angelaaugust
Cadet
- Joined
- Apr 13, 2012
Hello everyone,
This is my first post. I began researching my genealogy this past year and was lead to this website tonight while searching for information on my great-great-great grandfather, Albert Mann. After reading the website's quote, "It is history that teaches us to hope," I am reminded of a project I finished last month in school. The topic I chose was the history of military first aid. About halfway through the project, I recalled the recent death of my grandfather. He was both a Vietnam and Korean War veteran. Not long before his death, I wrote him a lengthy letter pleading with him to tell his story. As far as I know, he never told a soul about what he experienced and took those memories to his grave. The night I thought about all this, I wept not only for the loss of my grandfather but for the memory of his war stories that will never be told. I believe that as hard as they may be to recall, these personal experiences need to be documented. No matter how many thousands of men experienced these wars firsthand, ever single one of them experienced it differently. If that experience is not shared, as was in my grandfather's case, it is gone; lost forever the moment the person dies.
I am pleading with you all tonight: please, PLEASE share your story. If the memories are too painful, or even if you are embarrassed or ashamed for something you had to do or were ordered to do, please find a way to tell your story. If you can't bear to tell most painful things, you can still tell what life during the war was like, what you did to pass the time, what it was like to finally receive a letter from someone. Don't forget that your stories can be good experiences, too. You can document the story yourself, seal it, and put it with your will requesting that it not be opened until your death if you don't want your loved ones seeing it. There are places that will also archive your story and you can request that it not be viewed until your death; a trusted relative may be willing to do it as well. Some places will even interview you in person and archive the audio in addition to a transcript. As a woman with a long lineage of military members (including my husband, father, and grandfather), it deeply saddens me that so many of these stories will never be told. Please don't let these important pieces of history fade away. I thank all of you that have risked your lives for our country. I am truly grateful.
Respectfully,
Angela
This is my first post. I began researching my genealogy this past year and was lead to this website tonight while searching for information on my great-great-great grandfather, Albert Mann. After reading the website's quote, "It is history that teaches us to hope," I am reminded of a project I finished last month in school. The topic I chose was the history of military first aid. About halfway through the project, I recalled the recent death of my grandfather. He was both a Vietnam and Korean War veteran. Not long before his death, I wrote him a lengthy letter pleading with him to tell his story. As far as I know, he never told a soul about what he experienced and took those memories to his grave. The night I thought about all this, I wept not only for the loss of my grandfather but for the memory of his war stories that will never be told. I believe that as hard as they may be to recall, these personal experiences need to be documented. No matter how many thousands of men experienced these wars firsthand, ever single one of them experienced it differently. If that experience is not shared, as was in my grandfather's case, it is gone; lost forever the moment the person dies.
I am pleading with you all tonight: please, PLEASE share your story. If the memories are too painful, or even if you are embarrassed or ashamed for something you had to do or were ordered to do, please find a way to tell your story. If you can't bear to tell most painful things, you can still tell what life during the war was like, what you did to pass the time, what it was like to finally receive a letter from someone. Don't forget that your stories can be good experiences, too. You can document the story yourself, seal it, and put it with your will requesting that it not be opened until your death if you don't want your loved ones seeing it. There are places that will also archive your story and you can request that it not be viewed until your death; a trusted relative may be willing to do it as well. Some places will even interview you in person and archive the audio in addition to a transcript. As a woman with a long lineage of military members (including my husband, father, and grandfather), it deeply saddens me that so many of these stories will never be told. Please don't let these important pieces of history fade away. I thank all of you that have risked your lives for our country. I am truly grateful.
Respectfully,
Angela