Vonnegut, my dad and WWII.That's the name I've given to some vivid letters penned by author Kurt Vonnegut, as well as a compelling diary my father briefly kept. My dad and Vonnegut, Army buddies, endured captivity together after being captured during the Bulge. They survived the Allied firebombing of Dresden, Easter Europe's most beautiful city. Their writing was done shortly after being liberated by the Russians. In a series of posts, I did next to no writing. I consider it my best work, perhaps for that reason.
Monday night, I met a man who is trying to keep those memories alive. His name is Paul Fiske. I was about 15 minutes late for our meeting, and had to drop and give him 20. We talked, and before I knew it, nearly two hours had gone by. Paul is a fascinating man with a wonderful memory of Allentown and the Lehigh Valley. I hope I'll be telling you his story soon. But for now, he's promoting a group that is collecting oral histories from veterans of all conflicts.
What: Lehigh Valley Veterans History Project Round Table.
When: Thursday night, 7 PM.
Where: Lehigh County Senior Center, 1633 Elm Street, Allentown, Pa.
Who: Colonel Harry Yoder, who flew 38 combat missions during WWII. I don't have time to list his numerous commendations.
After Yoder's speech, there will be refreshments. Will they be C-Rats or MREs? I'll let you know because I'm going.
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