Bob Willis may not be a Veteran but his heart beats passionately for those who have served. He has organized ten living history events that allow Veterans to share first hand stories with the rest of us.
The whole endeavor began when Bob and his boys watched the “Band of Brothers” series. His boys asked if it would be possible to meet some of the surviving members of Easy Company. When an opportunity came up to attend an Easy Company reunion in Norfolk, Bob and his boys jumped at the chance. Bob gave gifts to each of the 35 surviving members. When asked how they could return the favor, Willis hosted ten of them for a dinner in his hometown of Kingston, New York. The “God and Country Veterans Living History Event” was born.
This year will be the 10th event that Willis has organized. The event always features an amazing group of Veterans who tell their stories during the daylong conference and closing dinner. This year’s events will feature Veterans from World War II on up to the Afghanistan war. He tries to focus on combat Veterans but occasionally will feature others who have unique stories like Irene Perbal, a member of the Dutch Resistance. All proceeds from the event benefit the Hudson Valley National Center for Veteran Integration.
He also emphasizes the importance of sharing these stories with younger generations. Bob takes conference participants also pay visits to the local schools to share their stories.
Bob and I share our thoughts on the importance of documenting these stories so they can be shared and remembered. We all have Veterans in our community that are literally “living history”.
TAKEAWAY: “I had a choice. I didn’t have to go to war. All those men and women who fought wars before me gave me that choice.”
Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 39:50 — 9.1MB)