Got Involved
Advocacy That Extends Beyond the Courtroom
Michael Kelly Injury Lawyers, a Boston-headquartered personal injury firm led by Managing Attorney Michael D. Kelly, has built its reputation on client-first service and aggressive legal advocacy. Yet the firm’s commitment to community goes well beyond case files and courtrooms.
The firm’s community engagement portfolio already includes sponsoring Big Brothers Big Sisters events, delivering breakfast to Boston police officers, donating toys through the Boston 25 News “Stuff the Sleigh” drive, and providing meals to local firefighters. Partnering with Back to the Battlefield represented a natural extension of that ethos — particularly given the firm’s roots in the Boston area, where Biggio is a well-known figure.
In addition to financial contributions, members of the Michael Kelly Injury Lawyers team participated in send-off and welcome-home ceremonies for the veterans, demonstrating a hands-on commitment that went beyond simply writing a check.
Where Legal Advocacy Meets Living History
At first glance, a personal injury law firm and a WWII veteran remembrance program may seem like unlikely partners. However, both endeavors share a common thread: amplifying voices that deserve to be heard. In the courtroom, attorneys fight for individuals who have been wronged. Through Back to the Battlefield, that same impulse translates into preserving the firsthand accounts of men who shaped the course of history.
This partnership also underscores a broader principle — that businesses and professionals can leverage their resources and platforms to support causes with lasting impact. Consequently, the collaboration between Michael Kelly Injury Lawyers and the Rifle Project serves as a compelling example of corporate responsibility in action.
A Final Chapter Worth Telling
Biggio has acknowledged that the 80th anniversary trip to Belgium likely marked the last major commemoration these veterans will be able to attend. “There isn’t going to be a 90th anniversary for these guys,” he said. “This was the last big anniversary for a big number of them.”
That sense of urgency — the awareness that these stories will vanish if they are not captured now — is what makes initiatives like Back to the Battlefield so vital. And it is precisely why the support of partners like Michael Kelly Injury Lawyers matters. Their involvement ensures that the final chapters of these extraordinary lives are told with the dignity and recognition they deserve.