The Samuel Proctor Oral History Program takes part in Memorial Day and D-Day commemoration
GAINESVILLE, Fla. — The Samuel Proctor Oral History Program (SPOHP) will be participating in events to commemorate Memorial Day and D-Day, two important dates in America’s history.
In honor of Memorial Day, SPOHP will be sharing and discussing its World War II collection of oral histories at the Alachua County Veterans Day program. The ceremony will begin at 10 a.m. on May 25 at Forest Meadows Cemetery on Hawthorne Road.
SPOHP also will salute the veterans of the D-Day landings. SPOHP will have a table setup at Camp Blanding east of Starke. The program runs from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on June 6 on the grounds by the WW II Museum. A special service to honor D-Day veterans, on the 65th anniversary of the Normandy Invasion, will be held at 11 a.m.
SPOHP is the foremost repository for veterans’ oral histories in the South. The collection contains 130 WW II oral histories, 25 Vietnam oral histories and several Korean War interviews. SPOHP has an ongoing commitment to preserve these individuals’ experiences through their compelling oral histories.
SPOHP’s WW II Collection has been used for research, public readings, and high school curriculum enhancement.
In 2008, SPOHP took several oral histories off the archival shelves and turned them into living history by making a documentary titled “I Just Wanted to Live!” The film was based on selected passages from oral histories given by four ex-prisoners of war held by the Japanese. The documentary is now housed in three major museums and the Library of Congress Veterans History Project.
Please stop by the SPOHP table at each of these two events to learn more about its collections of veterans’ oral histories. The Samuel Proctor Oral History Program salutes veterans of all wars—all service branches, all ranks, all theaters.
Visit the SPOHP Web site at www.history.ufl.edu/oral to learn more about UF’s Oral History Program and learn how to access many of these interviews online.
Podcasts are available at http://proctorpodcast.libsyn.com/