A Mt. Juliet resident with the U.S. Army Reserve is in France this week as a selected participant in 75th anniversary of D-Day activities that continue through Sunday.

Staff Sgt. Jeffrey Holland, 49, is among approximately 1,000 U.S. soldiers who were picked by their commands to be in France for approximately 55 events in nearly 40 French communities around Normandy. Holland, a 1987 Mt. Juliet High School graduate, arrived in France on June 2.

Holland is an airborne paratrooper and his schedule will include a parachute jump on Sunday as part of a commemorative airborne operation.

About 950 soldiers from other nations also participate.

“It is an honor and privilege to be here, but it is also a great learning experience and opportunity to help America solidify relationships with our NATO allies,” Holland said.

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Sen. Mark Pody, R-Lebanon, sent two Tennessee flags to Holland for the trip.

A highlight event is the American Battle Monuments Commission ceremony on Thursday at the Normandy American Cemetery in Colleville-sur-Mer, France.

"Up until this event, (World War II) was a history lesson to me — here I am looking at the results of a different war," Holland said. "It has been over for over 70 years and these people still remember it.

"These alliances and the trust of our allies is crucial."

Holland’s military career started in the Marine Corps Reserve as an infantryman for 17 years that included deployments to Desert Storm and Iraq.

He then worked as a security contractor in the Middle East for seven years before enlisting in the Army Reserve as a Psychological Operations Specialist at the 325th Tactical Psychological Operations Company in Nashville about five years ago.

The U.S. Army Civil Affairs and Psychological Operations Command (Airborne) has slots allocated for the D-Day celebration, which are distributed to subordinate commands, said public affairs officer Lt. Col. Jefferson Wolfe.

Reach Andy Humbles at ahumbles@tennessean.com or 615-726-5939 and on Twitter @ AndyHumbles.