Steven Woodside lectured on his experience in the Army for 32 years at the Ford City Library in a pre-Veteran’s Day program.
“A Salute to Veterans” was the theme of last week’s Legends of the Library – a monthly feature at the Ford City Library.
Last week, Library Assistant Katie Wolfe said they highlighted veteran stories from Armstrong County, with items from the Armstrong County Historical Museum on display.
“We have had veterans here (in Armstrong county) from French and Indian War times all the way up till now,” Wolfe explained. “So we tried to highlight them and hear stories of veterans that came as well. We emphasized a little bit of World War II because it was the 75th anniversary of D-Day this past June. And we also have items on loan from the Armstrong County Historical Museum. We have uniforms, some pictures, and even an air mask.”
The evening also included a guest speaker from the Armstrong Veterans Alliance. Steven Woodside gave a brief history of the Army.
“I talked about what I did in the Army for 32 years,” Woodside said. “I knew at five years old I was going to be a soldier. I never deviated from that. If you ever saw our childhood photos growing up, there were six kids. I was always the kid with the gun in my hand. I just knew I was going to be a soldier. So after I graduated Elderton in 1980, I joined the Army. Then 32 years later, I retired from the Army.”
Dr. Samuel Cross examines various artifacts that were on display during last week’s veterans program at the Ford City Library.
Woodside is at the War College at Carlisle at the Heritage Education Center, where all the Army records are maintained dating back to the French and Indiana Revolutionary time, including manifest orders, and all types of paperwork.
“We maintain that for researchers, people writing books, movies, as well as professors for all history departments. And we have the Heritage Trail. It is a one-mile track right outside of that building that maintains living history for prospective students and Academy cadets go through there. We have Vietnam fire base. We have Civil War cabins, World War I trenches - It’s very detailed. It’s a terrific place to really learn about the Army and like a living history-type setting.”
Woodside also is involved in the Armstrong Veterans’ Alliance, a local support group for all veterans in Armstrong County.
“I just basically want to remind everybody of the Army’s history briefly, what the Army does today and what it meant for me,” he concluded.
For more information about any of the programs, contact the Ford City Library at 724-763-3591.