Today i saw in bookshop a new book, recently published. This hearttouching, is written by historician Peter Schrijvers (teaceher at university of Sydney) in coorporation with Stichting Adoptiegraven Margraten. For his book Peter Schrijvers interviewed hundreds of relatives of the soldiers and adoptants of their graves. "Harrowing And Redeeming, This Is The History Of A Unique 'adoption' System. For Generations, Local Families, Grateful For The Sacrifice Of Their Liberators From Nazi Occupation, Have Cared For Not Only The Graves, But The Memories, Of Over 10,000 Us Soldiers In The Cemetery Of Margraten In The Netherlands" We Keep The Faith: The Margraten Boys Charge Receives Book on Margraten?s Adoption of Graves | Embassy of the United States The Hague, Netherlands Amazon.com: The Margraten Boys: How a European Village Kept America's Liberators Alive (9780230346642): Peter Schrijvers: Books http://www.rhcl.nl/data/files/algemeen/Margraten-Ysselsteyn.pdf
When Old Hickory was last there in the early 1990s, he stopped to visit the grave of one of his friends who was buried there. While was standing at the grave, a couple walked up and asked him if he knew them an buried there and he told them about him. They then replied that the soldier buried there was "their" soldier for the year and that they would be tending to his grave that year. They talked for a while and Old Hickory told them how much he appreciate that gesture of kindness. You can "Like" the American Battle Monuments Commission page on Facebook. They post photos of soldiers graves most every day. I asked them show Harold Works' grave this past April 12 and they did.
It is a beautifull place Jeff. Now that all graves have been adopted the Foundation has -after consulting with the management of the American Cemetery- created the opportunity to adopt a name on one of the walls on either side of the Square of Honor, the so-called Walls of the Missing. In these walls the names of 1,722 Americans from the US Army or US Airforce have been engraved whose bodies have not been recovered or have not been identified. An asterisk behind their name is shown if the body has later been recovered. For adoption of a name on the Walls of the Missing apply the usual rules. The adopter will receive a certificate with the personal data of the missing person.
you can also get information about the soldiers who are burried in Margraten: American War Cemetery Margraten
for example: COLDICOTT, Frederick B [TABLE="width: 100%"] [TR] [TD="width: 100%"][h=1]Frederick Coldicott[/h][/TD] [/TR] [TR] [TD="width: 100%"][h=2]Private, U.S. Army[/h][h=3]Service # 36960241[/h][h=3]120th Infantry Regiment, 30th Infantry Division[/h][/TD] [/TR] [TR] [TD="width: 100%"]Entered the Service from: Michigan Died: 22-Oct-44 Buried at: Plot L Row 9 Grave 22 Netherlands American Cemetery Margraten, Netherlands [/TD] [/TR] [TR] [TD="width: 100%"]Awards: Purple Heart[/TD] [/TR] [/TABLE]
