Interest Gauge

[KG_AGCent]

I have in my hot little hands the diary of an 8th Air Force Bombardier/Navigator. Would you guys like me to scan it in and post it here?

Also I have the opportunity to interview a grunt who landed at Normandy, fought for 2 monthes and was wounded. He has agreed to an interview. Would you be interested in this? Please provide any questions you would like to have answered.

[KG_Cloghaun]

I'd like to know basically everything about the soldier who is willing to let you interview him. Can you tape record him & just let him talk about his experience during the landing?

First obviously, what beach was he at. I'd then like to know at what point could he actually see the enemy to bring direct fire on them? Was it on the beach proper or further inland?

[KG_Norad]

Like to know his unit and division. His role in his squad. What were the circumstances of his entering service-His home town enlistment story if any.
I agree with Frank the more detail you can manage the better. I will post more as it comes to me.

[KG_Panzerschreck]

Id like to know the obvious of course, combat, what he thought of the germans, the english civillians/soldiers/officers/montgomery, the french. Id like to know what he though of his boot camp, did it prepare him well? did his training in england prepare him well? what did he think of his squad/platoon/company mates? Did he have good officers?

[KG_Kharkov]

I interview veterans all the time. They are surprisingly candid in their conversations with you. I generally use open ended questions and take a chronological approach. Where were you when the war started? Why did you join? Where did you join? Where was your basic training and what was it like?

Try to find out their unit ahead of time so that you can do some advance research. Memories fade over 50 years and dates and places will easily get jumbled -- if you research in advance you can help direct the interview. Talking about combat is something you don't want to be too aggresive about (IMO) -- they'll talk about their first combat experience and I'll generally ask them questions about how they felt -- almost universally they'll say they were scared and then will describe more of the circumstances of a particular action. This will make them more comfortable talking about other combat incidents. Having a man describe a tanker bailing out of his Sherman as the tanker's skin melts from burning phosphorous is something you ease into.

You'll find the best insights/comments aren't the combat related ones -- it's the human ones -- how the Army guys in the Pacific disliked the Marines, or how stupid replacements would act when they first showed up to the front.

I'm interested in hearing/reading both.

[KG_Kharkov]

Also, ask if he would like to registered with the WW2 memorial. I can do that for him easily. Their is an electronic registry that is available on the web and at the memorial in which you can look up a veteran and see his contributions to the war effort. It is volunteer driven. I've registered 15 veterans to date. I can write up the bio if you provide an overview of his service.

[KG_Panzerschreck]

Hey JJ, is there anyway to check to see if a pesons name is on that list? Back when the WWII memorial got started i was a charter member and donated money every year until its completion. I also sent them my Fathers info. Is there any way i can find out if it was entered? Thanks. :beerglass

[KG_Kharkov]

He's in there. I just found his entry. Here's the search engine: http://www.wwiimemorial.com/default.asp?page=registry.asp&subpage=search

An example of a bio that I did for a veteran recently:

Biography of William J. Lucas

Mr. Lucas served as a Private First Class in the 1rst squad, 1rst Platoon, Anti-Tank Company of the 255th Infantry Regiment of the 63rd Infantry Division. Mr. Lucas was inducted into the Army on September 7, 1944 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. He did his basic training at Camp Croft in Spartanburg, South Carolina. Following basic training, Mr. Lucas trained at Camp Croft as a combat pioneer. Mr. Lucas’ pioneer training included learning the use of demolitions, mines and minesweepers. Following his pioneer training, he was sent to Camp Shanks, New York where he departed for England aboard the Queen Elizabeth II on January 1, 1945. He arrived in England on January 8, 1945 and shortly thereafter was sent to France.

He was initially assigned to the 36th Infantry Division in the U.S. 3rd Army and saw combat in Belgium. He developed pneumonia while in combat and was sent to an Army field hospital to recover. After a short stay at the field hospital, he was assigned to the Anti-Tank Company of the 255th Infantry Regiment of the 63rd Infantry Division. He took part in the 63rd Infantry Division’s assault on the Siegfried Line and the Ruhr river basin, and the Division’s subsequent drive into Germany. During this time, Mr. Lucas served as a combat pioneer, performing such tasks as protecting anti-tank guns with mines, defusing bridges wired with explosives and clearing mines from attack routes to be used by U.S. armored units.

He participated in the 255th Infantry Regiment’s attack on Waldenburg, Germany in April 1945 where his unit fought elements of the 17th SS Panzer Grenadier Division, the 553rd Volks Grenadier Division and Hitler Youth. His regiment also assisted in the capture of the university city of Heidelberg, and the city of Landsberg. His regiment was credited with the liberation of the Dachau Concentration Subcamps located outside of Landsberg, Germany.

Following the capture of Landsberg, Mr. Lucas was sent to the Epernay Engineer School in Epernay, France where he completed a 6 week course in engineering and subsequently taught as an instructor. Following Germany’s surrender, Mr. Lucas served at two Army bases in Germany before being discharged in November, 1946.

He was awarded the Combat Infantryman’s Badge, the Good Conduct Medal, the European-African-Middle Eastern Theater Medal with 2 Bronze Stars, the World War II Victory Medal, and the Army of Occupation Medal.

[KG_Kharkov]

The government then takes my beautifully written bio and tries to make it as generic and ugly as possible by removing paragraph breaks, proper names etc!

[KG_Panzerschreck]

They spelled his name wrong! And they butchered his bio. Im gonna have to raise a stink about this.

[KG_Kharkov]

Welcome to the government! FYI, I can submit a new bio for him if you want. I have an account with the memorial that lets me do that. You can then have them remove the old bio.

[KG_Panzerschreck]

Yeah that would be great. It would save me the hassle of setting one up and all the red tape and what not. Ill sent you and email and we can stop hijacking this thread, lol.