This October, NCRF hosted 20 University of Miami students for a Veterans History Project (VHP) briefing and guided tour of the Library of Congress. The VHP briefing was led by Kerry Ward, liaison specialist with the project, which is part of the American Folklife Center at the Library of Congress. The students were visiting Washington, D.C., as part of a program called “Career Crawl,” which brings students to different cities throughout the country to learn more about their histories.
Ward provided the students with an overview of the VHP including how it was started, how the stories are archived and used, and how the stories are gathered and submitted. She also shared with the students the important partnership NCRF has with the Library of Congress to support the VHP effort and noted that since its start, NCRA members have transcribed nearly 5,000 interviews.
The students asked an array of questions ranging from how they can become involved to wanting to know some of the most moving stories that have been recorded as part of the program. The briefing was followed with a special tour of the library that included an historical summary of the building and stops at various exhibits and areas like the famed reading room and the Gutenberg Bible exhibit.
