First Newsletter

Hello everyone and welcome to the first newsletter from The Necessary War photo project and book.

You are receiving this email because in some way, shape, or form you have been an important part of this project. You may be a veteran of World War II, a survivor of the Holocaust, or a Rosie who has had your portrait taken. Perhaps you are a family member or a friend of one of the project’s survivors and veterans. You may have helped to arrange a meeting between a veteran or survivor and myself. You might work in a museum, a cemetery, or a JCC. You might be a historian, author, researcher, or producer. You have supported me on my travels in North America and in Europe. Whatever your role has been, you have been an integral part of this project. If you have received this newsletter, you have supported the mission of preserving the stories of our World War II Veterans, Holocaust Survivors and Homefront workers and educating about this unique period in our history through photography. This mission has been a team effort from the start, and you all have been part of it.

This newsletter is going to be a way to reach all the projects participants and supporters and keep you up to date on the project and book’s progress. At this point, so many portraits have been taken, and I have met so many wonderful people, that it has become impossible to keep in touch with everyone. This way you can respond directly to this email and say hello!

Steven Ryan, Founder

Some Updates

Why is it titled “The Necessary War”?

Some may know, I am an unashamed fan of Ken Burns’ documentaries. Inspired by the first episode titled “A Necessary War”, in his series “The War”, came the inspiration for the title of this project and book. In this first episode, a veteran Marine pilot by the name of Sam Hynes stated:

“There are sometimes necessary wars and I think, one might say, just wars”. War is ruinous to humanity, and therefore should be avoided at all costs, and the allied nations of the Second World War made extensive efforts to avoid conflict with Germany and Japan (many historians agree, too extensive). Yet with Germany’s invasion of Poland in 1939, the succeeding Nazi’s ethnic cleansing policy for the entire continent of Europe and the Japanese bombing of Pearl Harbor in 1941, World War II undoubtedly became “The Necessary War”.

A little more about the project:

The idea for this project started more than 7 years ago with the concept of going to Normandy to photograph some of the infamous battlefields and memorials from the D-Day invasion and what remains today. This small trip eventually mushroomed into a much larger photo expedition where I would backpack throughout the continent of Europe for 32 days. In July of 2018, I embarked on this journey throughout nine European countries photographing historical World War II locations, cemeteries, memorials, and concentration camps.

During the 2018 trip, I was given a tour of Southwick house in Portsmouth, England by a man who inspired me to meet with veterans from World War II. The next part of the project was inspired, a major undertaking, to do portraits of, and interview World War II Veterans, Homefront Workers, and Holocaust Survivors. Over the last four and a half years, I have been honored to take the portrait of more than 190 of these heroes. It has certainly been a life changing experience. The project has two major aspects to it that both serve to educate the reader. Photographs of the locations and memorials of The War as they are today, and the portraits of the Men and Women who fought in its battles, served for their countries, or survived its horrors.

What inspired the start of this project?

I was inspired to pursue this project after finding a newfound interest in World War II history. After watching mini-series such as the “Band of Brothers” and “The Pacific”, I wanted to know more. What was the real history behind these battles and these men that were depicted on television? As I grew older, I took more of an interest in my own family history, as my grandmother narrowly escaped deportation to Auschwitz while living in Italy as a Jew during the war. A lot of my grandmother's extended family were murdered at Auschwitz concentration camp, including her aunt. Photography is my strength, and this is the way I can say thank you to the generation who fought and survived the War and Holocaust, as well as provide a different approach to teaching history through photography.

Please visit the website for some more information.

How can I help?

For those of you who don’t already follow “The Necessary War” on Facebook and Instagram, please do so! The more of a following that we have, the more people can learn from the stories about the men and women who are included in this project.

facebook.com/TheNecessaryWar

instagram.com/thenecessarywar/

In the coming weeks a fundraising campaign will be launched so please be on the lookout for that if you are able to assist.

How can I get in touch?

You can e-mail me at Steven@TheNecessaryWar.com

Or you can reply directly to this email!

Thank you and hope to hear from all of you soon!