June 21, 2008 – The American Legion District 10 will host a panel discussion and viewing of footage from the upcoming video documentary entitled "Proudly We Served! Virgin Islands Veterans of World War II," at 3 p.m., on Sunday, June 29, at Myron G. Danielson Post 85 American Legion Hall in Christiansted. Commander Melbourne Clarke explained that the project is motivated by an urgent need to collect and preserve the stories of V.I. veterans.
The legion initiated the local project in December 2007, by authorizing a team of volunteers, including Richard Schrader, well known for his work in preserving personal histories, to videotape interviews with many of the surviving World War II veterans, who number approximately 25 on St. Croix and 25 on St. Thomas and St. John.
The project is supported in part by a grant from the V.I. Humanities Council and the National Endowment for the Arts. Government agencies supporting the project include the Office of the Lieutenant Governor, the Office of Veterans Affairs and the Department of Libraries and Museums.
Clarke said, "We would like to identify and interview as many of the WWII veterans as possible. So we're asking for public support. We would like any WWII veteran who has not been contacted already or anyone who knows of such a person to call the contact number below."
For further information or to share information, call Joan Keenan at 772-1711 or 514-0643.