Building a Shadowbox

[Joe_Snuffy]

My grandfather on my mother's side passed a couple years ago. I knew he was in WWII but barely knowing him, and him never talking about it meant that no one really knew what he did back then.

Recently my mother got a copy of all of his military paperwork, to include his discharge paperwork (it turns out he was a Door Gunner/Mechanic during the war! :eek:)

Anyways, the point is I want to build a shadowbox in honor of his service and in memory of him. Or at least get the appropriate things together to mount inside of one. I'm getting the discharge paperwork sent to me so I can track down the right patches, and awards to put this together.

This being the first one I've done, I'd appreciate any advice from the BTDTs on this. Thank you.

[Utah Bob]

Medals of America (http://www.medalsofamerica.com/StoreHome5.aspx?service=army&res=1440) has pretty much every thing you need. I'm in the process of doing one for my dad.

[Joe_Snuffy]

Thanks Utah Bob. I found a couple of sites that carry things, but wasn't sure how good they were.

[Tatonka316]

I would agree with Utah Bob! I build furniture as my "hobby" and the professionals at Medals of America do an outstanding job and their prices are very reasonable. Plus their turn-around time is very fast. Good luck with your project!:D

molon labe:lifter

[Joe_Snuffy]

I would agree with Utah Bob! I build furniture as my "hobby" and the professionals at Medals of America do an outstanding job and their prices are very reasonable. Plus their turn-around time is very fast. Good luck with your project!:D

molon labe:lifter

Thanks. It's a suprise gift for my mother. I know she'd love to have something that shows her something more about her father.

I got to say, what little I know about him, he was a badass. He survived WWII, and was an electrician who helped build two of the US' hydroelectric dams [The Hoover and Libby Dams iirc...] and survived a fire caused by someone working on a live electrical panel. I only saw him a couple times in my entire life, but every recollection I have him makes me think that the phrase "quiet professional" as the best way to describe him.

Thank you very much for your help and advice. I'm very glad to find a place that will be able to help me honor a family member and veteran.

[echoes]

My grandfather on my mother's side passed a couple years ago. I knew he was in WWII but barely knowing him, and him never talking about it meant that no one really knew what he did back then.

Recently my mother got a copy of all of his military paperwork, to include his discharge paperwork (it turns out he was a Door Gunner/Mechanic during the war! :eek:)

Anyways, the point is I want to build a shadowbox in honor of his service and in memory of him. Or at least get the appropriate things together to mount inside of one. I'm getting the discharge paperwork sent to me so I can track down the right patches, and awards to put this together.

This being the first one I've done, I'd appreciate any advice from the BTDTs on this. Thank you.

Joe,

My Uncle was a very quiet man, who spoke briefly about his WWII service during all the times I spent with him. (I asssumed he just did not want to talk about it.) Yet after he recently passed away, I was given his WWII memoirs...guns, maps, photos, newspapers, personal awards and patches etc...

And all I can say is, wow. His time in the service obviously meant a great deal to him, he just did not like to talk about it. So my tribute to him, when I put it together, will reflect just that. Because I think he would like it that way...;)

Jusy my little .02, and good for you, for keeping the memory alive.

Holly

[JJ_BPK]

The Rack Builder will help keep his robins in the correct order and they have the devices if needed. Prices aren't bad either..

This is in order of precedence:

http://armyawards.com/awards.shtml

This one is alphabetize, but has the devices

http://www.ezrackbuilder.com/

Look to ebay for old patches and unit insignias. Remember that some units have changed over time. So you need to check to see if it fits the time frame of his service.

That is, if you want to go that far,, for accuracy..

[Joe_Snuffy]

The Rack Builder will help keep his robins in the correct order and they have the devices if needed. Prices aren't bad either..

This is in order of precedence:

http://armyawards.com/awards.shtml

This one is alphabetize, but has the devices

http://www.ezrackbuilder.com/

Look to ebay for old patches and unit insignias. Remember that some units have changed over time. So you need to check to see if it fits the time frame of his service.

That is, if you want to go that far,, for accuracy..

Thanks! I use Rackbuilder myself to keep my awards straight as well as help the folks I work with keep theirs straight.

And I am going as far as it takes to make sure it's 100% right. I may go the route of tracking down replicas, or having them made when it comes to the patches assuming I can find pictures of the old ones.

[Utah Bob]

Unit patches from WWII can be hard to track down sometimes but there are plenty of collectors and sellers out there. Hopefully he didn't serve in any deactivated units. That will make it easier.
I was lucky my dad kept his patches, ribbons, wings and such squirreled away in a box. Good luck on your project.

One problem is those shadowboxes must give off toxic fumes because they tend make your eyes water. Hard to explain the throat lump thing.

[Joe_Snuffy]

Unit patches from WWII can be hard to track down sometimes but there are plenty of collectors and sellers out there. Hopefully he didn't serve in any deactivated units. That will make it easier.
I was lucky my dad kept his patches, ribbons, wings and such squirreled away in a box. Good luck on your project.

One problem is those shadowboxes must give off toxic fumes because they tend make your eyes water. Hard to explain the throat lump thing.

Perhaps swelling because of the fumes?

Thanks again everyone. I'll keep you posted on my progress if you'd like.

[Joe_Snuffy]

It's rather humbling to look at his records. Looking at them I realize how little I knew him, and how much I wish I knew him better. I am incredibly thankful that I had the chance to get to know him a little better. I've attached his Enlisted Record and Report of Honorable Discharge.

In his two years, nine monthes and twenty days of service he served in six major campaigns as a door gunner and mechanic in the 715th Bomb Squadron. During this time he was awarded six Bronze Stars, three Air Medals, and one Good Conduct Medal.

Thank you again everyone for your support in helping me do this.

[JJ_BPK]

That is an amazing achievement.

You should dig some more, in the hopes of finding the individual citations for his Bronze Stars.

[Richard]

I did shadow boxes for my Dad and Father-In-Law - you should look up his unit's history to keep with the memorabilia - here are some links for that:

715th Bomb Squadron Patch (see pic)

http://www.aeroleatherclothing.com/webapp/aeroleather/servlet/AeroViewPage?page=displayproduct&subcatid=112&prodid=262

http://www.acejackets.com/WWII_8th_AAF_Shoulder_Patch_p/fl1008.htm

715th Bomb Squadron

http://www.fb-111a.net/715thBS.html

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_United_States_Air_Force_bomb_squadrons

448th Bomb Group - 2nd Air Division (all B-24s)

http://usaaf.com/8thaf/bomber/448bg.HTM

http://www.heritageleague.org/groups/448bg.htm

http://www.pastonroot.co.uk/golds/448.html

http://www.tributeto448thbgpcrew48.net/id41.htm

448th Bomb Group DVD at Amazon - Liberators Over Germany

http://www.amazon.com/448th-Bomb-Group-Liberators-Germany/dp/0764314645

448th Bomb Group Association

http://www.military-network.com/ben/Associations_Detail.cfm?ID=5239

8th Air Force History

http://www.8thafhs.org/

http://www.mightyeighth.org/research_center.htm#collections

Good hunting!

Richard

[Joe_Snuffy]

My mother has copies of a lot of his paperwork and I'm sure she has those, but commo is rather limited due to my deployed status. I'll get more later though when I go on leave [eventually].

[Joe_Snuffy]

EDIT: Found my answer. Nevermind.