Dear Fellow Marylanders,
As Memorial Day approaches, I am writing to invite all the citizens of the State of Maryland to help fulfill an important objective of the Library of Congress’s Veterans History Project. The Library of Congress and its American Folklife Center are asking all Americans to join in the creation of a national collection by interviewing war veterans using sound or video recording equipment, or the written word, and by collecting wartime letters, diaries, and photographs. The collection will capture the experiences of war veterans from all service branches, the Coast Guard and Merchant Marines, and the civilians who supported them.
To advance the work of this great project, I am asking our citizens to interview a war veteran and deliver the audio- or video-taped or written accounts to my Baltimore office, located at 100 South Charles Street, Tower I, Suite 1710, Baltimore, MD, 21201, for presentation to the Veterans History Project. This is a tremendous opportunity to honor and give thanks to our war veterans as we have their histories recorded as part of the permanent historical record of our nation.
I am proud to support the Veterans History Project. I believe that this generation and future Americans have much to learn from those who served. Part of the project will be an educational Web site that honors veterans and others who served by listing the names of those who were interviewed and who contributed materials. I am pleased to announce that this National Registry of Service is available for you to view at the Veterans History Project Web site at www.loc.gov/vets.
When Congress created this project with Public Law 106-380, it imagined broad public involvement, with grandchildren interviewing their grandparents, students talking with veterans, veterans interviewing each other, and libraries, museums, and civic groups starting their own projects.
The Veterans History Project is seeking your participation. If you are a veterans association, military installation, library, museum, or university you can become an Official Partner by agreeing to assist in promoting the project, encouraging volunteers, and developing public programs that support and encourage the project’s objectives. If you are a local veterans post, auxiliary, club, youth group, classroom, or individual, you can join the Volunteer Corps by interviewing war veterans in your community.
The Veterans History Project team at the Library of Congress has prepared a set of guidelines and forms that should be followed if you choose to participate. I encourage you to go to their Web site at www.loc.gov/vets, where you can obtain the information forms required for participation.
Sincerely,
Paul S. Sarbanes
United States Senator