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Archiver > GENEALOGYBITSANDPIECES > 2005-06 > 1120050973


From: "Sally Rolls Pavia" <>
Subject: Manila American Cemetery .. Great Site and Wonderful Folk Doing This Project
Date: Wed, 29 Jun 2005 06:16:13 -0700


Does anyone have a family member or friend that is from Indiana that is
buried in the Manila American Cemetery?? If so, or even if you don't, this
is an excellent site. Great folk that do the project, they really took on
quite an undertaking when they decided to do all the folk from Indiana.

Sally Rolls Pavia

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________________________________


From Dave & Apple Dwiggins
San Pablo City, Philippines
Manila American Cemetery Project
Indiana Soldiers & Sailors


Dear Friends & Families of Indiana Servicemen!

It has been nearly a year since Apple and I walked
into the Manila American Cemetery and suddenly our
project commenced. We took the photo of the Ohio
soldier and it hit us, these heroes receive few or no
visitors. We decided to bring the photos to the
families with your help.

As of today we have found 60 Indiana families and sent
free photographs to them showcasing the Manila
Memorial Cemetery and the "Tablets of the Missing" as
a beautiful and appropriate tribute to these
servicemen. We have notified over 200 Indiana
newspapers, 150 libraries, over 50 Historical
Societies, and countless genealogy groups sending to
the surname and geographic location bulletin boards.

Your help has brought great success to our project and
the teamwork has been outstanding. In short review our
ten photos turned into a project of 134 men being
honored from Madison and surrounding counties in
Indiana. Reluctantly we decided to expand and honor
all 970 Hoosier soldiers, sailors and marines that
were killed in the South Pacific during World War II.
Historians, librarians, newspaper journalists,
television stations, genealogy groups, historical
societies and enthused Americans volunteered to help
the families that gave ALL.

Apple and I applaud you all for the wonderful help and
the blessings that rained down on all of us especially
the families of the Indiana men. We hope you have
taken the time to stop in and view the progress of our
project and read the successes filled with joy as
families saw the grave sites of their family members
for the first time.

Recently I was honored by the Indiana State Chapter of
the Daughters of the American Revolution with a
National Award for the community activities we are
doing with our project. Proudly I sent a note to be
delivered to the organization and the crowd gathered .
We did it as a TEAM and I personally thank you all for
the fantastic response to a worthy cause of honoring
these men. Teamwork will prevail over individualism
and Apple and I have tried to share these blessings
and successes with you as our team mates on our
website. We hope you enjoy the emails from the many
thankful families. The project is dear to my heart and
I pray you won't desert us. My father taught me long
ago a historian's work will never be finished. Neither
is ours.

http://fizkid.tripod.com/

The successes and blessings have led us to be brave
with our future plans. In past months it has made me
sick to tell families that I didn't have a photo of
the servicemen's name on the "Tablets of the Missing".
It also made me sick inside to tell them that the
boundary of the project is the Indiana state lines. We
salute all American soldiers regardless of where they
called home or which war they were in. Once again we
are expanding our project to include the names on the
"Tablets of the Missing" of all the 50 states. We are
still trying to decide the best method to do the
photography and we hope to finish before the end of
the year. So if you requested the photograph of a
loved one on the wall whether you are from Indiana or
elsewhere we plan to have it for you. It just won't be
tomorrow.

We reside about three hours from the memorial and
sometimes further due to the traffic and conditions.
We are also at the mercy of the weather, our pension,
the drivers and vehicles we hire. Sometimes it rains
on our parade but we do the best we can.

Once again we thank you from the bottom of our hearts
for the time you have volunteered, the contributions
for postage and transportation and most of all for
being our team mates.

Sincerely,

Dave & Apple Dwiggins
San Pablo City, Philippines





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