Submitted by the Bedford Historical Society
A second program paying tribute to Bedford’s World War II veterans will be the subject of the Bedford Historical Society’s November meeting on Veterans’ Day, Sunday, November 11. Part Two of Jan van Steenwijk’s “Oral Histories from World War II Veterans” tribute will be presented in Fellowship Hall of the First Church of Christ, Congregational, beginning with a social time at 2 pm.
The Veterans’ Day program will begin at 2:30 and include clips from some of the interviews van Steenwijk videotaped at the request of a Carleton-Willard veterans’ memoir group, as well as portions of the PBS documentary on World War II cemeteries, Hallowed Grounds, on loan from Society members Don and Lois Jenkins. The Carleton-Willard oral histories range from a nurse’s reminiscences about serving in hospitals overseas to bombardiers’ harrowing memories about dangerous raids over Germany.
The public, especially Bedford veterans and their families, is invited to attend. The Society has reached out to Bedford’s local veterans’ groups, including the American Legion, the Veterans of Foreign Wars, and the VA Hospital, and has invited them to participate and share their war stories. It is anticipated that some Carleton-Willard Village veterans, or their spouses, will be present to answer questions.
About Jan van Steenwijk
Jan Van Steenwijk is an internationally-known photographer and videographer who began his career in Amsterdam. He has lived in Bedford for 23 years, and is best known for his activities to promote the Bedford Flag, among them founding Friends of the Bedford Flag and photographing several steps by Lowell’s American Textile History Museum to conserve the flag in 1998. A selection of those photographs is displayed with the original Bedford Flag in the Bedford Library.
Two local bodies of van Steenwijk’s work include a 1998 photographic series of 25 Bedford residents who were active volunteers in the town, and a 2002 series of 25 Bedford couples, photographed in their homes. These exhibitions have been shown in Bedford and area communities, as well as in the Netherlands.
Van Steenwijk currently serves as President of the Bedford Historical Society. He held the same position with the Bedford Chamber of Commerce, and served on the Bedford Cultural Council, where he brought attention to the Bedford Flag and helped guide the creation of the flag-holding Patriot statue that stands proudly in Memorial Park.
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