Friday, Oct. 2, is the deadline for veterans to sign up to share their stories of combat in Jacksonville.
Florida Blue is inviting veterans to record interviews next week that will be saved in the Library of Congress for future generations.
Florida Blue’s Cindy James says the oral history collection began as an internal project for employees last year. But next week, the Florida Blue retail centers on Jacksonville’s Northside, at 13141 City Station Drive, and at the St. Johns Town Center, at 4855 Town Center Parkway, are opening up to include all combat veterans.
“They have such rich history that they can provide to us as a country,” James says. “They have really seen firsthand what war is like.”
James says her dad fought in Vietnam, but he never talked about it.
“So, I’ve been able to go out to that site and find other Vietnam veterans who have told their stories, and it’s really meant a lot to me to be able to understand my father,” she says.
The interviews collected next week in Jacksonville will be added to the Library of Congress’s Veterans History Project.
Registration closes at the end of the day on Friday, Oct. 2. To register, enter a ZIP code and search for "Veterans History Project" on the Florida Blue website or contact Cindy James directly at Cindy.James@FloridaBlue.com or (904) 905-0341.
Interviews will be scheduled for Tuesday through Thursday, Oct. 6-8, between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m.
