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Friday, May 3, 2002
Contact: Peter Bailley
news@knox.edu
309-341-7650
Greg Kupsky, a student at Knox College in Galesburg, Illinois, received something in the mail this year that might be kept behind glass forever: it was sent from a soldier in World War II. But that's not all he gained from Earl L. Flickinger, a World War II veteran from Hazel Hurst, Penn. (Photo: Kupsky with some of the documents received from veterans. Download for publication)
As part of his independent research project at Knox, Kupsky, a senior from Kirkwood, Mo., interviewed 15 World War II veterans and participants to preserve their firsthand experiences in the war. Growing up, Kupsky had enjoyed listening to his grandfather, a WWII veteran, talk for hours about his experiences. When his grandfather died in 1996, Kupsky realized a history-making generation was slipping away as well.
A history major at Knox, Kupsky received a fellowship to conduct independent research and decided to study WWII through the personal stories of veterans. Several months after interviewing Flickinger, Kupsky received a deeply personal memento from the veteran in the mail, inscribed with the words: "Gregory: My family, mother, father, and two brothers are deceased. This is a keepsake for you."
Flickinger, who had been a fifth infantry division machine gunner during the war, had given Kupsky a homemade Christmas card he had originally sent to his family when he was stationed in Borganes, Iceland, in 1942. A black and white photo in the card shows Flickinger in his uniform, standing in front of his base. Underneath the photo is Flickingers's description of himself: "a heavy machine gunner who was lucky to come home." (Photo: Kupsky holds the card sent to him by earl Flickenger. Download for publication.)
Kupsky interviewed veterans in St. Louis and in Eldred, Penn., the home of a World War II museum, during his summer and holiday breaks of 2001. He spent up to three hours with the veterans, who were B-24 pilots, paratroopers, rangers at D-Day, and plane mechanics. Kupsky has 266 pages of transcribed memories, as well the bond he created with Flickinger, as the fruits of his project. One veteran told Kupsky he was lucky to be granted the interview: it was only the second time since the war he'd spoken at length about his experiences.
"Greg has made a real connection with his subjects, which is considerable when you think about how hard it must be for many veterans to discuss what they saw in the war," said Stephen Bailey, Professor of History and Associate Dean of the College. "He has immersed himself in his research, all the while preserving something of great historical importance that otherwise would not have been recorded."
Kupsky is now serving on a task force to help refurbish the college's memorial to alumni who have been killed in wars from World War I to the Vietnam War. His research project will be published in a bound book and placed in the Knox College library. Kupsky, who plans to advance to graduate school to pursue a Ph.D. in history, hopes the information can be used as a source for others conducting research on WWII. He has not decided whether to keep the card or donate it to the college archives, but he knows for certain he'll never forget receiving it.
"That felt really good," he said. "It was kind of the point where I realized that they're getting as much out of this as I am."
Kupsky's research was conducted with support from the Richter Memorial Trust. Last year, Knox awarded over $150,000 for undergraduate research.
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