Welcome to the In Their Words Staff Blog. In the next few months you will find some inside stories about the project. Ryan Tucker and myself, David Elmore are the two Production Technicians for In Their Words. Our jobs consist of everything from interviewing the veterans themselves and data basing large volumes of information related to the veterans and their service to our country, to clipping those interviews and editing photographs in preparation for putting them on the web site and calling, writing and liaising with the veterans and their families from updating the web site to doing extensive research on the war (including much viewing of film and photographic materials for inclusion in the various phases of our project) and aiding in the production of our documentary film to assisting in the planning and collection of wartime artifacts (some of which are actual battlefield objects) for a museum exhibit from many of the veterans whom we have interviewed. I could fill up this page with the myriad of other things that we do to make this a successful project but that is unnecessary at this time.

Our most memorable times come when we go out and interview the veterans at their homes all over the state of Arkansas. We hear heartbreaking stories of loss, horror and sacrifice and we also hear magnificent stories of humor, heroism or homecoming and everything in between. We often hear stories that do not make it to tape because of varying reasons. Some of which are; the veterans themselves ask that it not be recorded, we have packed up and are out the door, the stories are too graphic or naughty or more often than not, not pertinent to our interviews.

We sometimes go back and get those stories if they are outstanding in some fashion. However, we are often pressed for time and the veterans are often exhausted by the interview. Besides, we also hear many stories outside of the war that are just as fascinating and equally good subjects for other interviews such as a veteran who as an FBI agent in the 1950's infiltrated the KKK in south Arkansas to stop the lynching of African-American Arkansans, or the African American veterans who came back from fighting the greatest war in history only to have 'Jim Crow' America slap them around again. Or the veteran who dated Herman Goering's niece, or the ones who went on to fight in Korea and/or Vietnam. There are so many of them.  Believe me, we would love to collect them all but there simply is not enough time, people or money to do it.

This blog will consist of regular updates of interesting asides in our collecting, preparing and posting of the veterans interviews on our web site. When we travel Arkansas we meet many different people, eat at many different eateries and see many different places. The people are some of the finest you will ever meet, the food some of the best you will ever eat and, of course, virtually everywhere in Arkansas is beautiful. We will tell you about these places and people and post photographs of the same as time permits and the project progresses. 

I cannot stress enough our pleasure to honor these men and women who have given so much of themselves and who continue to do so by allowing us to see and hear where they went and what they did to keep us free and prosperous and make Arkansas such a great place to live. In Their Words is Arkansas' salute to them. Please shake a veteran's (any veteran's) hand and say 'Thank You'.

With that, I will sign off for now and welcome you again to 'In Their Words' enjoy the web site.

David Elmore, ITW Production Technician, August 27, 2007