Preserving memories: Veteran collecting war stories for national project

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Preserving memories: Veteran collecting war stories for national project
By Tony Dobrowolski, Berkshire Eagle Staff
Article Last Updated: 08/31/2007 09:07:15 AM EDT



LENOX — Only a veteran really knows what it's like to serve during a war.

Bob Stevens is interested in preserving those memories for posterity.

The affable host of Pittsfield Cable Television's veterans' history program recently began interviewing veterans on the air with the intention of sending the tapes for inclusion in the Veterans History Project, an initiative being conducted by the Library of Congress in Washington.

Created by the U.S. Congress in 2000, the project's mission is to collect and archive the personal recollections of U.S. wartime veterans to honor their service and share their stories with current and former generations. The program also collects stories from home-front civilians who worked in support of the armed forces during a war.

A copy of each interview that Stevens conducts with each male or female veteran will be sent to the Library of Congress for its national permanent record base. Each veteran who participates will also receive a copy for their own personal use.

~snip~

The primary focus of the Veterans History Project is firsthand accounts by veterans of World War I, World War II, the Korean and Vietnam wars, the Persian Gulf War and the current conflicts in Afghanistan and Iraq.


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