Grant D. Crawford | Daily PressJeremy Scott edits a video for the Purple Heart Memorial organization's records repository.

No one can tell a story quite like the people who were part of it, especially members of the U.S. armed forces. That’s why an Oklahoma veterans organization, Purple Heart Memorial, is working to capture those stories on video to preserve for future generations.

The latest veterans memorial to be erected in Tahlequah, Oklahoma, features a records repository where stories can be protected for posterity. Veterans or their family members are invited to participate, so they can share their histories in the military.

Donald Nichols, who served in the U.S. Marine Corps in Vietnam, came up with the idea after working for the Department of Veterans Affairs and listening to stories from those who served. In his own video, in which he spoke about the day he was shot four times, he discussed how the undertaking came to be.

“I worked for the Department of Veterans Affairs for 30 years,” Nichols said. “I heard a lot of interesting stories – POWs, code talkers, veterans with regular stories. I heard those and I thought how great it would be to capture those stories from a historical perspective.”

Purple Heart Memorial and Nichols have teamed up with Northeastern Oklahoma videographer Jeremy Scott to produce the videos. Scott, whose two grandfathers served in World War II, said it was an opportunity he could not pass up, and believes it’s the first project of its kind in the country.

“Nobody is doing what we’re doing in terms of a monument,” said Scott. “It frankly should be all across the states. And if we’re the ones who are going to be leading the way, it’s an honor and a privilege to be a part of that.”

The statue, “Dahnawa Ahiv Asjsonvhne Ayawisgi” – Cherokee for “The Soldier was Wounded in War” – will feature QR codes placed around the memorial so people can scan them using cell phones, and the videos of veterans’ stories can be watched by visitors.

“Most of these recordings are two to four minutes long,” said Scott. “We try to keep it to the high points, because people don’t watch long-format videos anymore. So the best thing to do is just to keep it relatively short and to the point.”

Stories are centered on veterans’ military careers. Some videos created so far include accounts from those who served in World War II and the Vietnam War. All vets across the country are invited to join in. Scott wants to gather as many stories from those who served in WWII and the Korean War, as the number of veterans from those generations is dwindling.

“It’s very important that somebody who served in either one of those wars get with me, or their family get with me,” he said. “It would be better if we could get it while they’re here, as opposed to posthumously. It’s so much cooler to have the person there.”

Public speaking and getting in front of a camera can be unnerving for many. Scott understands that, which is why he is there to help guide participants.

“The ones who want to come in, we’ll watch a couple of the videos so they have an idea of it,” said Scott. “It’s my responsibility to make them feel comfortable and help them along the way. Not everybody is Jack Nicholson and super-comfortable in front of a camera.”

The stories are available on the Purple Heart Memorial Facebook and YouTube page. One video features a veteran who served in a company that sustained more losses than any other. Another includes the account of a vet who fought in the Battle of the Bulge.

“It gives you an appreciation of what they went through,” said Scott. “We have the luxury of just being able to see it on a computer screen in the comfort of our own homes. Those guys were there, bullets whizzing past their heads, their buddies dying. You have to sit there and go, ‘these guys are heroes.’ These guys are tougher than what most of us think we would be in situations like that. It’s been very moving for me in a way – just to open my eyes about veterans and what some of them have gone through.”

It costs $25 to participate. If a veteran is deceased or unable to tell his or her story for whatever reason, family members are invited to participate. Scott can be reached at 918-316-9393.