Contributors

Lifelong interest in military history. Started in 2015 as an email handling contributor, later editor-in-chief for Sights. Chairman of STIWOT and TracesOfWar as of January 2020.

Started in 2002 as a technical volunteer. Now as treasurer responsible for the finance. I am mainly concerned with the war in my region, around Helmond, the Netherlands.

Employee of Traces of War since early 2020. Started taking pictures of sights. Then processing the incoming data. Member of staff since June 2021 and since 2023 Editor-in-chief Sights. My interest in World War II started as a child when I heard various stories within my family. In addition, I became interested in the Korea and Vietnam War as a teenager.

From 2004 to 2018 I was project manager of Go2War2.nl. Nowadays I am editor in chief of the domain Articles on TracesOfWar. For this website I also write articles and reviews. My attention is mainly focused on the history of the Holocaust and Nazi Germany. Personal stories about the war also have my interest. Except for TracesOfWar I write for Historiek.net. I've also published two books in English. 'War Zone Zoo' is about the Berlin Zoo and the Second World War. 'Christmas under fire, 1944' tells about Christmas during 1944, at the front, at home and in the camps. More information at: www.kevinprenger.nl.

I am involved with the websites of STIWOT since 2001 and also with STIWOT as an organisation in several functions. I mainly focus on doing historical research and writing historical articles about these inquiries.

In professional life chartered accountant. Since secondary school interested in military history, especially the Western Front of The Great War. Every year I visit a part of the front, from Flanders Fields to the Voges in France. Member of The Western Front Association and Association Nationale 1914-1918. In private I publish my own books. In 2020 I wrote a roadstory about visiting eight WWII concentration camps in Europe with my father several years ago: 'Langs de wegen naar de hel' (Along the roads to hell).

Graduated as a Maritime Officer in Vlissingen. Worked as a Maritime Officer in the merchant navy until 2006. Since 2006 employee of Bureau Veritas. In 2020 started as volunteer for ToW (medals and persons)

Since 2005. Interest in war deaths, from different perspectives. Specialized in Dutch funerary heritage, both in the Netherlands and overseas.

Since December 2020 I deliver missing pictures and new locations.

Ever since my father and mother started telling me stories about their life in the war years, I have been interested in WW2. That must have been 1957 or so, only 10 years after it ended. It has been my 'hobby' in various disguises ever since (scale models, books, battlefield visits, photography, museums) and now that I am retired I hope to have a little time to share some of my knowledge. I think history must be kept alive, correct and passed on to future generations, and those who fought for us must remain in our thoughts.

Author of several books among them two faction-thrillers about Otto Skorzeny.

Also writer of articles in magazines, and books. My interesses include WorldWar I up to and including the Cold War with emphasis on World War II.

Since October 2024, I provide translation services for TracesOfWar. From childhood, WW2 and all events that preceded it and what followed shortly thereafter, has attracted my interest. That interest is also caused by the experiences of my father in the Dutch resistance during the German occupation, but also his post-war military career as an infantry officer in the (former) Dutch East Indies and the Netherlands. In my family were a lot of military officers, serving in all branches of the Dutch armed forces, including the former Royal Dutch East Indies Army, and each of them had to bear the hardship of WW2, be it in Europe or Asia. No surprise how I was brought up. In 1975, I enlisted with the Royal Netherlands Navy, albeit for two years only because I didn’t have the required respect for military hierarchy. Later, I graduated at Leiden University with a master in Sinology (Chinese Languages & Cultures) and afterwards pursued a professional career in the international banking sector. Retired as of 2021. Next to military history, wildlife photography throughout the world is my great passion.

After my study Dutch language and literature (specialization: seventeenth-century language and literature) I worked for one year as an assistant publisher at Gary Schwartz in Maarssen (publisher of art books). After that I worked for more than twelve years in the printing industry as proofreader and project manager. Subsequently I worked for over 22 years at C&F Report as editor-in-chief and project manager. Retired since May 1, 2020. I am also active as a volunteer at handball club Aristos in Amsterdam and as editor-in-chief of Handbal Inside, the only Dutch handball magazine, that appears four times a year. I am also editor-in-chief of EigenWijs, a donor newspaper of the Amsterdam UMC, location VUmc, and of Alzheimer Center Amsterdam (mainly for press releases and the annual report).

My interest in WW2 goes way back. My granddad got me into the subject when I was 12 years old and I have developed my knowledge ever since. Between 2009 and 2016 I lead international groups in the summer through former concentrationcamp Bergen Belsen. The trips would take about 10 days in which we dived into different parts of the holocaust history. In 2017 I became author for Traces of War, a platform I love for the amount of information it contains. Writing articles keeps my passion for history alive, after finishing my master degree in history back in 2014 (military history). My key areas of interest are the German side of the war (holocaust and warfare) and personalities (gives a great insight in perceptions and feelings). My articles for tracesofwar focus on those interests, but I also write about specific units like the SAS or British operations in North-Africa. Normally I work as a consultant in digitalisation and help local government organisations to transform into the digital world. My focus is on the human side of change and I help people to understand why change is necessary and how to improve their working culture. In my free time I do voluntary work for 3 other organisations: Wijherdenken (a initiative to bolster commemoration amongst young people, see facebook/instagram), YMCA Nederland (as chief of international relations) and Y Service Club Zwolle (helping student exchange over the world). The rest of my time goes to sports, which I do at least 6 times a week. I love to do survivalrunning, biking, running, calisthenics or climbing and hiking.

My primary focus is stolpersteine -- identifying new locations, finding photos and getting permission to use them, and researching the stories of the people remembered. I also help with editing English translations of Dutch articles.

Volunteer at Traces of War since 2019. In addition to searching and photographing (new) locations in my spare time, in the first few years I was mainly busy processing submissions from Traces Of War users (photos, texts and new locations). .

Growing up in the 60-70's interested in WOII, especially the military side of it. After 42 years of active service in the armed forces, with two long trips in my RNL Navy time and eight tours abroad in the RNL Army I retired as Major. So now I have plenty of time to dig in to military topics of WOII again. I'm married and have one son.

Anthony 'Sharky' Ward, Ex Royal Navy, hence the nickname. (John 'Sharkey' Ward was a British Sea Captain (1553-1622) turned Barbary Corsair aka Yusuf Rais. Used as a basis for Captain Jack Sparrow). Left the Royal Navy in 2000 after 22 years service, the great majority being at the RNAS Yeovilton in Somerset, where I live nearby, Next 20 years has mostly been working in the Defence Industry/British MOD until early retirement called Easter 2022. Now enjoying as many holidays with my partner, Mary, as I can afford and starting to travel the UK in our motorhome, hence the contributions from around the world.