On Valentine’s Day 1943 (77 years ago) Kriegy Bill Sharpe (above with daughter, Cindy) was captured at Faid Pass near Kasserine Pass in North Africa. He was a “guest” of the Germans in a POW camp in Szubin, Poland until January 1945. Nearly 1500 American officers joined him there and together they shared their skills, talents and zest for life establishing a patriotic community. Due to the uniqueness of the camp and its prisoners, we are seeking to build a museum on the site to commemorate and preserve their experiences for generations to come.
2Lt Wilbur B. Sharpe Jr. posing for his POW identification card.
Bill was merely 20 years old at the time of his capture and "celebrated" his 21st birthday in Oflag 64 on June 24, 1943. He relates that there was no cake with candles that day.
This excerpt from an article published in the Indianapolis News in December 1944 was clipped by his mother, Mrs. Olive Sharpe and kept in her personal scrap book. Note the reference to Col John Waters, General Patton's son-in-law.
Update
501 (c) (3) nonprofit EIN: 84 -1889226
Friends of Oflag 64 has been officially recognized by the Internal Revenue Service as a nonprofit on August 19, 2019 and is listed under the Guidestar website with the NTEE code A54, History and Museums!
The Board of Directors:
Cindy Burgess (daughter of ex-Kriegy Wilbur Sharpe) Chairman
Nancy Wyatt (daughter of ex-Kriegy Robert Thompson) Secretary
Pat Thompson, Treasurer
The Artifacts Committee:
Dave Stewart (son of ex-Kriegy Don Stewart)
Claire Anderson Bowlby (PhD student at George Mason University)
Rosa Lee (daughter of ex-Kriegy Vincent Di Francesco)
Ann Rogers (niece of ex-Kriegy Frank Aten)
Elodie Ellsworth Caldwell (daughter of ex-Kriegy Reid Ellsworth)
Anne Hoskot Kreutzer (daughter of ex-Kriegy Nathanial Hoskot)