APU Careers Careers & Learning

Let’s Help Veterans Tell their Stories

Veterans of World War II
Veterans of World War II

By Greg Eanes
AMU Alumnus and retired Air Force Colonel

Every veteran has a story to tell. I have been able to put my military history degree from American Military University to work by authoring several military histories focused on my native Southside Virginia region.

It is now 70 years since the end of World War II and just over 60 years since the end of the Korean War. Every day, hundreds of veterans are dying without their personal stories ever getting told. AMU Military History program graduates need to put their degree to work and document the story of every aging veteran we can find in our local communities.

In several works that I call the Virginians at War Series, I have produced four studies–three with World War II veterans and one with a Korean War veteran.

One of my local interviews was with Gerald Harbaugh, a man from my hometown who worked on the railroad just before World War II and then ended up with the Army’s 3rd Military Railway Service helping push Lend Lease supplies to Russia from the Persian Gulf to the Caspian Sea. The interview first ran as a story in the local newspaper and then I turned it into book form to be permanently available to future generations of military historians. While a minor work, it adds to the historiography of that command.

Military History graduates are uniquely positioned to record stories and place these in historical context. One doesn’t have to be a paid historian to make a difference to the study of history particularly as relates to local history.

[Related: Digital Archiving: The Marriage of History & Technology]

Anyone who is skilled at listening and writing can help document these stories. Potential authors can get started by visiting any retirement home, state or federal military retirement home, or simply asking around. Most veterans are happy to have the opportunity to talk about most everything they experienced.

Besides documenting and preserving a single veteran’s point of view, these first-hand accounts help document local history and, in the case of the veteran, are a valuable part of family history. I can’t tell you how many families have been so appreciate of the work I’ve done.  In some cases, they were never aware of the stories or of the historical context of the veteran’s service.

About the Author: Greg Eanes served in Operations DESERT SHIELD/STORM, IRAQI FREEDOM and ENDURING FREEDOM in Afghanistan. He has authored several historical works which are currently available on amazon.com or your local bookstore.

Comments are closed.