FREDERICK, MD - The entire world will be able to hear the stories of five local veterans, thanks to a special project at a community college.
93-year-old Betty-Printz Sims has seen a lot in her lifetime.
"I'd pick up the ammunition and dip it in the water. I'd take my mallet and hit it. I'm not sure it was live ammunition. I don't know, but it didn't explode," says Cpl. Betty-Printz Sims, U.S. Marine Corps.
She enlisted in the Marines after the bombing in Pearl Harbor. Now her story will be preserved, thanks to the work of Honors English and Speech students at Frederick Community College.
Betty-Printz Sims was one of the first women to serve in the Marines during World War II. She thinks the project is important to make sure future generations know the stories of the past. She broke gender barriers as an aviation instructor.
"They thought that this was simply ludicrous to have to school to school number one, and number two, you have to have a woman. They were so cute. They were darling. Oh my goodness, and then they'd try to date you on the side," she said.
The projects were at least an hour each. They have been sent to the Library of Congress' Veterans History Project.
"Our students need to see what happened before they came along. They need to get out of their own little comfort zone and see the people who have made the sacrifices," says Jan Marcus, FCC instructor.
"It's pretty awesome to think that I'm going to be a published author, along with my other classmates," says Ellen Heller, FCC student.
"It's good because it's the history of the past. We learn so much for the history for our present and definitely for our future," says Lt. Col. Percy Moore, U.S. Marine Corps.
U.S. Army Specialist Tony Neff suffered a spinal injury while serving the country.
"Any opportunity I get to share with people who are willing to listen to the stories and experiences we all have is a very humbling experience," says Neff.
It's also a humbling experience for the students and future generations who will be able to better understand a piece of our nation's history.
Marcus says this will be an ongoing project with students interviewing and doing projects on a different group of veterans each semester.
