Students at Frewsburg Central School District recently participated in the Veteran’s Book Project, a traveling exhibit of books which contain the stories of Iraq and Afghanistan veterans. Submitted photo

FREWSBURG — Frewsburg High School students were recently given the opportunity to read firsthand accounts of life in wartime Iraq and Afghanistan.

Students in 10th grade English Language Arts and Global Studies participated in the Veteran’s Book Project in the Frewsburg High School Library, learning about life in a warzone from a veteran’s perspective. The exhibit is a traveling book collection which contain the stories of Iraq and Afghanistan veterans that ventures all across the county for students to experience.

According to Lisa Burns, English teacher, the exhibit was brought to the school library by Patricia Briggs, Jamestown Community College’s Weeks Art Gallery museum curator. All 10th-grade students were able to view the narratives written by the veterans and then respond to questions regarding the narratives. Later, the students were asked to write poetry, join in classroom discussions and write their own narratives, she said.

The program has occurred at Frewsburg for two years, and coincided with the Holocaust unit of study at the school, Burns added.

“This year we moved the exhibit to the school library and included our librarian, Emily Spielman,” she said. “Each year it grows and we already have ideas in the works for next year to expand it to include others as well. I’d like to see an even closer bond created with the community, particularly the Frewsburg Rest Home.”

Burns said the students got a better idea of how war impacts military members and their families, and even allowed for students to interview Frewsburg Rest Home residents to write narratives regarding their lives.

“I was impressed at how interested and focused the students were to read about the impact of war,” she said. “It inspired them to reach beyond their daily lives and create responses and writings that reflect the experiences of individuals they have never even met. It really gave depth and life to topics they study in their classes.”

The Veteran’s Book Project is fueled by the stories written together by artist Monica Haller and veterans. The books in the project are referred to as “Objects for Deployment.” A book written by Riley Sharbonno and Haller kicked-off the Veteran’s Book Project in 2009.

The pair collaborated on a book based on hundred of images Sharbonno took while he was a nurse at Abu Ghraib prison.

Veteransbookproject.com offers visitors a chance to read the stories for themselves, not only of veterans, but also others impacted by the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. The stories, along with pictures, are available to be downloaded or visitors can purchase a physical copy.

Veteran Aaron R. Heusinkveld, U.S. Army Veteran, shared his tale of deployment at Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq in 2005. Heusinkveld said he was deployed for 319 days.

“For my own safety, I was required to wear my full combat gear anytime I was outside my room,” Heusinkveld wrote. “The imminent threat of incoming enemy mortar rounds or rockets was something I was not prepared for. Almost like clockwork, every day the air-raid siren would sound off like a tornado. the siren had different tones to let us know where the last mortar landed. The running joke was, ‘As long as you can hear that siren, you’re not dead yet.'”

For more information on the project or to view the stories, visit www.veteransbook project.com.