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Paratrooper Bernie Tom from D-Day to Death

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This week we are honoring Bernie Tom and the anniversary of his death with articles on some of the letters he wrote to his parents and explaining how the details can help researchers understand not only military service of an individual, but also who he was.

As we move through the final set of letters Bernie wrote to his parents, I’d like to point out a few things I learned about Bernie.

He has a great sense of humor.  In one letter dated 1 June 1944, he tells his parents General Taylor is supposed to talk to the troops. He jokes he will make some time to talk business with the General to speed the end of the war. On 2 June he writes one final letter containing general chatter and then writes nothing until 16 June 1944.

He has a confidence and strength not seen in every young man. He seems to have a sense of what he is contributing to the world. Bernie has a plan for the future and sent a lot of money and war bonds home throughout his entire service.

The war was real before D-Day, but it is even more real after. Bernie discusses France in his 16 June 1944 letter saying people have it hard. They wear straw for socks and walk around in wooden shoes. Most are happy to see the Americans, but not all. He goes on to say, “The jump wasn’t bad but i was never more scared in my life…..” This is the first time he admits he has any fear.

Bernie did a good job overall in writing his letters. Almost nothing censored. One letter dated 20 June 1944 had several things blacked out, including the name of the fountain pen he was using, which seemed an odd thing to black out. He was sitting in a Red Cross Club in France as he wrote this letter and was likely using a pen they provided as he mentioned the Red Cross Club had writing desks, pens, and paper. That same letter had a sentence in which it appears he talked about killing Germans (Krauts) as those words make sense in the blacked out portions. Interesting those words would be blacked out when it was common knowledge the Americans were fighting the Germans. Bernie also mentions in this letter he had his first bath since they arrived in France on 6 June. His bath was out of a bucket. How often do we take bathing for granted?

Bernie’s letters are less frequent through the rest of June and contain general news about how he is and questions for his parents. He states several times he really knows nothing about how the war is progressing unless he sees a news bulletin. Often those are two to three days old. By 4 July 1944 he is still in France, hasn’t bathed for a month and comments on something his dad wrote in a letter saying he didn’t read anything about Bernie’s involvement in D-Day. Bernie responds the 506th may not have been mentioned in the papers but his Division was, though he couldn’t say which Division at that time. He did say he was one of the first to drop into France on D-Day.

Bernie takes great pride in the work he does for the war. On 5 July 1944 in his letter to his parents, he asks if they read anything about the fall of Carentan. He said, “The papers mention the Rangers took the town, but it was solely a paratrooper victory…..I know because I was there.” Later that month his unit returns to England to await the next jump.

Between late July and mid-September, Bernie’s letters are few and far between. The unit is training a lot and he mentions being tired and behind on writing letters. By this point he knows his brother Dana is overseas, but not exactly sure where. Unfortunately the two did not meet up prior to Bernie’s death.

His final letter home is dated 15 September 1944 and he asks about the family and mentions he rode into town in a 1938 Hudson, the largest car he’d seen in England. This is just prior to the jump into Holland.

If any of Bernie’s other letters exist, if he wrote any others prior to his death, they are not part of this collection.

Bernie Tom died on 9 October 1944 near The Crossroads.

© 2017 World War II Research and Writing Center

Paratrooper Bernie Tom – Part 2

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Bernie Tom after jumping into Holland September 1944.

This week marks the anniversary of PFC Bernie Tom’s death on 9 October 1944. After reading three binders of letters from him to his parents and friends, and some from his parents and friends to him, I chose to write a few articles to honor his life and service. Also to explain what we can learn about our soldiers through their words. You can read the first article, Band of Brothers in Letters – Bernie Tom KIA 9 October 1944.

All quotes are typed as Bernie wrote them, spelling and punctuation.

Bernie arrives overseas early in 1944, first landing in Ireland. the V-Mail to his parents for 19 February 1944 stated, “The Crossing was awful, especially for me. I was sick most of the time. Not so much sea sickness but it was the food. It was the worst I had ever left on my plate. I lost about 10 pounds all together.”

Can you imagine losing 10 pounds within a short period of time crossing the Atlantic? For most of these soldiers, this was their first time on a boat or a ship. I wonder what they were thinking, how they felt.

As the months of February and March 1944 go on, Bernie reports the food is better, he is better and that he will have a lot to tell his parents when he gets back. His letters provide a sense that he will return. In some of his letters, there is a sense of homesickness, as he describes thinking about his mother’s apple pie or playing football with his friends. He also seems to mention in most of his letters, that he received another letter from his parents dated x, and it took a month/2 weeks etc. to cross the ocean. In future months, Bernie reports the air mail is much faster than V-Mail and asks his parents to send air mail stamps.

Bernie often has to cancel dates with local girls because of last minute guard duty he is told to do. He mentions this often in his letters.

By April 1944, the unit has moved from Ireland to Scotland to England and by 10 April 1944 (exact date unknown until I do the research), Bernie has been assigned to F Co 506th PIR 101st Airborne.

His letter of 17 April 1944 stated he was in the field for a week and it rained the entire time. The men stayed in the same clothes all week as it rain fell and the mud got deeper. Seems they were being prepared for what was to come – fewer showers and changes of clothes.

Bernie writes his parents often and while he seems to write at least weekly, and often more when he knows he’s about to move, he apologizes for not writing enough. In his 1 May 1944 letter he ends with, “PS – I think your the swellest folks a guy could ever have. I love you both more than you’ll ever know.”

As the month of May progresses, Bernie writes more often to his parents, using V-Mail as the primary communication tool. He talks about a night jump he did where he was not injured. Mentions friends he received letters from and boys from Athens, OH, where he’s from that he runs into here and there. Thanks his parents for every box they send filled with cookies, candy, film, and other things Bernie requests. He always mentions how much the boys in the barracks enjoy the box as each time one receives a box, they all share.

Wouldn’t it be great if all of us stopped to appreciate these “small” things in life and stopped blowing up over the insignificant things? Every letter Bernie writes and mentions a box, is filled with gratitude. You can feel it. What would it be like if we all lived that way every day?

As May winds down, Bernie’s letters increase as he must know things will happen soon. He tells his parents more than once, not to worry if he doesn’t write for a while, he’s just out in the field. One very interesting thing he wrote on 23 May 1944 is a request for his parents to donate all his clothing, except the uniforms he sent home. He wants to buy all new clothes when he returns. The energy I picked up on this letter was strange – I couldn’t quite tell if he knew he would never return home or if his body had already changed so much from the food (or lack of) and training, that after the war, he would not be the same as he was before – in any aspect.

Finally, as D-Day approaches, Bernie sends off several more letters and mentions he has no idea what is happening with the war. The Athens Messenger newspaper he was receiving is at least a month old. The men are told almost nothing. So he is not able to respond if his parents mention something in their letters. Sadly all their letters do not exist in this collection. A few do, but not all.

What else can we learn about Bernie’s service from his letters? Well, he is about to jump into Normandy and there are more letters to read.

© 2017 World War II Research and Writing Center

Band of Brothers in Letters – Bernie Tom KIA 9 Oct 44 Part 1

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Bernard Tom. Photo courtesy of the Tom family.

Today we remember PFC Bernard (Bernie) Tom of F Company 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment 101st Airborne, who was Killed In Action on the dike between Randwijk and Heteren, Netherlands, near the Crossroads. If you know where Dukeman was killed and turn around, that is where F Company also fought.

A grave adopter adopted Bernie’s grave at Margraten (Netherlands American Cemetery). Several years ago he connected with one of Bernie’s nephews and niece in-law, who gave Johan a collection of photographs, documents, and over 100 letters Bernie wrote just prior to joining the Army until just before his death. These letters have never been published.

I started reading these letters and after reading 39, I have a better idea of who Bernie was as a man and soldier. I know about people in his family and town. I am able to document much of his service history that may have been in his OMPF (it did not survive the fire). I’m also learning a lot about the training itself. This is the first article about the contents of Bernie’s letters and what we can all learn by reading wartime letters.

Bernie’s OMPF (service file) burned. Only seven pages remain which contain letters and requests for information written by relatives in the 1980s. The information provided in this article is only the tip of the iceberg. My target is to help readers understand the depth of information you can find in these family letters.

The letters begin on 3 November 1942, when Bernie is living in Akron, Ohio, having left Athens, OH for work. His letter mentions he took his exams for the “Navy and the Air Corps.” He wished to fly planes, based on the information in his letters.

Once Bernie is in the military, much of the paper he uses to write letters is on camp letterhead or some really cool Paratrooper letterhead. His letters are primarily written with fountain pens in ink colors of red, black, and various shades of blue, though a few are in pencil.

He enlisted in the Army on 1 February 1943 and went to Camp Taccoa to join the Airborne. He did not initially make the cut due to low blood pressure. By the end of the month, he was transferred to Fort Jackson, SC and assigned to H Co 328th Infantry Regiment 26th Infantry Division. In his letter to his parents, he said, “I didn’t tell you because I didn’t want you to worry, but Camp Toccoa was a hole. I mean it was awful but this place is O.K. good food barracks and such.”

Using the envelopes that are with each letter, I am able to establish a timeline of his service history because some of his letters only say “Saturday evening”. The envelopes are important because not only do they have the date they were posted but also from where. Without the envelopes, I would not have known he spent a lot of time at Camp Mackall. It is so important if you have envelopes with the letters to keep them with the letters!

I can document the units and training camps Bernie was in until the point he officially entered the 101st Airborne. Bernie mentions as he is transferred from one unit to another (and camp to another) his service records are “lost” and it takes a long time for them to make their way to his current location. This caused him some issues with rank and pay while waiting for his records to show up.

Many of his letters mention family members, including his brother who is in the Army Air Forces. He mentions many of the friends from Athens, Ohio, he knew. This information is especially important for anyone writing about wartime in Athens, Ohio. It was a small town and using letters from soldiers, may provide information about the whereabouts and service of the young men who left to fight.

Bernie appeared to have a strong work ethic and sense of adventure young men often have. Prior to joining the Airborne, he volunteers to take a swimming instructor course, in which he stated, “It’s a 50 hr course on [i] time. One class i 4 hr. long every afternoon. During this course I’ll swim through burning oil, and with a full field pack. It’s very interesting work.” In the same letter he talks about a Ranger course he took. “One time I crawled 75 yds under machine gun fire dodging blasts of T.N.T. also I had to craw under 30 ft of barbed wire entanglements. We also did many other interesting things such as, a booby trap course, T.N.T. course, and ect.” (All misspellings are his.)

He documents some, but not all of his jumps, with details about each one. Using the letter dates, I can tell you what dates he jumped. His letters indicate the day he received his jump boots. I learned more about his paratrooper training and when he is transferred after training to a replacement depot and heads overseas. Bernie was not officially in an Airborne unit until early 1944 when he is overseas.

There is so much information in these letters, it would take a book to explain it all. I hope this first article gives you an idea of who Bernie was, a little about his service, and the depth of information you can find in these letters.

Thank you Bernie for your service. We will keep you memory alive.

Does your family have letters from your soldier? Are the envelopes in which they came still with the letters? What information can you learn about your soldier’s service history, his family, and life from these documents?

© 2017 World War II Research and Writing Center

Military Researchers, Are You Paying Attention to the Details?

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Graves Registration Identification in WWII

I wrote the first article in a new series to provide answers and healing for families of WWII war dead, called, Demanding Answers About WWII War Dead.  In this article I explained I was reading a 361 page Individual Deceased Personnel File (IDPF) for a Jewish WWII soldier named Harvey.

361 pages, in this instance, is a lot of information. Often in the larger IDPFs, there are multiple copies of documents. Or as in the case of some, like Glen Miller’s, it is over 600 pages because each time it was requested by an author, historian, or other person, it was copied and that copy was included in the overall file.

In this 361 page document, there are some duplicate copies of documents, but overall, the pages contain different information. After reading through it, I have a few options to organize all the documents and my thoughts about the file contents in preparation to pull pieces out and create mini PDFs to share in the articles.

  • I can print it and arrange the pages chronologically (I’ll likely do this).
  • Create a timeline of service/events based on the documents.
  • Create a list of documents with the PDF page number, which stand out and require explanation.

Digesting 361 pages of information and all the “small” details contained in the letters is quite a task. George, Harvey’s father, is every historian’s dream because he cites his sources so to speak. He documents in most letters, the response letter with date from the military, which allows readers to refer to each letter. Can you do this by putting the documents into chronological order? Yes. But just viewing the PDF of the 361 pages, or writing a history of Harvey’s death, requires this level of detail created by his father.

George picks up on details most of us ignore as we view these files. In his letters, he questions EVERYTHING. The details offer us a glimpse into the IDPF we might otherwise ignore and offers a great teaching opportunity. For example, on the Inventory of Personal Effects Document it says at the top and bottom

R E S T R I C T E D

George questions this word at the bottom of the form as it appears to have been typed after the words: Any additional pertinent information: [with a space for that below.] Yet he seems to miss the word RESTRICTED at the top of the form typed exactly the same way. This means the form is restricted and not to be distributed to everyone.

This may seem like an inconsequential detail, but to a man who was seeking every scrap of evidence he could get about the death, burial, length of time to receive information, personal effects, and burial details for his son, this one word represented something of great importance.

Are you looking at these seemingly inconsequential details in all your military records? Are you paying attention to the smaller details or just looking to answer one or two questions and overlooking the rest? We all do it, focus on one thing and miss other details that could move our research forward or answer other questions we have. What have you found in your records?

© 2017 World War II Research and Writing Center

WWI and WWII Research Coaching Now Available!

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As interest in World War I and World War II American service member research grows, we are now offering Research Coaching Packages. The processes and education you receive in these packages will allow you to research any branch of the military with greater ease.

Elite Research Coaching Package

We’ve been told all the records burned, but in reality, many records exist to help you tell your World War I and World War II service member’s story. The questions many people ask themselves is, ‘How do I access these records? Now that I have them, what do they mean?’

Are you ready to research your World War I and World War II family member’s service in-depth and have no idea where to start?

Do you have many people you would like to research, across different service branches?

Did you know the records are similar and if you know how to conduct research on one branch, you can apply those skills to any branch?

Are you ready to take your WWI or WWII research to the next level? If so, this coaching package is for you!

Over the course of four to six months, I will:

  • Facilitate the research and analysis process to help you discover personal and contextual information for one of your service member’s story, through seven phone or Skype calls, email, and written notes.
  • Provide you with the tools to take that research deeper.

Coaching clients will receive access to full files to use as examples, checklists, written analysis notes, and suggested next steps.

When you complete this coaching session, you will have the tools to take your military research to the next level on your own and easily research any World War I or World War II service member.

Contact us to receive detailed information about the package, fees, and processes.

Standard Research Coaching Package

We’ve been told all the records burned, but in reality, many records exist to help you tell your World War I and World War II service member’s story. The questions many people ask themselves is, ‘How do I access these records? Now that I have them, what do they mean?’

Are you ready to research your World War I and World War II family member’s service to learn the basics, and have no idea where to start?

Do you have many people you would like to research, across different service branches?

Did you know the records are similar and if you know how to conduct research on one branch, you can apply those skills to any branch?

Are you ready to take your WWI or WWII research to the next level? If so, this coaching package is for you!

Over the course of one to three months, I will:

  • Facilitate the research and analysis process to help you discover personal for one of your service member’s story, through four phone or Skype calls, email, and written notes.
  • Provide you with the tools to take that research deeper using contextual records.

Coaching clients will receive access to full files to use as examples, checklists, written analysis notes, and suggested next steps.

When you complete this coaching session, you will have the tools to take your military research to the next level and research unit records on your own. You will easily be able to research any World War I or World War II service member.

Contact us to receive detailed information about the package, fees, and processes.

One Day Research Coaching Package

Do you have research materials and are unsure how to decipher and analyze them? Would you like a personalized session to review materials, ask questions, and learn how to move forward with your research or writing?

Schedule a one day coaching session which includes:

  • A one hour consultation prior to our meeting (phone, Skype, or email.)
  • Up to six hours of in-person meeting time.
  • A one hour post-meeting consultation (phone, Skype, or email.)

Contact us to receive detailed information about the package, fees, and processes. European meetings can be scheduled. Inquire about possibilities.

© 2017 World War II Research and Writing Center

Are You Researching the Other Names in the IDPF?

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Did you know I’ve been researching genealogy (family history) for more than 20 years? Though to be honest I know more about my client’s families than my own at this point, as I spend more time researching for them. One thing that the genealogy community encourages people to do is research the collaterals. For readers unfamiliar with this concept, let me explain.

Joseph and Majdalena Kokoska, my great great grandparents, came to Chicago from Bohemia in 1880. To my current knowledge and research, they had no family here, so the reason they chose Chicago over another location where Czechs were settling is unknown. They had 11 children, 10 of which survived beyond infancy. They lived on 18th Place in Chicago, which was in a Czech neighborhood. To learn more about them, I used the usual records – census, vital record, military draft cards, etc. I also searched the collaterals when I could not initially locate them in the 1920 census.

Searching the collaterals meant looking at who their neighbors were. If I could locate them in the census, chances are I would locate my family as I had other proof they had not moved. Examining the records of the neighbors lives, might lead to a connection that went back to Bohemia. It may have also linked to occupation and organization involvement in Chicago. In rural areas, genealogists may look at many families in a town or county, as it was common for groups of families to migrate from one place to another. When we can’t find a family in one place and a census shows other families are gone, tracing those families may help us locate ours.

How does this apply to military research?

Often when we receive military records for our soldier, airman, sailor, or Marine, we focus so much on the individual and the details we can find on him or her, that we ignore the rest. What would happen if we shifted some focus to those who served with our soldier or were declared MIA or KIA the same day they were? What might we learn?

In one example, I have been reviewing the IDPF for Col. John A. Gillies, who died when the Russian plane he was on with two other Americans, crashed over Iran on 29 Feb 1942. Col. Gillies was part of the Corps of Engineers at that time stationed in Iraq and the Americans he was with, along with many Russians, were handling aspects of the Lend-Lease agreement. While the IDPF is VERY complete and there are many descriptions of the plane crash, photographs, and a detailed description of the recovery efforts, searching other records and the collaterals is important.

I searched Ancestry.com for two men, Roland L. Spencer and Gustave A. Goesele and found a database I don’t remember seeing before. If I had, it didn’t pertain to the research I was doing so I overlooked its significance. This is the Reports of Deaths of American Citizens Abroad, 1835-1974. In this database I found roughly 10 pages that pertained to Spencer and more than 50 pertaining to Goesele! In these records was information about the plane crash and loss of the men, financial information, and occupational information. Gillies was mentioned in these reports as well. They provided yet another source of information to his life.

Exploring offline archives for additional records, especially occupational records to see how these men were connected prior to the war may also prove useful in compiling their life stories.

For European grave adopters, there is always a concern of how much will it cost to obtain records. In Europe many records are digitized, and available free or at low cost, in archives. The same is not true for U.S. archives. Online resources are the primary way grave adopters locate information. Yet as I have explained in my Why WWII Research Isn’t Free article, most of the information you need to tell the full story, not just the end, is not online. When you read the IDPF you are getting the end of a soldier’s story and his final unit, which often is not the only unit in which he served and not the only war experience he had. To learn his full story you have to use offline records.

I encourage everyone to explore these other individuals connected to your soldier. You may be surprised at what you discover about them, their living family members, and even locate photographs.

Do you need help obtaining records? Would you like an individual consultation in the Netherlands? Contact us for details on research projects.

Have you searched the collaterals for your service member? What discoveries did you make?

© 2017 World War II Research and Writing Center

Are You Checking the Information You Find on FindAGrave?

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John A. Gillies

I’ve been doing a lot of research on those buried or listed on the Wall of the Missing at the ABMC North Africa Cemetery. I came across a very interesting Individual Deceased Personnel File (IDPF) for Colonel John A. Gillies, Sr. (1889-1942). The file is 95 pages long and contains photographs of the crash site in Iran where the Russian plane he was traveling on, went down. Photographs in IDPFs are not uncommon, but rare.

There is so much detail in this file that I started looking into who this man was. I started with FindAGrave because ABMC made entries for everyone in their database. Research tip! Often other people made entries as well, which makes the individual look like his own sibling in the Family Links area. If you click the link you will see a lengthy entry for Col. Gillies, which was taken from one of the many newspaper accounts about the plane crash and his loss of life. However, what the IDPF contains is a somewhat different set of facts.

First, the place of death states Basara, Iraq which is incorrect. This is where Col. Gillies was stationed, according to the documents in his IDPF. The crash site was near Darband, Iran. A detailed account of the crash investigation is in the file (see image below) and a letter to the family with a tremendous amount of detail as to what Col. Gillies was doing in Iran and with the Russians at the time.

Second, the newspapers during WWII did not always report ‘the whole truth/facts and nothing but the truth/facts.’ They were fed some information and allowed to print only what was allowed. This is one reason why it is so important to verify what you find in one source against many others. In some cases, what newspapers reported when an event was released differs from later accounts when the war was ending or over and other information was allowed to be released.

Third, the number of people on the plane and their country of origin differs from the official reports. If you were to search based on what you found in this newspaper article, you would be missing a lot.

The research we do for our soldiers is not an easy task, especially when so much information is unavailable online. No matter where you find information, in official military records, online, carved into a headstone, it is imperative that you check the information against all other available sources. You will often find what you think you know is not really accurate.

Always ask questions and keep digging.

What discoveries have you made in your research that would be helpful for other researchers? What did you find online that later conflicted with military record sources? How did you resolve the conflict?

Can I help you with your research?

Are you ready to learn the bigger picture of your family member’s military service? Email us at info@wwiirwc.com to set up your free phone consultation today to discuss project options, fees, and time. You can also sign-up for our free newsletter.

© 2017 World War II Research and Writing Center

Genealogy and Stories in Military Records

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Honoring Bernie Tom at Margraten.

I recently received several new Individual Deceased Personnel Files (IDPFs) for those buried in or on the Wall of the Missing at North Africa. In addition to this, I received some very interesting client files that contained partially burned Official Military Personnel Files (OMPFs). Reviewing these files for two days straight led to so many questions about family, war, research, the stories we hear and tell, and the pain passed down through the generations. It also brought up questions not only about family members, but those who adopt graves in the ABMC cemeteries.

Did you know a lot more can be learned from military records beyond the soldier’s: name, service number, unit, and enlistment and discharge/death data? Did you know many of these records contain handwritten letters from family, primarily when their soldier was Killed In Action or listed as Missing In Action?

Have you ever looked beyond your soldier in these files and questioned what life was like for those they left behind? Are you wondering what I mean when I ask that question?

  1. What are the family dynamics you discovered in the files? Were the soldier’s parents married or divorced? Had one died? Was he or she married?
  2. How did the parents feel about their son or daughter’s death in the war?
  3. What grief was passed through the letters inquiring about their soldier’s death, burial location, and seeking information on personal effects?
  4. Were any family members put into a mental hospital or sanatorium after they learned of the death or Missing In Action status?
  5. What stories were you told about your family member’s service? How did that line up with the information you discovered in the records?
  6. What stories do YOU tell about this soldier, his/her experiences, and lessons learned?
  7. How much grief do you carry from someone you may have never met?
  8. If you adopted a grave, have you met the soldier’s family? Were you able to provide information that helped ease the pain they carried about their family member? Were you able to answer questions they held onto for years?

Grave adopters view files in a different way. Often to find a photograph, learn basic details of their soldier, and connect with a living family member. There are many other lessons and higher level details about the war in these files (I’m saving that topic for another article coming soon!). As you take a deeper look, what will you discover?

In my experience at the ABMC cemeteries and reading all the files I have the last five years, the soldiers have a story they would like told by the living. They too are seeking answers and peace. Many wish to be released once the living know what they are here to pass onto us. However you personally connect with these soldiers, are you hearing them?

I have a lot more to say and many more questions on this topic. You can watch a video I created to just get some of my thoughts out for you to think about.

What have you learned about your family and its history and trauma from military records?

As a grave adopter, what did you learn about your soldier and what were you able to convey to the family to help bring closure to their questions?

© 2017 World War II Research and Writing Center

History Majors! Think Outside the Box

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Yesterday I was interviewed and filmed for the business, in Chicago at the Pritzker Military Museum and Library. People strolled in and out of the building while we were filming and one young woman listened to the stories I told as Scott asked questions while he filmed. She and I had several short conversations about the work I do, the History degree I have (Bachelor only) and the adventurous, inspirational, traveling, healing, love-filled life I have created with my business. She too has a history degree. It reminded me that several years ago I gave a talk at my alma mater, The University of Missouri-Rolla – now Missouri S&T, to the history club about thinking outside the box. I’d like to share a few thoughts with history majors around the world and let you know, there are many other choices available besides going for your Masters or Ph.D. and teaching or being a scholar.  ANYTHING is possible if you choose it.

What did my life look like after I finished my degree?

When I finished my history degree I moved back to Chicago and worked for several years at Shedd Aquarium, first in the education department and later built databases for their animal management system. Building databases, writing reports, and teaching staff how to use the system, encompassed analytical thinking, which is important for historians. I was using some of my history skills and also taught myself everything I knew about databases. Those things would benefit me when I was in business for myself. No experience is ever wasted. As time passed, I had three boys and stopped working for five years. In 2010 it was time to return to work and I ended up not working for “the man” but started my own genealogy business.

When my business started I was only taking genealogy research clients. I also wrote one book about my cousin Flying Tiger Robert Brouk. You can find his story in my book “Stories of the Lost.” Writing that book was a bucket list thing. I never intended to write 13 others after that in five years. As time passed I expanded the business into teaching some genealogy topics and researching WWI and WWII. I published several genealogy teaching course books for kids to adults and one for societies and libraries. By late 2012 I was moving more into WWI and WWII research, writing, and teaching, and moving away from genealogy clients.

Jennifer writing by the sea in Hastings, UK in June 2017.

What does my life look like right now?

Seven years later, my business looks completely different than it did when I started it. I’m currently only working with one genealogy client I’ve had for six years. The rest of my business consists of WWI and WWII clients with an occasional Korean War client thrown in the mix. I wrote 14 books, countless articles and programs. I also teach seven WWI and WWII research and writing programs in the U.S. and Europe.

Why did I move from genealogy to WWI and WWII? In part because no one else was specializing in this. Also because I was chosen to do this job so the stories of war would be saved. I also followed the energy, the soldiers I  channeled, and my intuition. I did what was easy and fun for me, and things and people showed up to support that. I invested a lot of time and money into research and writing so I could write the only books on the market that teach you how to research any branch of the military for WWI and WWII. This also allowed me to create the programs I now teach.

After that I began traveling to Europe to meet people in a network I was building of WWII researchers and tour guides, to which I refer clients who wish to walk in their soldier’s footsteps. Through people I met on one of those trips, I was introduced to my now fiancé, Johan, a Dutch man living near Amsterdam.  Johan and I now live part of the year in Europe and part in the U.S. My fiancé is also a historian and 101st Airborne Reenactor. Together we are creating new programs and workshops and travel together. I’m also raising three very active boys.

Along the way I had a couple people who mentored me briefly in starting the business. When it was time to move into military research, there was no one to mentor me. I made it up and worked through the questions as I went along. I also collaborated with researchers in Europe. When people tell you that you should always have a mentor, I say no you don’t. You are capable of creating something no one else has if you trust yourself, what you know, and are willing to put in the time to follow your heart.

Throughout the last seven years, more in the last five, I started a spiritual journey which took me through a dark night of the soul in which I left my marriage, started a new life with my boys, and spent a lot of time alone (with my soldiers.) I rediscovered myself, resolved within myself a lot of family issues, and found parts of me that had been hidden for lifetimes. That journey took me through Europe with my cousin James Privoznik who died 11 January 1945 in Bras, Belgium during the Battle of the Bulge. I wrote his story in “Stories of the Lost” and feature him in many of my programs. James helped shaped the business and my life from the beyond. He, among many others living and dead, helped me heal a lot of deep, dark parts of me.

That healing journey allowed me to be more open and vulnerable, and offer this to clients and those who attend my programs. Research isn’t always about the questions we have about our soldier. Often it takes us deeper, to places we never expect, if we choose and allow it. To expand my healing and what I BE in this world to make a contribution, I became a Certified Access Consciousness Bars Practitioner this summer. The tools I’ve learned in Access and ThetaHealing, along with meditation and other healing modalities allows me to contribute to my work and healing in ways I never expected.

What comes next?

My research business is expanding and I’m now working with one colleague to keep the client load moving smoothly.  Soon I will be looking for an intern. Johan and I are creating workshops which currently do not exist anywhere in the world. I’m writing two short books and will increase my speaking and teaching in 2018. I also decided to pursue the Access Consciousness Certified Facilitator training and Reiki Training.

What else will show up? Who knows. ANYTHING is possible.

If you are pursuing a degree in history and think the only option available to you is to go into teaching or become a scholar, consider the little I’ve told you about my journey. Think outside the box, beyond what everyone else tells you is possible and create your own reality and life. You just may discover that what you love to do and is easy for you, can create a business and life you never expected.

Have you pursued a history degree and done something other than teaching with it? We’d love to hear about your journey.

© 2017 World War II Research and Writing Center

WWII The Schark Cave in Maastricht, The Netherlands

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This is a guest post written by Jons van Dooren Maastricht, the most southern city of the Netherlands, was liberated on the 13th and 14th of September 1944. The Ninth Army established its headquarters in Maastricht and stayed there for about five months. About 800 American soldiers were in Maastricht and surroundings, in part preparing for Germany. They were also protecting the area and Antwerp harbour (all the American supplies were there)  from V1’s and V2’s, launched from Germany. 127th AAA and 131st AAA  Gun battalion had their gunpits in Maastricht and in the neighbourhood. It was their responsibility to  protect the whole area from attacks by planes and bombs. The soldiers belonging to these units were the ones who took down enemy planes and the so called Buzz-bombs. In many cases they succeeded as reports show and Antwerp harbour was “safe”. In the meantime the coldest winter of the 20th century arrived and the soldiers had to do their duty under extreme circumstances. In the days around Christmas it was minus 32F, extremely cold, and some had to sleep in their tents. An American chaplain, Father Dobrzynski, together with some Brothers of the Immaculate Conception of Maastricht, thought about how to give the boys a kind of Christmas Feeling in these days. They knew of a cave, the Schark cave, which was very safe, and where a Mass could be held on Christmas Eve. The cave was prepared. Sal Barravecchia, one of the soldiers, created a beautiful mural in which he showed how Freedom was guarded from all sides. About 260 American soldiers attended Mass. After Mass they had coffee and donuts. Most of the soldiers were staying Maastricht, and some came from the Ardennes, where the fighting in the Battle of the Bulge was raging on. They were taken to Maastricht by their trucks. After Mass they all wrote their names on the wall with charcoal.  This wall is still preserved. The website itself shows some pictures of the Christmas Eve Mass in 1944, taken by American soldiers. Yearly Commemoration Every year the Foundation of the Commemoration of the American Christmas Celebration 1944 ( abbr. SHAK1944) organizes a Christmas Eve Mass to commemorate those brave boys who fought for the Liberty of Europe. Every year about 200 American soldiers attend this Service, together with their superiors, the American Ambassador or his representative,  the King’s Commissioner of the province of Limburg, the Mayor of Maastricht  and some other people. Sometimes a veteran himself or his relatives attend Mass as well. Requesting Your Help Not all the names on the wall can be read, because sometimes people swept their coats along the walls or tried to touch the names. We, the SHAK board, would like to know whether there are families who know that their grandfather attended Mass in 1944. Are there sons, daughters, grandchildren or other relatives who could help us in completing the list of names? Should you be interested, the list of names is presented on our website.  There are even some letters written by soldiers the day after the Mass. We would be very grateful for any information. You may contact us through our email address. Thank you very much for your kind cooperation. On behalf of the SHAK1944 board, Mr. Jons van Dooren, Chairman

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