Sepia Saturday 755. Dedicated to my dad’s brother Frederic Mason Charboneau, a WWII veteran of the US Army (1942-1944).
For more than a year, Molly’s Canopy has featured WWII letters from my paternal uncle Frederic Mason Charboneau — written while he was stationed in Europe and North Africa and sent primarily to his mother Mary (Owen) Charboneau.
Uncle Fred sounded particularly happy in his holiday season letters — thankful for presents sent from home (like Loft’s candies!) and fondly remembering the gift givers, both family and friends.
So this year, I thought it would be nice to create some posthumous holiday presents for Uncle Fred as a way of honoring him and his service.
A propitious podcast
I got the idea from a Family Tree Magazine podcast “Best Websites: Finding Ancestors Who Fought in Major Conflicts with the ABMC – An Interview with Benjamin Brands.”
The episode focused on the American Battle Monuments Commission, which maintains US military cemeteries abroad, and described how its resources can help researchers find family who served in the military.
But what interested me most was information near the end of the podcast about the World War II Memorial Registry, a crowd-sourced online repository of deceased service members’ military details and stories.
A disastrous 1973 fire at the National Personnel Records Center in St. Louis destroyed many US Army and Air Force service records. So sharing military details from family documents and personal knowledge helps fill the genealogy research gap. I immediately thought of Uncle Fred and decided to enter him in the registry.
Uncle Fred joins the WWII Memorial Registry
After signing up for a free account, I went to the “Register an Honoree” tab and entered his basic military information on a drop-down form. Then I waited for my information to be approved, which happened the same day, and his basic entry went live!
There is an option to add a photo, so I did that successfully as well. However, adding a paragraph about his military history generated an error message — repeatedly — AND removed his photo. What to do??
Fortunately, the registry’s email is at the bottom of the home page — so I sent a message about the problem and received a prompt response. After some back and forth emails, I was asked to send Uncle Fred’s photo and bio so they could post it for me. The resulting plaque is shown below and here. Not a bad posthumous present for Uncle Fred!
On to Fold3 and beyond
Having completed Uncle Fred’s registry listing, I realized his military biography would also work on his memorial page on Fold3, a paid military research site available for free at many libraries. So I added the bio to the Stories section of his page.
Finally, it occurred to me that Uncle Fred’s Find a Grave listing might benefit from similar attention. I don’t manage his listing, so I added his obituary there as a photo — which summarizes his military service and civilian life. I also requested that the manager add his full birth and death dates, and mark him as a veteran. Those changes have since been made.
So there you have it: Three posthumous holiday presents for my uncle Frederic Mason Charboneau to document his life and service.
Happy Holidays & New Year from Molly’s Canopy!
In the New Year: More of Uncle Fred’s 1943 letters. Please stop back! Meanwhile, please visit the other intrepid bloggers over at Sepia Saturday.
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