World War II Radio Heroes: Letters of Compassion

by Lisa L. Spahr, Austin S. Camacho

More than 60 years had passed before she found them. Dozens of letters written to her family during WWII-from total strangers-to tell her great-grandmother that her son had been captured and was being held as a POW. How did they know this? Through short-wave radio, POWs were allowed to state their names and hometowns and sometimes relay a short message to their families. Scores of Americans, listening to the German propaganda from so far away, heard her grandfather's information and took it upon themselves to write to her great-grandmother. All of these dear people wanted to give her great-grandmother a measure of comfort to know her son was alive. That was only the beginning of her journey. This book is a dedication to them-the radio heroes of WWII.

76 pages, Paperback

First published December 5, 2007

Reviews

[Ferne (Enthusiastic Reader) · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an incredible story of more individuals that as Tom Brokaw so aptly named, "The Greatest Generation" that were heroes in a way that I had no knowledge of prior to reading this book. The story begins as a granddaughter explores her grandfather's WWII trunk but becomes so much more as she reads letters from strangers that were sent to her grandmother while her husband was a POW in Germany.

"All were from strangers who found it in their hearts to write...They wrote during a time when everyone, it appeared was short on money---yet full of hope that the war would come to an end so that peace could be restored to all who were affected."

I read of Flavius Jankanuskas who was one of the Short Wave Amateur Monitors (SWAM) until April 1944, at the age of 17, he joined the Merchant Marine and started sailing ships for the war effort. He was one of the many strangers that had sent Lisa Spahr's grandmother news of hearing the broadcast of her husband's name in 1943. As Lisa Spahr enjoyed several visits with Flavius and his companion, Flavius gifted Lisa the short wave radio on which he heard her grandfather's name and Lisa learned the radio still works. As I read of these visits with Flavius and his companion Friedl and saw a photograph included of the three (3) of them sitting together on a couch with the priceless radio front and center, my heart was particularly touched as I am blessed to know Friedl too and treasure her friendship.

One of the many things that touched my heart as I read the unique letters is a feeling that I have deep in my heart that is described by Lisa Spahr in this way...

"We can only hope that people still possess this sort of kindness toward one another. This united effort to look out for one another has not been matched since WWII. Hopefully, that will one day change."

[Mary Louise Sanchez · Rating 5 out of 5]

The author discovered some postcards and letters in her grandfather's trunk decades after he served in WWII and was a POW in Germany. The letters were from total strangers who wrote to the author's great-grandmother telling her they heard her son on their short-wave radios and that she should be consoled in knowing he was alive even though he was in a prison camp in Germany.

I accidentally stumbled on information about the part short-wave radios played in WWII as I was researching WWII for my middle grade historical fiction novel in progress.

When I learned about this book, I purchased it and found the letters in the book to be quite touching. I can just imagine how families felt getting information about their soldiers from total strangers who even spent their own money for postage.

I hope I do justice to the American men, women, and children who spent many hours listening to broadcasts on their short-wave radios and sending information they learned to soldiers' families as I put this little known historical nugget in my work-in-progress novel.

[Aj · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great stories of amateur radio operators shortwave radio listeners that sent word that POWs were alive to family members stateside.