De Gezichten van Margraten in 2018.

Van 2 tot en met 6 mei 2018 vond voor de derde maal het eerbetoon De Gezichten van Margraten plaats op de Amerikaanse Begraafplaats in Margraten. Niet alleen waren er bijna 6.000 gezichten te zien, ook waren er stemmen te horen in de audioverhalen Stemmen van Margraten die Stichting Laudio maakte. Onderstaande toespraak sprak ik uit tijdens de opening op 2 mei. Bekijk voor een impressie van het eerbetoon de aftermovie!

Ambassador Hoekstra
Governor Bovens
Major General Alex
Captain Buzzell
Mayor Akkermans, Mayors Leers en Wolfs,
Superintendent Stadler
Ladies and Gentlemen 

Freedom. “Freedom is being able to hear the birds sing in the morning,” wrote one of the visitors of the tribute when we asked them what freedom meant to them. A kid said, and we wouldn’t expect it from them, that freedom for him meant being able to go school. Don’t you think that these definitions of freedom are beautiful? I think they are, because they are so simple. 

After all, freedom can be an abstract concept. So is world peace. Of course we try to grasp the scale and horrors of war. This cemetery for sure is a powerful testimony to the cost of war. It inspires us to do better, to live up to the message of “never again.” But however hard we try, the experience of war, and in particular that of a soldier, will remain foreign to us. And speaking of war and world peace might actually overwhelm us. What can we do against all that is happening in the world? I often feel powerless do something meaningfully.  

But in its very essence The Faces of Margraten is not so much about war or about soldiers. The Faces of Margraten is about people, who they were and what they did: then, and now.  Think for example of Wilma Vinsant, one of the only four women who have been buried here. Dolly they called her, because she was so small. But she was a real tough girl from Texas. Or what about Carmelo Amoroso? The boy from an Italian family who loved making pasta with his granny. Theirs as well as other stories have been captured in the powerful audiotour Voices of Margraten, produced by Lubert Priems and Jacqueline Kerkhof and their team, that premiers today.  

Together with the almost 6,000 faces that are on display on the cemetery, the tour makes evident that this is not some kind of history lesson about a distant past. Neither is this about extraordinary heroes who in no way resemble us. The Faces of Margraten is a personal encounter with people who could have been our neighbors in a different time. As some visitors have said: they come to live again. Instead, however, their lives were profoundly changed by events that took place far from their homes.  

These men and women, 16 million Americans in total, came from different walks of life, faced different challenges, and liked different things to do. To the best of their ability, and however small it may have been, each and every one of them contributed in his or her own to what they knew they could not do on their own or perhaps in their situation even had lost faith in: restoring peace in the world.   

But as we get to know these men and women better, the tribute also becomes about people today. About me, about you, about us. If they could make a small contribution to the best of their ability, can’t we do something as well? Of course, we won’t be able to solve the problems of the world on our own, but do we have to? After all, as has been said before, freedom can mean many things, both big and small. So can’t we start out small as well, in our own communities and to our own ability? That is why I think it also is wonderful to have scouts from both Eijsden and Margraten with us today. Scouts strive for personal development. But like the men and women buried here, they seek to serve, just only in a different way, by helping out in their communities. And thus it is most fitting that they participate in this ceremony in just a few moments. 

Other people have already stepped up as well. Indeed, if this tribute is about people, it most definitely is also about all those people who have unselfishly committed themselves to doing the research, to finding the missing photos for many years now, all in order to make sure that none of the soldiers here will be forgotten. Many of them have also helped to put the photos out on the fields, helped by the American Legion Post of Margraten. It is a diverse group, from different ages and different countries. But they all share a heartfelt respect for these men and women. The tribute owes an enormous thanks to these volunteers that I like to express from this podium. 

Ladies and gentlemen, The Faces of Margraten is a touching encounter with the past, but thusalso sends out a powerful message to all of us. While you look at the faces and listen to the voices, I hope you find out the message it holds for you. 

Thank you.