Tulsa Woman Parachutes Out Of Plane In Normandy To Commemorate 80th Anniversary Of D-Day

A Tulsa woman is back home, after parachuting out of a plane to commemorate the 80th anniversary of D-Day.

She did it to honor three people in her life who served our country, including her grandpa, who served in WWII.

"I'm not really a risk taker, in that sense of possible physical ailments,” Amy Siegfried said. “And so I said, 'Oh ok, I guess I'll do it. Why not just go do something epic?'”

On the edge of France's Normandy region, Siegfried took the leap out of an old C-47 with her husband watching from the ground.

"Just an incredible overall feeling to be able to do this and know that we're jumping out of this plane and we're not being shot at, we're not worried about what's on the ground when we get there, maybe besides the sheep,” Siegfried said. “But we have this opportunity to celebrate those who fought."

Those who fought and those who liberated France 80 years ago included more than 13,000 paratroopers from the 82nd and 101st Airborne Divisions who descended on Normandy.

“This is my grandfather, Hans, who served in WWII. This is my uncle, Uncle Vern,” she said while looking at a picture.

Both Siegfried’s grandfather and uncle served in the Navy. Hans as a Gunner's Mate in WWII, and Vern as a helicopter pilot on an aircraft carrier in Vietnam.

For a family friend, she also brought a picture of Joseph Cignetti, who served in the Army during WWII.

“It was cool to be able to print all those guys out, put them in my pocket. I joked they served as extra padding,” she said. “But also to be able to honor them and their families. It’s a really great way, our friend Tina said, it’s a great way to make a day that’s kind of somber in their family and make it positive.”

After about a minute falling from the sky, she landed safely; and said her time in France allowed her to bring home a new perspective.

"Right before we left, I would have told you that my biggest fear was something happening to me, jumping out of this plane,” Siegfried said. “And by the end, it was like, this is so much more than me.”