| Across America, in small towns and villages, in cities large and small, are memorials and plaques of all sizes and shapes which honor those who died in America's wars. Invariably, the memorials list the names of those who died. But who were they? |
| Don Schultz, a native of the Village of Freeport, New York, set about finding out about the natives from Freeport who had been killed in war and forgotten by history. Through Internet searches, newspaper clippings, tips from strangers, and scores of telephone calls he began Finding the Forgotten from the Civil War through the Vietnam War. In old records, he found long-forgotten sagas of men born in Freeport who died in combat whose lives are no longer remembered. He has entered details about them into a database, including their date of high school graduation, their vocation, personal discovered information, branch of service and rank, how and where they died, and where they are laid to rest. |
| So far, he has collected photos of 96 of the 139 veterans, either of a memorial or headstone, retrieving them from North Africa, the Philippine Islands, and 12 cemeteries in Europe as well as photos from Arlington National Cemetery, “Courts of the Missing” Hawaii, Long Island National Cemetery and many private cemeteries in the United States. |
| The end result is that the “forgotten” become more than a name on a wall or plaque, they become real people. Don will donate his work to the Freeport Memorial Library. |
