Spirit of ’45: eBay helps collectors save World War II memories, relics
Fred Klink of San Ramon is an avid collector of World War II material. He has assembled nearly an entire kit of items used by civilian air raid wardens in the United States during the war. He’s got an Air Warden armband, a helmet and a gas mask bag. But one of his recent acquisitions is an instructional notebook that listed the air wardens in San Jose’s Five Wounds neighborhood that he acquired from a seller on the East Coast through eBay.
“How it ever got there who knows,” Klink said, “but a piece of San Jose history has returned home.”
The online auction site has turned into a boon for collectors and amateur historians, who no longer have to hope for a discovery at flea markets or estate sales.
Another collector, Gerry Lopez, has put together more than 200 original and reproduction artifacts from the 201st Mexican Fighter Squadron and the war era, even reproducing a pilot’s uniform through the use of photos. It was on eBay that he discovered some of his most prized possessions: letters written in Spanish from wives to their pilot husbands in 1945.
Some of Klink’s and Lopez’s items will be on display this weekend for the annual Spirit of 45 event at History Park in San Jose, a celebration and commemoration of the end of World War II in August 1945. The events include a 1940s swing dance party fundraiser on Friday night, as well as a vintage vehicle display, live music and more all day Saturday. You can check out the schedule at www. historysanjose.org.
And some items that will be on display made their way to History Park the old fashioned way. Ashley Elieff, a San Jose State art history student and volunteer at History San Jose’s Collection Cen
ter, recently curated an exhibit with a wedding dress belonging to Peggy Irene Morrissey, a British war bride whose husband, John Morrissey, was a B-17 gunner who flew 35 missions.
The couple moved to Montgomery, Alabama, after the war, and following the deaths of her parents, their daughter, Gloria, donated the dress to History San Jose.
Robert Corpus, the Spirit of ’45 Bay Area coordinator, said the event is the perfect opportunity for people to share their family stories and their own artifacts.
“Now that many of our WWII veterans have passed, families are discovering old shoe or cigar boxes of wartime souvenirs that belonged to mom or dad such as love letters, medals, and pictures,” he said. COMMUNITY TRIBUTES » The outpouring of community support for victims of the Gilroy Garlic Festival shooting continue throughout the valley. The San Jose Sharks and San Jose Barracuda announced Thursday that the Sharks Foundation will provide a $10,000 donation to the Silicon Valley Community Foundation’s immediate response fund, and some of the proceeds from the Sept. 22 Fan Fest at SAP Center also will benefit that cause.
Meanwhile, a community town hall and vigil for victims in Gilroy, El Paso and Dayton will take place Saturday at Campbell United Church of Christ at 400 W. Campbell Ave. Speakers will include Assemblymen Ash Kalra and Robert Rivas. The event runs from 6 to 8 p.m.
And on Sunday, the Gilroy Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Academy is planning a fundraiser for the Gilroy Foundation at the main gym of Gilroy High School. The open mat/seminar will feature Dave Camarillo, a judo and jiu-jitsu black belt and UFC coach, and Brazilian jiu-jitsu world champion Caio Terra. The event runs from 8 a.m. to noon and a donation of $25 is suggested.