‘A homage to veterans’: Preserving 250 years of service, one story at a time
By Jennifer Emert
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BREVARD, North Carolina (WLOS) — At the Veterans History Museum of the Carolinas, America’s past is told through personal sacrifice, not just dates and battles.
America’s 250-year history is filled with defining moments shaped by service and sacrifice. As part of WLOS’s Amazing America 250 series, we traveled to Brevard, North Carolina, where that history comes to life at the Veterans History Museum of the Carolinas, one veteran, one story at a time.
When you talk about 250 years of American history, “they’re saying that’s ancient history,” said Bobby Kotlowski, Vice President and Curator of the museum. “But history is important.”
Much of that history is written through war and the people who lived it.
“The Veterans History Museum is a homage to veterans, not just here, but this whole country,” Kotlowski said. “It’s a way that we honor the memory of those who came before us.”
Telling History Through the Individual The museum focuses on conflicts from World War I to the present day, but Kotlowski says the goal is not to overwhelm visitors with timelines or statistics.
“We try to tell an individual story,” he said. “People look at Vietnam now the way I looked at the Civil War growing up. If we don’t remember, we’ll repeat the problems of the war.”
That perspective, Kotlowski said, helps visitors better understand the present.
“We’ve been fighting wars since becoming a nation, even before we were a nation,” he said. “Look at what’s happening in the world today.”
A Classroom for the Next Generation
Beyond its exhibits, the museum also serves as a learning space for students of all ages. A growing library allows middle school, high school, and college students to research military history on site.
“They can come here and research military history right here,” Kotlowski said. “We have a great plethora of books.”
The Stories That Often Go Untold
At the heart of the museum are the personal stories that don’t always make it into textbooks, the soldiers behind the uniforms.
“We focus on the guy in the trenches or flying that one aircraft,” Kotlowski said. “These guys were married. They had families. They had a mom and dad.”
This year, the museum launched a new initiative highlighting individual biographies throughout the exhibits, including Vietnam veterans Sergeant First Class Mike Dirocco and Sergeant Phil Maran.
Remembering the Cost of Freedom
Kotlowski says those personal connections are key to keeping history alive.
“People forget quickly,” he said. “This place is a reminder of that. People may not want to remember wars, but they will remember that individual, their father, grandfather, or grandmother.” It’s a reminder that the freedoms many enjoy today came at a cost paid by ordinary people whose sacrifices should never be forgotten.
The Amazing America 250 series continues through July 4th.
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