(Photo courtesy of Deschutes Public Library)
In support of the High Desert Museum’s new exhibit, World War II: The High Desert Home Front, Deschutes Public Library is exploring the people, food, literature, propaganda, and the politics of World War II. Expect to learn something new and dig a little deeper into the war years that shaped our country and our community. All programs are free.
Cooking for Victory*
From rationing to victory gardens to the industrialization of our food systems, chef and food advocate Rose Archer discusses the American diet during WWII. Sample foods prepared by Rose will be based on WWII cookbooks. *Space is limited and registration is required.
Tuesday, February 7 • 12:00 p.m. • East Bend Library | 62080 Dean Swift Road, Bend
Wednesday, February 8 • 12:00 p.m. • Redmond Library | 827 SW Deschutes Avenue, Redmond
Wartime East of the Cascades, 1941–1945
The home front war effort transformed both communities and landscapes across the nation. Five years of war left the region east of the Cascades with its own memories of the World War II home front experience. Using images and artifacts reflective of the era, local historian Bob Boyd will reveal both the experiences of soldiers and civilians, and explore the impact on communities and the region’s landscape during the war years.
Tuesday, February 7 • 6:00 p.m. • Downtown Bend Library | 601 NW Wall Street, Bend
Wednesday, February 8 • 12:00 p.m. • Sisters Library | 110 North Cedar Street, Sisters
U.S. Army Combat Engineer Training at Camp Abbot
Les Joslin gives an illustrated talk about the development, operation and fate of Camp Abbot. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers engineer replacement training center (ERTC), located south of Bend, was the site of extensive combat engineer and other training operations in 1942 and 1943.
Saturday, February 11 • 2:00 p.m. • Downtown Bend Library | 601 NW Wall Street, Bend
Wednesday, February 15 • 12:00 p.m. • Sunriver Library | 56855 Venture Lane, Sunriver
The Elliott Love Letters: WWII on a Personal Stage
In the months preceding D-Day (June 6, 1944), Frank and Pauline Elliott exchanged a series of poignant love letters. Frank, just 23 years old, had left Georgetown University to enlist with the Army in 1943. He left behind his 24-year-old wife Pauline and their daughter DeRonda, just a toddler, in Pennsylvania. Frank died in the D-Day invasion. Explore the love letters with Community Librarian Nate Pedersen and special guest readers.
Sunday, February 12 • 2:00 p.m. • Downtown Bend Library | 601 NW Wall Street, Bend
The Reel History of How Film Shaped the Views of a Nation
As WWII ramped up, Americans found previously unimaginable access to news and information: the movies. Through newsreels, Americans were able to find out about the war effort on a regular basis. Filmmakers and propagandists, on the other hand, found an unprecedented way to control the message. Educator and film scholar Joel Clements will explore how newsreels and animated shorts used the popular medium of movies to shape ideas and attitudes as the United States plunged into war.
Thursday, February 16 • 6:00 p.m. • East Bend Library | 62080 Deal Swift Road, Bend
Saturday, February 18 • 2:00 p.m. • Redmond Library | 827 SW Deschutes Avenue, Redmond
Screen On Paper Wings with Filmmaker Ilana Sol
In the spring of 1945, a Japanese balloon bomb claimed the lives of the only people killed on the continental U.S. as the result of enemy action during WWII. On Paper Wings is the story of four Japanese women who worked on balloon bombs, the families of those killed in Oregon and the man whose actions brought them all together forty years after WWII. Watch and discuss the film with filmmaker Ilana Sol.
Saturday, February 25 • 1:00 p.m. • Downtown Bend Library | 601 NW Wall Street, Bend
For more information about this or other library programs, please visit the library website at www.deschuteslibrary.org. People with disabilities needing accommodations (alternative formats, seating or auxiliary aides) should contact Liz at 541-312-1032 or lizg@deschuteslibrary.org.
