In an effort to capture the many war stories from local veterans, members of the Veterans of Foreign War (VFW) and the Oswego County Veteran’s Museum and Heritage Center are on a mission to preserve such tales.

Through interviews, starting with World War II veterans and continuing on through the present, they hope to tell the stories of local servicemen and women.

Above, left, veteran Ralph Fontana videotapes an interview between Mike Cloonan, center, and veteran Carl Dickinson, who is 94 years old.

Dickinson landed by boat in Normandy on D-Day and battled safely through machine gun and small arms fire. For his service, Dickinson was decorated with many awards, including the Purple Heart, four Bronze Stars and the Presidential Distinguished Unit Citation. He says he’s experienced much since the war ended, “but nothing can compare to the lifetime of experiences I encountered in my three years of military service, over 62 years ago.”