Archivist at Iowa Catholic college works to save veterans' stories

Published: 2004-06-10

DUBUQUE, Iowa (CNS) -- The archivist for Loras College in Dubuque uses an old African proverb to describe the impact on the nation's history of 1,500 veterans dying every day: "When an old man dies, a library burns to the ground." Michael Gibson, who has served as Loras archivist for the past 21 years, is referring to all the stories and memories that are lost forever whenever a veteran receives life's ultimate honorable discharge. That's why he recognizes the urgency of preserving as many stories as possible before "any more libraries are destroyed." "It's best not to wait on these things," he said in an interview with The Catholic Witness, Dubuque archdiocesan newspaper. Gibson, who is also director of the Catholic college's Center for Dubuque History, is a key figure in the local response to the Veterans History Project of the American Folklife Center at the Library of Congress in Washington. Congress voted unanimously to create the project in 2000. Gibson points out that the project's mission is to collect the memories, accounts and documents of war veterans from World War I, World War II and the Korean, Vietnam and Persian Gulf wars, and to preserve these stories of experience and service for future generations.

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