Senator Lugar has partnered with the Library of Congress to help preserve the oral histories of Indiana veterans. This program will ensure that these valuable stories are preserved for future generations of authors, historians, students and other interested individuals to use and experience.

Veterans wishing to participate in the program can contact me via email at vetproject@lugar.senate.gov.

Facts about the Program:

• The Veterans History Project was signed into law in October 2000, as an effort to preserve oral histories. The project is part of the Library of Congress' American Folklife Center National Veterans History Collection, and they will be the repository for all materials collected and will be maintained in perpetuity.
  
  
• The U.S. Department of Veteran Affairs estimates that 559,000 veterans live in Indiana.
  
  
• According to the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, almost 1,500 veterans die in the United States each day.
  
  
• Interviews are conducted with veterans of all military branches of service, who served during World War I, World War II, the Korean, Vietnam or Persian Gulf Conflicts. Veterans need not have seen combat to participate in the program. Interviews are also being conducted with citizens who supported the armed services and individuals involved in home front activities.

U.S. Senator Dick Lugar (center) with (from left to right) Jeanne Anderson from the North manchester Center For History; Jim Ridenour, a Vietnam veteran and representative of the Wabash County historical Museum; Clyde Dawson a WWII veteran; and Mayor Robert E. Vanlandingham of Wabash. Senator Lugar visited the Wabash County Historical Museum, a VHP partner in May 2005.

• Senator Lugar and his staff conduct interviews of veterans in either audio or video format. Veterans may also contribute letters, diaries, photographs, maps, home movies drawings and other documents for archiving. The program is not currently accepting medals or uniforms.
  
  
• Senator Lugar also has partnered with over 200 select high schools and other community centers from around the state to enlist help in performing interviews of Hoosier veterans. Visit the Veterans History Project Partner page for a list of organizations partnering with Senator Lugar.
  
  
• Over 6,100 interviews have been collected by Senator Lugar and his staff thus far. These interviews account for one quarter of all the interviews on file at the Library of Congress.
  
  
• Veterans wishing to participate in the program can contact Senator Lugar's office via email at vetproject@lugar.senate.gov. They will then be contacted by Lugar staff or a participating partner (such as an area high school) to set up a time and location for the interview.
  

  
  Senator Lugar, assisted by Emmy Huffman, presents a certificate to Jim Ridenour for his participation in the Veterans History Project.

• Each veteran interviewed will receive a certificate signed by Senator Lugar acknowledging their contribution to the country, the Veterans History Project, and thanking them for their participation.
  
  
• The American Folklife Center at the Library of Congress was created by Congress in 1976 "to preserve and present American Folklife." The Center incorporates the Archive of Folk Culture, which was established at the Library in 1928 as a repository for American Folk Music. The Center and its collections have grown to encompass all aspects of folklore and folklife from this country and around the world.
  
  
• The Library of Congress is the largest library in the world, with more than 120 million items on approximately 530 miles of bookshelves. The collections include more than 18 million books, 2.5 million recordings, 12 million photographs, 4.5 million maps, and 54 million manuscripts.