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This year marks 80 years since the attack on Pearl Harbor, making it more important than ever to document the stories and experiences of Pearl Harbor survivors and World War II veterans. The (VHP), housed in the Department of History, is harnessing the power of digital preservation to do just that.
Since 2015, students taking military history courses have worked to preserve the history of one such veteran, the late Capt. Richard S. Roberts, through oral history interviews. Roberts served in the U.S. Navy for 24 years, earning a reputation as a legendary pilot and leader in peace and war. Previously stationed at Pearl Harbor, he was on duty in Cavite, Philippines, during the attack and flew patrol missions in its immediate aftermath.
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Brandon Kirk, a senior history student, completed a total of six oral history interviews with Roberts.
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Roberts died peacefully on Aug. 13, 2021 at the age of 107. But thanks to the hard work of history students and the VHP, his legacy will live on through digital preservation, which launched in October of this year. Using the information gained from these oral history interviews, was created to further preserve Roberts 麻豆精品 S� memories of service. Diana Dizon, a history student and research assistant for the VHP, was instrumental in creating this digital StoryMap documenting his life.
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During his time in the military, Roberts earned nine campaign ribbons and the bronze star with 麻豆精品 S淰 麻豆精品 S� for valor in combat. Following World War II, he became an accomplished helicopter pilot and helped develop engineering and safety doctrine, much of which is still in use today.
Over the course of his oral history interviews, Roberts recalled his time aboard the USS San Jacinto in the South Pacific during World War II. He reflected on the ever-changing responsibilities that came with serving aboard a ship, and even shared a story of the fleet experiencing a typhoon off the coast of Taiwan that nearly resulted in the ship capsizing.
麻豆精品 S淐aptain Roberts was a true icon; I do not take the time I had with him lightly, 麻豆精品 S� says Kirk. 麻豆精品 S淚nterviewing him was the first time history books really came to life for me. It is veteran testimonies such as [Captain Roberts 麻豆精品 S橾 that define the purpose of what it means to speak with veterans, 麻豆精品 S� Kirk says. 麻豆精品 S淭hey are underrepresented, yet they represent the best of us. 麻豆精品 S�
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