Students in teacher Marley Hoefs’s history class in St. Croix Falls, Wisconsin never had the opportunity to meet World War II veterans Bill Bennewitz and Harlan Rosvold.
But through a unique partnership with National History Day and the Veterans Legacy Program at the Department of Veterans Affairs, the high school students can feel a little closer to these WWII heroes.
National History Day is a nonprofit organization striving to improve how students learn about history in the U.S. Through NDA’s Silent Heroes program, students and teachers can research the personal histories of American soldiers, write about their lives, and read those stories as eulogies at their gravesites.
That’s exactly what several members of Hoefs’s class did on April 8 at the Fort Snelling National Cemetery in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
This year, through Silent Heroes, and to honor the Marine Corps’ 250th anniversary, students focused on “Untold Stories of U.S. Marines in WWII,” which was funded by the Veterans Legacy Program. Overall, 52 teachers from across the country were selected to participate.
Highlighting Veteran Stories
Students at St. Croix Falls spent the past few months scouring through pages of documentation, extensively researching the lives of Rosvold and Bennewitz, both Marine Corps soldiers.
Capt. Bill Bennewitz entered the military on June 30, 1942, and served with the Marine Fighter Attack Squadron VMF-24. The St. Cloud, Minnesota native earned several awards for his service, including five air medals and the Distinguished Flying Cross, the military’s highest honor for combat aviation.
Bennewitz died on July 1, 2019, at age 96.
Students Brodie Allram, Alex Hoff and Carson Marks took turns reading the heartfelt eulogy they crafted alongside Bennwitz’s final resting place.
Cpl. Harland Rosvold, from Kenyon, Minnesota, died on March 7, 2023, a day after turning 98. Rosvold joined the Marine Corps on Oct. 4, 1943, serving in the Second Amphibious Armored Division, learning everything there is to know about tanks. He was sent to the Pacific, where he was involved in several battles, including the pivotal Battle of Iwo Jima in February 1945.
Rosvold’s eulogy was read by students Oliver Bauer, Jacob Binverse, Daniel Hanson and Liam Rochford.
Family members, an honor guard, and local media attended the ceremonies, making the experience extra special for the history students.
“Veterans like Bill and Harlan need to be remembered for generations, and these boys were honored to play a part in doing that,” Hoefs told Military.com.
Benefits for Students
Lynne O’Hara, National History Day's deputy director, manages the organization’s educational programs. A former teacher, O’Hara recognizes the importance of history and helping high school students make connections with people from the past.
“It makes them realize how much ordinary people contributed to the war effort,” O’Hara told Military.com.
The project also challenged students to go beyond using AI tools and Google to find primary sources and other valuable information.
“Believe it or not, there is a lot of useful information you can’t find on the internet,” O’Hara said. “Once they hit a roadblock and found out they were limited on what they could find on these two veterans, it made them think of other resources to use.”
Ken Holliday from the National Cemetery Association told Military.com the program teaches students valuable tools they can utilize in college and beyond. The Silent Heroes program also amplifies stories of less heralded veterans.
“By doing so, we honor the legacies of these Veterans while also providing unique opportunities for students to learn lessons and develop skills through the research they conduct,” Holliday said. “Most of the veteran stories discovered through this work are not well known. But through the hard work of these students, they ensure that these Veterans are known and that their stories are not forgotten.”
When Holliday attends the eulogy ceremonies, he’s awestruck by how much the students learn about a person they don’t know.
“In almost all these ceremonies I will hear students say that they felt like they had established a real connection with these veterans,” he said. “These veterans were strangers to these students before they began their work. But by the end, it is obvious that they truly care about who these veterans were. They’ve established a sort of personal connection with these veterans through their research. It is something really special.”
National History Day and the Silent Heroes program also help the National Cemetery Association accomplish its goal to memorialize veterans long after they’ve died.
“And we do so in innovative and engaging ways,” Holliday said. “The programs honor Veterans but also provide unique opportunities for students all across the country.”
Moving forward, as the Silent Heroes program hopes to expand to more classrooms, there are plenty of chances to tell veteran stories. Holliday said the NDA operates 157 cemeteries across the country with more than 4 million veterans interned.
“We have seen our program grow substantially since its 2016 launch,” he said. “We’ve been able to work with many organizations over the years that have allowed us to work in communities across the country. Every year, we strive to bring new programs to our cemeteries and their local surrounding communities.”
