Preserving History
By Jill Haffley, The Palisades at Broadmoor Park & Odyssey HealthCare, Colorado Springs LIVING WELL Magazine
Working in conjunction in Colorado Springs with Odyssey HealthCare, a group of Honors United States History students from Coronado High School got a personal look at the reality of war on April 5 at The Palisades at Broadmoor Park as part of their unit on World War II. Students interviewed World War II veterans as a part of the Veterans History Project through the American Folklife Center of the Library of Congress. The Veterans History Project of the American Folklife Center collects, preserves, and makes accessible the personal accounts of American war veterans so that future generations may hear directly from veterans and better understand the realities of war.
World War II veterans were targeted, as they are dying at an alarming rate; so the students wanted to preserve their stories before they pass on. In addition, those U.S. citizen civilians who were actively involved in supporting war efforts (such as war industry workers, USO workers, flight instructors, medical volunteers, etc.) were also invited to share their valuable stories.
Students interview veterans on video and then put together a final product to include pictures and any personal war items the veteran cared to donate. Interviews are sent to the Library of Congress where anyone, anywhere, anytime can click on the name of any veteran and see their story. The items donated to the Veterans History Project (VHP) are housed in a preservation environment within the permanent collections of the Library of Congress. Stories and collateral materials are available to anyone interested in being a witness to history as a web page is created for each veteran who contributes an interview, memoir, or historical documents. This page includes service history and other information about each veteran.
Students say they will always remember this experience and their teacher, Jill Haffley, a social studies teacher at the high school, believes they will learn more from those interviews than they would have from a textbook alone because World War II suddenly came alive through the personal stories of its veterans.
One veteran said, “I am profoundly proud and honored that my story will be permanently archived in the Veterans History Project with the stories of tens of thousands of fellow American veterans who, as a matter of honor and duty, served their country in time of war.”
Some people do not normally think of history as an activity, as something that one does. But, these students believe doing history is the best way to learn history. It is for this reason they became involved in the Veteran’s History Project in 2008. It has become an annual project for Coronado honors students.
The Palisades at Broadmoor Park (www.PalisadesCare.com) and Odyssey Health Care (www.odsyhealth.com) teamed up to support this year’s project. More information on the project can be found online at www.loc.gov/vets.
