Military Histories at JRP Senior Center

By Milt Toratti, U.S. Army Retired, Disabled Veteran

On June 19th, my wife Jan and I, along with our dog “Kirby”, became residents of St. Joseph. We moved from Morrow, Ohio and this was our 38th move…and our last one. Jan said: “Milt, you really need to consider finding a home for your museum because this new home just is not suitable for all your ‘stuff’.” Then we joined the Senior Center and became ‘regulars’ in the exercise room. One morning Donna and Julie engaged me with their curiosity trying to find out who this ‘strange old-fart’ guy was. I told them of my ‘paseo’ and they seemed more than interested.

So, Julie and I did some planning, completed a memorandum of understanding, and in a couple of days, the inventory was transferred into the former library at the Senior Center and readied for public display.

When visitors walk in, they say: “Is this your collection, it must have taken you many years to accumulate?” My response is: “Yes, it’s been my passion, but I am not a collector…, I am a “connector. I connect people with military history, their genealogy, their family stories, their heritage, their human suffering and lessons in life by researching and writing Veteran’s oral histories. I’ve now written 68 books for Veterans so they can then print the books for their grandkids, family and friends. Then they print one copy for my military mini-museum. I do all the interviews, transcribing, research, writing, editing, and reviews for free. Most stories take from 100 to 300 hours to complete, and the stories are supplemented with military memorabilia, helmets, or equipment on display now at the Center. My goal is to have written 85 books when I reach 85 years of age.

I also ‘rescue’ and ‘reconstruct’ Veteran’s stories. Occasionally, I’ll come across materials which were thrown away and then I ‘rescue’ the photos, documents, forms, news articles, notes and letters to ‘reconstruct’ the Veteran’s story. Other family members come to me with stories about their father, brother, uncle, nephew, or friend, and they have no idea of where to go with the rumors and stories that were passed down for generations in their respective family history. So, I begin the searches and gather all information to write the stories and they now discover their roots with proper documentation to proudly give to their respective family members.

I am not a historian, I am not a genealogist, I am not an author, and I am not in business, I am not a non-profit organization. I do not have a business card….I have a “passion card”. I do not sell their stories, I do not copyright their stories to keep costs at a minimum, I do not publish their stories….because the stories belong to the Veteran. I am just a regular guy who loves what he does and obsessed with writing the stories for the Veterans to preserve for posterity sake and bring closure. Several Veterans who suffered from PTSD no long receive psychological counseling because the weights were lifted from their shoulders once they read their own words and shared their story with their friends and loved ones.

I interviewed and wrote my first story when I was 13-years-old about a 109-year-old Veteran who served as a ‘drummer boy’ in the Civil War for the Union Army. I’ve interviewed POW’s from WWII, aviators who were shot down in B-17 and B-24 bombers over Germany, infantrymen who were at the liberation of Dachau Prison Camp, the convoy commander of the Red Ball Express, a medic who carried a violin as his weapon of choice in WWII, an artilleryman who served with President Truman in WWI, reconstructed five Civil War stories for families, interviewed a First Sergeant in WWII at the Battle of Guadalcanal, New Britain, New Guinea and his unit was reconstituted three times.

Visitors can browse through the stories and read them in the Center and read the words of soldiers from the Frozen Chosin, TET ’68, sinking of the WASP, Battle of the Bulge, Landing at Normandy, Flying Coffins, or the Code Talkers; or ask me to tell the stories for them in the words of the soldiers, sailors, airmen, and marines. My second goal is to demonstrate and train anyone who wants to learn how to write a Veteran’s oral history. Someone has to come along and learn from me….so they can keep this passion alive when I hang up my spurs.