ATC thanked for providing facilities for interviews with World War II vets

In only about 15 months, more than 100 World War II veterans living in the greater Aiken area have had the opportunity to formally describe their experience through the Veterans Oral History Project.

Aiken Technical College has provided the facilities for the interviews. Volunteers with the project presented a gift to ATC President Dr. Susan Winsor in appreciation for the college's support.

The national effort is funded through a grant from the Library of Congress and is coordinated in Aiken and Augusta by the Augusta-Richmond Historical Society.

The volunteer regional director, Fred Gehle, said a total of 350 veterans on both sides of the Savannah River have been interviewed, but another 250 have yet to do so.

"Obviously, we're continually looking to locate veterans every day," Gehle said. "We're also looking for volunteers who would like to be part of the interview process."

Bill Tilt serves as area director of the oral history project in the Aiken, Barnwell and Edgefield areas. He's assisted by Stan Schrader; both are retirees from Aiken Tech. The chance to meet and interview the veterans has been special, Tilt said.

"I'm a retired military officer, and I'm familiar with a lot of their stories," he said. "It always helps me in getting them to talk more freely, as we shared experiences at different times. I enjoy listening to these guys."

The World War II veterans are proud of their service, said Tilt, yet none of them believe they did anything special.

"They feel they did what they were supposed to do," he said. "That's what a man did - go out and serve his country."

It's important to catch these stories as quickly as possible, Gehle said. Since the project began, a total of 36 veterans have died - including 19 who had been identified but had yet to be interviewed. Additional volunteers to help with the interviews would accelerate the process, he said.

Gehle was 12 years old when World War II ended and had a lifelong interest in the events of the war.

"Now I get to talk with and hear interviews of men and women who were there at various places during World War II," Gehle said. "It brings history alive for me personally, knowing we are contributing to building a resource for future historic reference."

Four DVDs are being produced from each interview, with one going to the Library of Congress and one to the each veteran. The historical society will keep two for archival uses.

"The project is designed to preserve a lasting heritage of our veterans," Tilt said.

For more information about the program, call Gehle at (706) 738-8242 or e-mail fpgehle@bellsouth.net.

Contact Rob Novit at rnovit@aikenstandard.com.