Kilili invites NMI veterans to join Veterans History Project

WASHINGTON, D.C.—On this Veterans Day—and in the weeks and months ahead—veterans of the Northern Mariana Islands will be able to add the stories of their wartime service to the Veterans History Project of the Library of Congress. Delegate Gregorio Kilili C. Sablan (Ind-MP) announced this week that the congressional office has launched an outreach initiative to promote the project. Sablan will be helping veterans and members of the community who want the Northern Marianas to be included.

“The Veterans History Project has collected stories from about 100,000 veterans so far, but none from veterans currently residing in the Northern Marianas,” Sablan said. “We want to change that.”

Congress began the Veterans History Project in 2000 to honor America’s war veterans by collecting and preserving their remembrances of service to the country. The project relies on volunteers nationwide to interview veterans and send their stories to the Library of Congress.

“The congressional office has already begun reaching out to veterans in the Northern Marianas and community groups to let them know about the project and show them how to join,” Sablan said. “Students, researchers, Scout troops, civic groups, family members of veterans, neighbors, and friends—anyone can participate.”

The first step to participating in the Veterans History Project is to learn more about it. The project website, www.loc.gov/vets, provides a field kit and other resources for conducting interviews, hosting community events, and submitting stories. Hard copies of these materials, and additional information and assistance are also available at the congressional offices on Saipan, Tinian, and Rota.

“The wartime service of Northern Marianas veterans is an important part of the history of our Commonwealth and our country,” Sablan said. “We can honor that service by chronicling our veterans’ experiences, learning from them, and preserving their stories for future generations.”

Recorded audio or video interviews, written memoirs, photographs, manuscripts, letters, diaries, and original works of art may all be made part of the collection. About 15,000 veterans’ stories have now been digitized and are available online.

The stories span World War I and World War II, to the wars in Korea, Vietnam, and the Persian Gulf, and the post-9/11 conflicts in Afghanistan and Iraq. Though there are no archived stories from veterans in the Northern Marianas yet, the project has collected powerful first-hand accounts of service members who fought in the Battles of Saipan and Tinian during World War II.

For more information about how to get involved, or for assistance, contact the congressional office at kilili@mail.house.gov or call (670) 323-2647 (Northern Marianas); (202) 225-2646 (Washington, DC); or toll-free at (877) 446-3465. (Office of the Delegate)