Veteran and Willow Glen resident Bob Carter says, "Even today, when I hear the sound of a piston-engine plane flying overhead, it brings back memories of training to be a pilot in the Air Corps," he says.

With the Stories of Service project at the Willows Senior Center, people like Carter who lived through World War II have a chance to imprint their experiences on history. Launched in 1998 by the Digital Clubhouse of Sunnyvale, Stories of Service is a national project dedicated to recording the legacy of World War II survivors. The Willows Senior Center became involved with the project in 2003.

Working with adult mentors and young people, seniors relate their stories through a series of digital films. The young people, referred to as Digitally Enabled Producers or DAPpers, work with a mentor to interview a senior and shape the interview into a three- to five-minute script. After submitting the script to the senior for approval, the DAPper produces a short film on a computer, combining the narrated script, background music, and photos. The films are then archived in the Library of Congress and the Smithsonian Museum of Natural History.

Mel Locke, who is on the Stories of Service board of directors, stresses the importance of preserving the personal experiences of World War II survivors. She says, "Most of these vets are in their 80s and 90s. Two thousand of them are dying every day. In the Stories of Service program, we are letting people know the truth of what actually happened, the side of history that is not in school textbooks. We're relating the more personal angle and letting people know the feelings and experiences of the vets themselves."

Carter says he remembers well the excitement and fear of his service in World War II. "It was a very emotional experience," he says. "I was so young when I went in, and I had never spent much time away from home. It got pretty lonely. And we were so involved. There's an expression now, '24/7.' That was our life during the war—24/7."

Carter's digital film, Lynn's Legacy, is the result of a yearlong collaboration with 16-year-old DAPper Rohini Venkatraman. The film relates Carter's memories of his participation in the war and of a childhood friend named Lynn Downing who was killed in battle.

While growing up in Portland, Ore., Carter says, he and Downing used to construct model airplanes together. Although the schoolboys were only entertaining themselves, their interest in planes would soon come in handy.

When Pearl Harbor was attacked, both men were so upset that they tried to enlist immediately. A routine blood test, however, revealed that Carter had an illness, delaying his enrollment in the military.

Downing, on the other hand, was accepted into the Army Air Corps and began his training almost immediately. One of the first pilots to operate a B-17, he was sent to aid in the liberation of the Philippines. While he and his crew were on a bombing mission to disable Japanese facilities, their plane was shot down. The entire crew perished in the attack.

Carter says he was fortunate enough to have one last encounter with his friend before he died. Both men happened to be on leave in Portland at the same time. Downing had just completed his B-17 training, and Carter was receiving his pilot's wings.

After Carter completed his training, he too was sent overseas to England, where he and his fellow soldiers replaced the servicemen who were injured, sick or killed. He remained in England until 1945, the summer following the end of the war.

The memories of his wartime experiences remained vivid throughout Carter's life. To honor his deceased friend, Carter named his son Lynn. And when he had the opportunity to participate in Stories of Service, he dedicated his contribution to the memory of the brave soldier who lost his life serving his country.

While transforming his memories into narrative form, Carter says he wanted to pass on some of the lessons he learned in the war to future generations. He says he hopes the young people who view his film gain an understanding of the real emotions of the people participating in a war both at home and abroad.

"I wanted to convey a sense of the fear we felt during the war," he says. "We were just ordinary people. Being involved in the war gave me perspective on the seriousness of war."

Venkatraman, who worked one-on-one with Carter to produce Lynn's Legacy, says listening to Carter's memories gave her a new perspective on the fragility of life.

"When I was talking to him, he kept on saying that you never really know what's going to happen," she says. "Bob got sick and was delayed in going to war, and he really believes that is what saved his life. We tried to emphasize that in the film. It sounds cliché, but I realized that you have to live life to the fullest, because you never really know what could happen."

A history buff, Venkatraman says she initially chose to participate in Stories of Service because she wanted to enrich her understanding of a time period she had only read about in books.

"The project gives you more than just the textbook perspective, and that's exciting," she says. "You are learning about someone leaving their family, going off on their own and losing connection with their social relations. History books just give you facts about battles and groups of people. It's not very personal."

Locke agrees that the program introduces a unique perspective on World War II that goes beyond what is taught in the classroom. She adds that these stories also have the potential to inform people—who lived during that period of time but weren't in the service—about untold experiences.

"Having lived as a young person at that time, we were given only so many facts and never saw the other side," she says. "We were all very patriotic and pumped up and doing as much as we could to support the war effort, but we never saw the other side, the side of suffering."

She says she hopes that participating in the project gave the World War II survivors a sense of closure.

"Many of the soldiers involved in the war didn't want to share their experiences, and people didn't ask them either," she says. "I have met wives of veterans who tell me their husbands still wake up in the middle of the night screaming and shaking. I have also seen children who view the digital movies and say, 'Dad, I never knew this happened to you.'"