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More than 3,900 photos found so far

Published: Thursday, March 31 2016

So far, 3,900 photos of U.S. World War II soldiers who have been either buried in or memorialized in the Netherlands American Cemetery in Margraten, the Netherlands have been found. This is a new milestone as the result of continuous efforts to put a face with the names of as many soldiers as possible during The Faces of Margraten tributes. Since the first edition of the tribute in 2015, over 600 additional photos were found. All these photos will be on display when The Faces of Margraten tribute returns to the Netherlands American Cemetery from May 1-5 this year.

Meanwhile, the quest for locating the missing photos of 6,000 soldiers continues both in the Netherlands and the United States. The adopters of the graves in Margraten continue to look for photos of the soldiers whose graves they have adopted. Other than that, various local newspapers in the U.S. have joined the efforts to locate the missing photos, and so did the Stars en Stripes. Also volunteers of the Foundation United Adopters American War Graves, a Dutch non-profit organization that organizes the tribute, continue to conduct research in historical resources, hoping to find more photos. As a result, the number of soldiers to whom we can give a face continues to grow, even 71 years after the end of the war.

Sometimes remarkable stories come out of the quest for photos in the U.S. For example, Mary Graffin contacted the Bradenton Herald after reading the newspaper's article on Robert Sudbury. The former High School teacher remembered Sudbury attending the same school as she did, although he was a few years older. Moreover, she remembered that a photo of him was on display at the school where she had taught for many years. Thanks to Griffin, we are able to put a face to yet another name (see photo).
 
Photos can be submitted to the tribute in a variety of ways until April 18. Photos can be submitted through The Faces of Margraten website at www.thefacesofmargraten.com or by sending them This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Physical copies of photos can be mailed to Stichting Verenigde Adoptanten Amerikaanse Oorlogsgraven, Loonsevaert 21, 5171 LL Kaatsheuvel, the Netherlands..

The Faces of Margraten is an initiative of the Stichting Verenigde Adoptanten Amerikaanse Oorlogsgraven, a Dutch non-profit organization that is run by Belgian and Dutch adopters of American war graves in Belgium and the Netherlands. The foundation has committed itself to giving a face to all the soldiers buried and memorialized there and in that way to keeping alive the memory to these soldiers. The foundation does not maintain any of the "Adopt-A-Grave" programs for the cemeteries.

Donate

Would you like to contribute to keeping the memory alive? By donating just 12.50 dollars, you will enable us to give a face to one soldier. You can directly donate 12.50 dollars via your credit card or PayPal by clicking the button below. Click here if you want to read more or donate another amount. Thank you for your support!

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