jerry16
T/4. 
To speak for thoes who can no longer speak for themselves
Posts: 151
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Post by jerry16 on Feb 1, 2015 0:51:09 GMT -5
I was watching Generation War and I started to think about a occasion when a civilian at an event I was at asked me about why I was dressed as a Nazi soldier. She than said "What do you like to be the bad guy" Normally I say something quick and walk away however this time I stayed and had a long conversation with her about why I wear this uniform. I started by saying that I was actually dressed as a Soldier in the German Army around 1944 when my relative was killed fighting on the Russian Front. I showed her two pictures one was him in his dress uniform after basic training and the second was his family picture before he left for the front. I explained that he joined to serve his country and keep his family safe. I told her the story of all three my relatives who served and how their stories were almost exactly like the ones of my family who served in the US Navy, and Army during World War Two. I am lucky that I can pull from personal family stories however I reenact both US and German however I choose to do many of the public events with the German Unit I belong to. I just wanted to share and see if anyone else had similar stories.
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cqm
Private First Class 
Posts: 41
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Post by cqm on Feb 1, 2015 14:59:03 GMT -5
Jerry, I am happy to see you answered the question the way you did. I got a similar question once when I did WWI German. I have also had long, in depth discussions as to why my relatives were part of the Nazi party during the 30's and war years. When it boils down to it, most men and women, no matter what nationality, join the military and choose to fight for their country is all the same. Same reason I joined the Navy while still in high school in 1987.
BTW, my relatives in Germany were in the Nazi party so they could keep their jobs. One was a postman and another worked on the railroad. It was join the Nazi party or find another profession. The postman relative was the WWI veteran and the one I was honoring when doing the WWI reenacting
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jerry16
T/4.
To speak for thoes who can no longer speak for themselves
Posts: 151
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Post by jerry16 on Feb 2, 2015 11:06:40 GMT -5
Thank you for your story. My German side of the family has similar stories to tell. My cousin Franz was in the Hitler Youth, than a Flak Helper, only to be drafted into the Luftwaffe as a Radio Operator in Holland and Northern Italy. His father who had served in the Austro-Hungarian Army in WW I was the Nazi Party Leader and in charge of ensuring Vets received their benefits. He was in the party to begin with because he was a Civil Servant. These are the stories that really give the bigger picture of Germans who fought in World War Two. That is why I choose to Reenact German. To tell my families and others stories. Thank you.
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