What Did Your Family Do On VE Day?
/
What Did Your Family Do On VE Day?
VE day is a time when everyone commemorates the Allied Victory in Europe during WW2. Many families get together to commemorate VE day and celebrate the sacrifice that countless European soldiers made to secure the Allied victory in 1945. What did your family do together on VE day? Let’s take a closer look at what many families in Europe are doing to commemorate this day.
What Did Your Family Do On VE Day?
Every family commemorates VE day in their own special way. Did you do any of the following activities together as a family on VE Day?
Look at old photographs?
If your family had family members who were active as soldiers or other members of the Allied armed forces during WW2, you may have some old family photographs related to them. Photos of your soldier family member in their uniform or even photos they took while fighting in Europe are all staples of a family photo album on VE Day. Family history is so often preserved through old family photographs, and the memory of family members who fought—and perhaps even died—during the war is one way to commemorate VE Day.
Talk about military family history?
If your family history includes a family member who was serving in the military during WW2, then you may talk about your family’s military history on VE Day. Family members who were alive during the war may share their stories or, if they have all passed on, their children and relatives may discuss what they knew about their family’s history during this time period. Sharing family history stories such as these is essential for preserving people’s memory and personal stories for future generations. If you haven’t already done so, you should record these stories in some manner—such as recording them as a video—so that they can be backed up and passed down to future generations.
Click here to learn how to how to conduct a family history virtual video interview with an older family member.
Compile important military related family history documents?
If your family does have people who were serving in the military during this time period, then you may have spent VE day working hard to compile important family history related documents. This could include service member papers, identification cards, letters that they wrote home, and so on. These documents should be compiled together and then preserved, since the original documents are likely fragile and could become damaged or lost over time. The best way to back up old photos is to digitize them, so if you haven’t done so already, then your family should do this with every important family history related document.
VE Day is a time when families get together to commemorate the sacrifice and lives that helped make the Allied Victory in Europe possible. If you and your family got together this VE Day, think about what you did to commemorate this important historical date—and consider what you will be doing next year as a family to put together your own family’s military history and personal connection to VE Day.