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Volunteer Spotlights

Image of Violet HutkaJanuary 2010 - Violet Hutka started in the Fall of 2002 with a newspaper story, a phone call, and an offer to volunteer.  Now nearly eight years later Violet Hutka has transcribed more than 150 veterans’ stories for the Riverside (California) Veterans History Project and the Veterans Museum and Memorial Center of San Diego, California.  Violet retired as an executive legal secretary several years ago and moved to Riverside to be close to family.  She is an accomplished typist and transcriber, and she is often able to type at the pace of the interview.

Patsy RayApril 2008 - VA Medical Center in Prescott, AZ is one of the most active Voluntary Services Offices of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. This program has generated over 600 recorded interviews since the program began in 2003.  A dedicated cadre of 20 to 30 trained volunteers work together to collect personal, service-oriented histories. 

court reporter, Denise FritzAugust 2006 - Denise Fritz is a court report from Wisconsin. “We all know how busy life gets. Where do we find the time to do volunteer work? It usually has to happen with the assistance of others. With support from my family and my boss, I was given the opportunity and the honor to transcribe stories from the Library of Congress Veterans History Project. I hope fellow court reporters will participate in this new initiative to record the stories of veterans in their lives and then transcribe them. Be a part of our country’s history, and in doing so create a history for our organization.”

Andy Layton.August 2005 - Andrew (Andy) Layton is an extraordinary 16-year-old student who has dedicated much of his young life to record the first-hand recollections of U.S. war veterans for the Library of Congress Veterans History Project (VHP), thus ensuring that the personal stories of these national heroes are preserved for current and future generations.

Thomas family at LYNX bus unveiling.June/July 2005 - On November 12, 2004, Secretary of Veterans Affairs Anthony J. Principi unveiled a city-size bus at 11 a.m. before went on a year-long “tour of duty” in Orlando, Fla. The painted bus was sponsored by LYNX bus system of Central Florida and ran as a public service to raise awareness about the Veterans History Project.

Image of Derek SallayFebruary 2005 - Derek Sallay of Poway, California (near San Diego), is a senior at Poway High School. He recently won a scholarship with his essay about celebrating veterans' service for a contest sponsored by the Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW) . Derek will interview eight to 10 veterans for his Senior Project and plans to donate the interviews to the Veterans History Project.


Image of Matthew PetermanJuly 2004 - Matthew Peterman of Marengo, Illinois is an Eagle Scout. To date, he has coordinated 13 interviews of veterans for the Library of Congress’ Veterans History Project.

Image of Judith KentMay 2004 - Judith Kent serves as a Trustee to the Flagler County Public Library and has been a volunteer for the Library of Congress' Veterans History Project for more than two years. Ms. Kent along with a number of other dedicated volunteers have interviewed more than 25 veterans for the Library of Congress’ Veterans History Project.


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  August 10, 2010
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