"Our War: Stories from Poweshiek County’s Greatest Generation"
Related links:
An interview with George Drake on Iowa Public Radio
Harold Kasimow relates his Holocaust survival story
Professor Emeritus of History George Drake ’56 has edited a volume of memoirs from 29 local World War II veterans in “Our War: Stories from Poweshiek County’s Greatest Generation.”
Drake says it was his “hero worship of veterans while growing up and the universal recognition that they were inventive in making a richer society” that led him to produce the book, a project of the Community Education Council. “People often say ‘I didn’t know my friends and neighbors served. They didn’t tell us’ about their experiences,” Drake said. “The book is quite a series of adventures. We are overjoyed that the book is out.”
The majority of the essays are drawn from transcriptions of videotaped interviews with the veterans in 2008. Their stories cover all theaters of the war (except Italy), most branches of the military, and a wide variety of combat and non-combat roles.
“What struck me most while editing this book is that our county (Poweshiek), just one of thousands in our nation, mirrors the vast American World War II experience,” Drake said.
Among the printed stories are recollections by John Pfitsch, professor emeritus of physical education; Ken Christiansen, professor emeritus of biology; Harold Kasimow, professor emeritus of religious studies; Beryl Wellborn, professor emeritus of education; and the late Ralph Luebben, professor emeritus of anthropology.
“Our War” is available from the campus Bookstore, Pioneer Bookshop downtown, and from the
Bookstore website. A DVD, edited and narrated by Grinnell resident Bill Menner, is included with the book.
