Honoring and Remembering Fallen WWII American Soldiers in the Netherlands
In 1945, following the end of WWII, a letter arrived at City Hall in Maastricht, Netherlands. It was from a young American war widow, Mabel Rose Feil. She wrote asking for a photograph of her late husband’s grave. “He was my whole life,” Feil wrote. “I will be grateful to you all the days of my life if you can get me a snapshot of his grave.” Pvt. Warren F. Feil’s remains were buried along with more than 20,000 war dead in the Netherlands American Cemetery in the village of Margraten, near Maastricht, just fourteen miles from the German border.
The plea of Mabel and others prompted a grateful Dutch nation to establish an organization to “adopt” the graves of their American liberators buried at the Netherlands American Cemetery, even while the war was still being fought, a story told in the new book by Robert M. Edsel titled Remember Us. For 80 continuous years, Dutch families have lovingly cared for each grave. In some cases, second—and third-generation family members now care for the same grave their parents and grandparents did.
During WWII and despite Dutch neutrality, Nazi Germany invaded the Netherlands in 1940. As the war progressed, the Dutch people endured famine, persecution, and in some cases, death. American troops liberated the Maastricht/Margraten area in mid-September 1944 and were given a hero’s welcome. Despite ongoing fighting, the Dutch opened their homes, billeted soldiers, and freely shared their meager food and possessions. American soldiers who fought in the area for months became honored friends. Those who died fighting were mourned as beloved sons.
What initially started as a small burial ground in Margraten eventually ballooned to a resting place for almost 18,000 American men and women. Following the war, about half of those remains, including those of Warren F. Fiel, were repatriated to the United States at the family’s request. Today, the Netherlands American Cemetery is the final resting place for 8,300 war dead, with more than 1,700 names on the Walls of the Missing. The memory of each American service member is preserved by Dutch citizens.
When Robert M. Edsel, author of the #1 New York Times bestseller The Monuments Men, heard about the Margraten grave adoption program, he was astonished to learn that the 9,000 Dutch families who care for these American graves have connected with just 20% of the American descendants of those buried at Margraten. “Despite repeated efforts,” Edsel said, “the early grave adoption organizers were unable to convince the United States government to provide the next of kin information. Emilie Michiels van Kessenich – a Dutch mother of eleven – went so far as to write to President Truman asking for his intervention. When that effort failed, she made a five-week-long trip to the United States, living with the families who lost a boy during the war, meeting with young widows, and speaking at American Legion and VFW posts. Her message to each was the same: ‘Leave your boys with us; we will watch over them like our own, forever.’”
Edsel embarked on an eight-year research journey to tell the story of American service and sacrifice in the Netherlands in his new book, Remember Us. Along with the book, Edsel has helped facilitate a partnership between the Monuments Men and Women Foundation and the Foundation for Adopting Graves American Cemetery Margraten to launch the Forever Promise Project.
What is the Forever Promise Project?
The Forever Promise Project aims to connect American families with the Dutch adopters who, for 80 years, have watched over the graves of their fallen loved ones. In some instances, the Dutch adopters have photographs or letters of these men, having known them during the war. You can learn more at ForeverPromise.org.
How Does it Work?
Descendants of Americans buried in Margraten can go to ForeverPromise.org and complete a brief questionnaire indicating their relationship to those buried or honored on the Walls of the Missing at Margraten. The Forever Promise Project then facilitates the connection with the Dutch family who cares for their loved one’s grave. There is no cost to the participants. In addition, we’ve added a link on each Find a Grave Memorial at the Netherlands American Cemetery that will link you to ForeverPromise.org.
How Can I Help?
Even if you don’t have an ancestor who served in the Netherlands, you can still participate in this inspiring project by simply spreading the word! Share this post or a link to ForeverPromise.org within your organizations and communities. We can’t think of a better way to honor the sacrifice of the fallen than by building bridges of friendship and connection.
Explore the military records of the brave men and women buried in Margraten on Fold3. Search the Netherlands American Cemetery on Find a Grave, or visit ForeverPromise.org to connect with the Dutch citizens who care for the graves of those who made the ultimate sacrifice.
Inspirational and compassionate!
I am beyond moved by the Dutch citizens whose promise has been kept all these years. Thank you, Hollanders, for the love and respect which you have shown to your adopted sons, our boys. War is a terrible storm, but ever so often, a perfect rainbow rises.
These wonderful people reached out to my family to learn about our relative who perished during WW II. They have developed a beautiful memorial with a narrative and many pictures documenting this life and death as a pilot who made the ultimate sacrifice and is buried side by side with his crew (as requested by their families). We are eternally grateful.
As the daughter of a WWII veteran I am so grateful for your concern and compassion that you have demonstrated all these decades later. It is heartwarming and sad and inspiring all at one time. Thank you.
I also had someone from this project contact me trying to find more info about an individual for whose grave he cares because he saw that I had added gravestone photos for memorials for relatives of his. Unfortunately, I didn’t have any additional information to share.
Thank you for looking after and taking care of our Heroes!
In 2014 I had an opportunity to visit the gravesite of my uncle, Louis Kulchar, who is buried in the Margratan Cemetery. The American caretakers of this cemetery put me in touch with the Dutch family who are looking after my uncle’s grave. I spent a wonderful afternoon with them, including lunch, as well as visiting the gravesite. The American caretakers of this cemetery were very helpful, giving me much additional information about his service. This is a special place, and my thanks go to alll the Dutch people who continue to honor the memory of the Americans still buried there, even 80 years after the fact.
My uncle, Thane Bauman, died November 27, 1944 and is buried at Margraten. The family caring for his grave are truly wonderful people. They have hosted our family members who visited there to see his grave and they came to our family reunion in Michigan a few years ago to meet the rest of the family. The second generation is now caring for Uncle Thane’s grave in conjunction with the first generation. These wonderful people truly understand and are so grateful for the sacrifice these young soldiers made. We are so blessed to have them caring for his grave as well as becoming friends with our entire family.
Barb Hunt
Steven Stenersen
I am the son of a WW II veteran and although my father was not a liberator of the people of the Netherlands, I am none the less grateful for their ongoing care and remembrance of our heroes.
I have been to Normandy and visited our American Cemetery, which is maintained by the United States Government. What is exceptional about the American Cemetery at Margraten, is the fact those who were liberated and their descedents, exhibite profound gratitude for those Americans who made the ultimate sacrifice.
My eternal gratitude to those in the Netherlands for honoring our and their heroes.
My husband & I had the honor of visiting the American Cemetery at Margraten while on a tour of Holland / Belgium. It was such an emotional feeling to see those grave sites of our American heroes who gave of themselves during this time of war. Our tour company gave us each a white rose & we were able to walk the cemetery & place that rose on any gravesite we choose. It brought tears to our eyes to see how many of our American citizens gave of themselves. What was even more touching is the story we were told of how these Dutch families have taken care of our service people all these years & that they teach their children about what happened during the war & how grateful the Dutch were for our help. Forever thankful to the people of the Netherlands for taking on such amazing task of honoring those who are buried at Margraten.
Apparently, they also do this at the Ardennes American cemetery in Belgium. A gentlemen from the Netherlands sent me pictures of my uncle’s grave there
They do my great uncle is buried there. They also have a museum honoring all that died there .
can someone please post this info on Facebook, et al, to more quickly spread the word?
Thank you for your suggestion. This has already been shared on our social channels.
🕯 The kindness of strangers truly touches our souls and unites us as one. We salute all who bravely served, and those who continue to honor and remember our fallen heroes.
On September 29, 2018, the Margarten Men’s Choir performed for the citizens of Orange County, Virginia (a beautiful, rural county in Central Va.). The Choir was in the United States to mark the 74th anniversary of Operation Market Garden, which took place in Holland in the fall of 1944. It was a beautiful concert in both Dutch and English, and the video they showed about the adoption project left barely a dry eye in the audience. The love and gratitude still manifest all these years later is a testimony to the people of the Netherlands. And, in a remarkable turn of events, we learned, on the eve of the choral program, that one of Orange County’s own, King Dean of Barboursville, is buried in the Netherlands American Cemetery! Thank you to the choir and the people of Margarten.
My uncle, Major Thomas Clayton Cargill, was a c-47 pilot whose plane was shot down March 24, 1945 over Wesel, Germany. He had dropped his paratroopers and was banking to head to his base in France when his plane crashed. He was declared MIA until October of 1945 when his status was changed to KIA. A few months afterwards, my grandparents received a letter from a precious family in Holland who had adopted his grave. Tiny was the 16 year-old daughter of this family who knew some English and was able to correspond with my grandparents. The van Muelen family would put flowers on my uncle’s grave when there were only wooden crosses on the soldiers’ graves and send pictures. In 2014, I had the privilege of traveling with my husband and son to The American National Cemetery in Margraten for Memorial Day. It was one of the highlights of my life. I had been able to find the surviving member of the van Muelen family, Tiny, who had written all the letters to my grandparents, which I still have. She was 90 years old. Her precious son brought her to the Memorial Day service at Margraten, and I was able to meet her. We hugged and cried. It was a once-in -a -lifetime moment. We were able to visit my uncle’s grave together and lay flowers on it.
I know first hand of the love, kindness and dedication of the wonderful Dutch people!!! What a blessing they have been to so many who lost loved ones so far from home. God bless them!!!
I don’t have anyone buried at Margraten but my husband, a Korean War Army veteran, and I visited there while staying with friends in Maastricht. It was a very touching experience. I can say from personal experience that the Dutch are a very kind people.
My mother’s first husband, my brothers father, James Michael Bell, was killed in Overloon, Holland, and is buried at Henri Chappelle Cemetery. An incredible group of Dutch people have adopted graves there in a beautiful act. My heartfelt thanks goes out to them.
Such a heart warming story of adopting graves overseas. Thank you for sharing this story. I visited Pvt. Warren’s memorial on Find A Grave and placed a flower of remembrance for his sacrifice.